Omaha Beach's owner vows not to part with his next star so early

If owner Rick Porter had to do it over again in his management of fleeting star Omaha Beach, he would have gone about things differently.

Porter appears to be filled with seller’s remorse as his newly turned 4-year-old eyes his final career start in the $3 million Pegasus World Cup (G1) on Jan. 25 at Gulfstream Park before he is retired to stud at Spendthrift Farm in Kentucky.

While the 79-year-old owner is delighted with his choice of Spendthrift as a nod to his extraordinary relationship with farm owner B. Wayne Hughes, whose intervention led to his being a cancer survivor, he vows to never again pull the plug so soon on the career of a top colt.

“I’ve had a lot of good horses. If I ever get another one that’s a colt, I am never agreeing to retire them at the end of their 3-year-old career,” Porter said. “If they are going to buy them from me, I am going to have the right to run him through his 4-year-old career.

“I’m just not giving that up. And if they don’t go for that, they’re not going to be in the running to buy him.”

Spendthrift Farm acquired breeding rights to Omaha Beach at the end of last April only to have circumstances radically change for everyone involved. The son of War Front, trained by Hall of Famer Richard Mandella, had won the Rebel Stakes (G2) and the Arkansas Derby (G1) to stamp himself as a solid Kentucky Derby favorite. But an entrapped epiglottis forced him to be scratched.

The breathing issue and subsequent surgery kept Omaha Beach from returning to the races until Oct. 5, when he captured the Santa Anita Sprint Championship (G1). A poor start contributed to his second-place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile before he rebounded with a victory in the Malibu Stakes (G1) at Santa Anita. The effort was so impressive that regular rider Mike Smith had time to peek at the infield Jumbotron to appreciate his mount’s brilliance.

No matter how Omaha Beach fares as a prime contender in the Pegasus – Mandella expects him to fully recover from a minor foot bruise revealed this week to make the start – fans will always wonder about the depth of the youngster’s talent. Was he merely scratching the surface?

“We just lost half of his 3-year-old career,” Porter said. “Nobody will ever know how great he might have been.”

Although Omaha Beach is expected to be a popular stallion and Porter understands Spendthrift’s desire to retire him to the breeding shed, he said of the agreement, “I just thought there would be a good chance if he was doing well that they would want to run him as a 4-year-old. But I can see their point.”

Porter always wanted Omaha Beach to land at Spendthrift because of his indebtedness to Hughes. In early 2017, Porter’s doctors told him there was nothing more they could do for him in what had deteriorated into a losing battle with cancer.

Anthony Manganaro of Siena Farm in Paris, Ky., upon hearing that grim news, contacted Hughes in his friend’s behalf. Hughes assisted Porter in gaining access to a clinical trial at Massachusetts General Hospital. The month-long treatment sent the cancer into remission, leaving Porter forever indebted to Manganaro and Hughes.

“I wouldn’t have a chance of being alive. I was dying,” Porter said. “I was getting sicker and sicker. I got in there just in time.”

Porter said of his association with Hughes, “I couldn’t have thanked him any more than I did. He’s a wonderful guy. He couldn’t be nicer.”

Porter eagerly looks to the future again as he resumes his Kentucky Derby quest. He said he purchased 15 yearlings this year at an average price of $300,000. The majority were colts. He placed second with Hard Spun in the 2007 Derby and second again with star-crossed filly Eight Belles in 2008.

He campaigned two other splendid fillies, multiple Eclipse Award winner Songbird and Havre de Grace, the 2011 Horse of the Year.

“There is no greater feeling than watching a great race by your horse and walking down to that winner’s circle,” Porter said.

Despite the what-if nature of his career, Omaha Beach has provided his share of thrilling performances. He has won half of his 10 lifetime starts with four runner-up finishes and one third for earnings of $1,651,800.

Given the brevity of Omaha Beach’s racing career and his vow to make different decisions in the future, Porter was asked if a Pegasus triumph would be bittersweet.

“Just real sweet,” he replied.