The Option of Breeding While Racing

It was recently announced that 2011 North America Cup winner, Up The Credit, will be bred to mares in 2012 but rather than retiring from racing will be pointed toward a four year old campaign on the race track.

Quoting from a piece on the topic in Harness Racing Update; “He (Up The Credit) had a knee problem all year and he's over it and better now than he's ever been, so we thought we'd bring him back and race him as a 4-year-old and maybe even a 5-year-old,” co-owner and trainer Carl Jamieson said.

“Up The Credit’s return to the races will provide racing fans the opportunity to watch a major stakes winning three year old compete for another season, rather than disappear into the breeding shed,” observed Jeff Gural. “I applaud their decision and am hopeful that others will consider continuing to race their top horses while breeding them in the future. We encourage breeders to support Up The Credit as it shows that the Jamiesons recognize the current model of retiring our best three year olds is not working and we need to take some chances for the long term benefit of the industry.”