Mage notches his final breeze for the Travers Aug. 19 at Saratoga (Janet Napolitano)
NYRA Press Office
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y.— Mage gave his 382 CMNWLTH investors an experience they will always cherish when he captured the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs. CMNWLTH co-founder Chase Chamberlain is hopeful that the handsome chestnut colt can provide another whirlwind experience for the shareholders in Saturday’s 154th running of the Grade 1, $1.25 million Travers at Saratoga Race Course.
Mage, trained by Gustavo Delgado, will attempt to be the first Kentucky Derby winner to add a Travers triumph to his resume since Street Sense kept Grasshopper at bay in deep stretch in 2007. The Good Magic colt was a game second to returning rival Forte in the Grade 1 Florida Derby at Gulfstream Park before earning the garland of roses on the First Saturday in May. He has since finished third in the Grade 1 Preakness at Pimlico Race Course two months before running a hard-fought second in the Grade 1 Haskell at Monmouth Park.
Mage was bought for $290,000 at the 2022 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale by OGMA Investments, headed by assistant trainer Gustavo Delgado, Jr., and Ramiro Restrepo. He is also owned by Sam Hershberger’s Sterling Racing.
CMNWLTH, launched by Chamberlain and Brian Doxtator in 2021, is a platform that offers shares of thoroughbreds starting at $50 per unit.
CMNWLTH previously partnered with WinStar Farm and Zedan Racing Stables’ Country Grammer, who captured last year’s Group 1 Dubai World Cup at Meydan Racecourse and has banked earnings of nearly $15 million. They also partnered on graded stakes-winner We the People.
Recently, CMNWLTH has branched out and now offer shares of PGA golfers Joey Vrzich and Cooper Dossey.
“We started in horse racing and that’s gone over incredibly well for us. People were able to invest in Country Grammer, who is now the fifth highest earning thoroughbred of all time and then, of course, Kentucky Derby winner Mage, all for $50 a share,” Chamberlain said. “Those involved are from all over the country and all over the world. I think we have around 13 countries involved, but most people are from America. The average investor spends about three to four hundred dollars. Some have a single share, others have over $10,000 of shares. Most people are average age about 36, so it’s a younger audience. Recently, we’ve moved into golf as well and that’s just the beginning of our expansion.”
Chamberlain said that his love for horses combined with Doxtator’s affinity for golf were the ingredients to a prosperous recipe.
“When he and I founded the company, it wasn’t immediately obvious we were going to do golf, but the beauty of this whole thing is horses are my lifelong passion and Brian is a scratch golfer,” Chamberlain said. “I’m a lifelong horse guy that started riding when I was four. So, these are the two sports that we’re the most passionate about. To have the two co-founders be aligned with their favorite sports that they not only deeply care about, but also know a lot about made for a match made in heaven.”
Chamberlain met Restrepo at the Travers several years ago, which was just the beginning stages of a great partnership.
“In my experience, horses are the best at connecting folks, so it’s pretty serendipitous that he and I met at Saratoga on Travers day,” Chamberlain recalled. “This is when Brian and I were first starting CMNWLTH. A lot of it was just a dream. We had built our app and business model, but we were in stealth mode, we didn’t have users. We told him our plan and years later he reached out and the first horse we partner on is a Kentucky Derby winner. Every step has been excellent with Ramiro and Gustavo, we love those guys.”
Chamberlain recalled Restrepo telling him about a young Mage during the sale.
“Right after Ramiro and Gustavo bought him at auction, Ramiro called me and told me they had a tag on him available. Others were called before us and ultimately passed on him,” Chamberlain said. “I like to put eyes and hands on a horse before we purchase them or commit. I loved the look of the colt and I saw the breeze video and liked what I saw. A couple weeks later, I went over to look at him and said, ‘OK, we’re in.’”
Chamberlain described Mage as a “spitting image” of his sire Good Magic, who earned Champion 2-Year-Old Colt honors in 2017 before winning the following year’s Haskell. Good Magic, a son of Curlin, finished ninth in the 2018 Travers in his final career start.
“At the time I wouldn’t have told you he’d be a Kentucky Derby winner, but I did believe that he’d be a stakes quality horse,” Chamberlain said. “He had so much quality to him, he looked so much like his Dad and his breeze at the sale was so impressive. He just had something about him when you look at him, especially at that point.
“He’s got a great shoulder, he’s built like a bull,” Chamberlain continued. “He has a great head and he looked like he was going to be fast, and thankfully we were right. I think more than anything, on the softer side, he had an incredible look in his eye. He has a really intelligent eye.”
While offerings on all CMNWLTH-owned horses are closed, Chamberlain will be at the 2023 Keeneland September Yearling Sale as well as sales abroad in search of their next superstar.
“We’re going to start getting into hyperdrive mode here soon with sales season kicking into high gear,” Chamberlain said. “We’ll be active at the European sales as well purchasing horses with some very exciting partnerships. So, we’ll have a lot of new horses coming to CMNWLTH over the next couple of months.
Restrepo spoke volumes of his experience in partnering with CMNWLTH.
“[Gustavo Delgado, Jr.] and I have been working the sales and buying horses for several years now. This is the only horse we own together with CMNWLTH and Sam Hershberg, but they’ve been fantastic,” Restrepo said. “Brian and Chase are young guys that have success with their business early on with Country Grammer and We the People. It just goes to show that they put themselves in great partnerships and have had some success in their short time. It’s been a seamless journey with them. We’re all really enjoying this ride. It helps when you have a horse of this caliber.”
Restrepo compared Mage’s campaign to the Olympics and said he’s earned a medal in his last four starts.
“If this was the Olympics and we’re sitting here with medals, we have a Kentucky Derby gold, a Haskell silver, a Florida Derby silver and a Preakness bronze. Those are only things you can dream of if you were an Olympian,” Restrepo said. “Here we are with a horse giving us all medals and all amazing rides of our life. It’s been a harmonious beautiful moment and we want to continue this ride as far as he can take us.”
