Richard and Karen Papiese's Midwest Thoroughbreds surpassed a 38-year-old single-season record for victories by an owner this month with 501 winners from 1,706 starters in 2012.
The old mark was 494 wins, set by Dan Lasater in 1974.
Midwest Thoroughbreds tied the record Nov. 23 with P D Q Kiddo in an allowance at Hawthorne Race Course and went on to set their own in the following days.
Through Nov. 30, horses owned by Midwest have earned $9,524,574 at a 29% win rate. With 325 seconds and 238 thirds this year, the outfit's horses are finishing in the money 62% of the time.
Richard Papiese, a 52-year-old Chicago businessman, got into the racing game with just two horses in 2001. His operation expanded after moderate success for the next eight years when he formed Midwest Thoroughbreds and hired trainer Jamie Ness in 2009. Midwest finished second nationally that year with 236 wins despite starting about 1,200 fewer runners than that year's leader, Mike Gill.
Midwest Thoroughbreds led the nation in races won in 2010 with 310, and in 2011 as well with 418.
"It's great to see an owner based in Illinois tie the record with an Illinois-bred," Jim Miller, assistant general manager at Hawthorne, said after P D Q Kiddo got the tying win.
Midwest Thoroughbreds has about 100 horses in training at Hawthorne. It leased the Chicagoland oval's backside this summer to use as a training center during the off season. Roger Brueggemann conditions the Chicago-based horses, while Ness conditions the majority of Midwest's runners from his base on the East Coast.
