Texas Partners Power Into Racing

Longtime friends Peter Fluor and K.C. Weiner have already experienced success together in the oil and energy industries, and the Texas-based duo are surely hoping their good fortune will carry over to the racing industry after going to a cool $1 million for recent GII Thoroughbred Club of America S. winner Leigh Court (Grand Slam) (hip 99). The 4-year-old is the first Thoroughbred for both partners, and Fluor noted that Leigh Court would remain in training. 

“I own one horse–the one I just bought,” quipped Fluor, the chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Texas Crude Energy, an oil and gas exploration company, after signing the ticket as Speedway Stables. “We had a horseless stable before this.” 

While Fluor and Weiner may be newcomers to racing, they boast pedigrees that could land them in the winner’s circle. Their fathers were partners in the horse business, and the elder Weiner was involved in the dual G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe hero Alleged in the 1970s. 

“My partner’s father and my father were partners in the horse business, and they’re both gone, so here we’ve got the young guys coming back to do the same thing,” Fluor said. 

Fluor is also a director of Fluor Corporation, an engineering, procurement, construction, maintenance and project management company, and a director of Anadarko Petroleum Corporation. He noted that they are discussing a trainer for Leigh Court, who was offered by Taylor Made Sales Agency as part of the Melnyk Racing Stables Dispersal. The dark bay is out of the French Deputy mare Padmore, and is a half-sister to German Group 2 winner King of Sydney (Diesis {GB}) and fellow Ontario Colleen winner Barracks Road (Elusive Quality). She TCA marked the second straight stakes win for Leigh Court, who won the GIII Seaway S. on her belated seasonal debut at Woodbine Aug. 24. She also won last year’s GIII Ontario Colleen S. for trainer Josie Carroll. –Kelsey Riley