Chris Ward - Triple Crown Syndications

TDN AusNZ: Where are you from and what is your earliest racing memory?

Chris Ward: I was born and raised in Sydney and I was lucky enough to attend race days at Randwick and Rosehill as a youngster. I remember being allowed to have my 50 cent bets but I just enjoyed the sport, the action and the challenge of trying to find the winner.

TDN AusNZ: Which is your favourite racehorse of all time? Why?

CW: Redzel (Snitzel) is the obvious answer. The journey with him has simply been incredible. It is an amazing experience and really satisfying to be involved in selecting him as a yearling with my brother Mike, managing him through his career for his ownership group and then watching him achieve what he did. The only thing more satisfying than that would be if we had bred him too, but that honour belongs with Lee Fleming.

Redzel was a Champion on the track and an absolute gentleman off it. Mike and I are so grateful for everything he has done for us and for all those people who played their roles in shaping his career from Peter and Paul Snowden and all their staff, his jockeys Kerrin McEvoy, Hugh Bowman, Jim Byrne and others, Muskoka Farm, Toby Pracey and everyone else.

TDN AusNZ: Do you have a favourite day on a racecourse? Why?

CW: The Everest race day in Sydney and Derby Day in Melbourne. The Everest day is enormous and the vibe and atmosphere on track is like no other day I’ve experienced. Derby day is also so special for its history, tradition and sheer quality of race fields throughout the day.

TDN AusNZ: Could you tell us how you got into this industry, about your job now and what you love most about it?

CW: I grew up in a family that was involved in the industry through racing and breeding in a small way. I always had that interest and passion for the game, but it wasn’t until my mid-late twenties that I saw an opportunity to move out of the finance industry and create a job that aligned with my passion for the thoroughbred industry. Hence, Triple Crown Syndications was born.

I now run Triple Crown with my brother Mike, and we love being in a position where we can introduce so many new owners into the industry and share the experience with them. We also love the challenge of trying to identify top class racehorses and giving our owners an amazing ownership experience. Seeing the impact that these horses have on our owner’s lives is pretty unique and special.

TDN AusNZ: Who do you believe to be a value sire for the upcoming breeding season? Why?

CW: If you are breeding to race, stallions like Your Song and Epaulette. Both of them can produce some really good runners and are just in need of the real flagbearer. As a result, they are at the more affordable end of the spectrum but that could change pretty quickly with one or two real top liners.

TDN AusNZ: Is there a stallion that you consider to be under the radar?, and why?

CW: Kermadec (NZ) could potentially be a smokey. It is only early days and they are unproven as yet, but we have a couple and they both look promising. He produces really athletic and good moving types, but the market will have to wait until they are 3-year-olds to start seeing what his progeny are really made of.

TDN AusNZ: Which stallion, ever, do you think was the best type?

CW: Frankel (GB) is an incredible specimen. He is beautifully put together, well balanced and a magnificent fluent mover.

TDN AusNZ: Which first-season sire (other than your own) do you believe is most exciting?

CW: Yes Yes Yes and Pierata are great prospects this year for Coolmore and Aquis respectively. Not only will they be commercial, but they will give their breeders every chance of producing some quality runners.

TDN AusNZ: What was your favourite weanling, yearling or mare purchase this year?

CW: That’s like asking me to choose my favourite child. I don’t have a favourite as I love them all but for all differing reasons.

TDN AusNZ: Who do you think is a rising star within the industry? (Person not horse).

CW: I think Chris Russell is doing a magnificent job at Inglis. I’ve seen him over the years slowly but surely rising through the ranks and his auctioneering skills are first class. He knows his bloodstock and is a real natural behind the rostrum.

TDN AusNZ: What positive change would you like to see in the industry?

CW: I would love to see the aggregation of TV rights. The television exposure is so important to the industry for so many reasons and I feel it is too fragmented at the moment to maximise the opportunities that exist to promote our sport to its fullest.

TDN AusNZ: If you weren’t in this industry what would you do?

CW: I’m so lucky to have a career in an industry that is also my passion but if it wasn’t for the thoroughbred industry, I would most likely still be involved in financial services. In saying that, building residential property fascinates me and I think I would enjoy being involved in that industry too. However, given my level of expertise at Bunnings is the sausage sizzle, I would have a lot of work to do to make a go of that game.

TDN AusNZ: How are you keeping busy in isolation?

CW: We have been very fortunate during this isolation period. Business is still running flat out to the point of now being sold out of our stock and on the lookout for other new prospects. So keeping busy has not been a problem but a bit of boredom has been creeping in. Essentially being restricted to two locations (home and the office) and therefore only seeing the same few people has me yearning for things opening up again and getting more variety of places to go and people to catch up with. On this point, the governments and everyone in the racing industry deserve a lot of credit for the way in which they have navigated and led the way through this pandemic.