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During his career as a journalist, while covering racing, sales and horsemen on an international basis, Irwin reached a point where he wanted to be a player and not a writer. He had been able to pick up the fine points of the game from his unique position as an insider and as somebody who was able to ask a lot of meaningful questions of some of the Turf's greatest participants. "I drove a lot of famous people nuts asking them questions" Irwin explained. But there were things I wanted to know and I was in a perfect place to pester racing's greats for answers."
Irwin learned his lessons well. His first two runners won for Irwin while he still wrote for Daily Racing Form. Irwin left the Form at the close of the 1978 Del Mar meet to become a bloodstock agent. In the next decade, Irwin bred, raced, syndicated, bought and sold several hundred horses, including It's the One, African Sky, Moscow Ballet and Torsion. After a decade in bloodstock, Irwin in 1987 zeroed in on the aspect of racing for which he felt most suited--operating a stable of syndicated racehorses. He formed a partnership with longtime friend Jeff Siegel and the rest, as they say, is history. "The creative challenge of spotting and developing the equine talent, coupled with the satisfaction of being able to allow other people to realize their dreams, is an intoxicating combination," he said. "I am indulging my desires of being a track coach, screenwriter and Hollywood producer all rolled into one."
In 2002, Irwin had his story about his favorite racehorse Swaps published by Eclipse Press as part of its biographical series of legendary racehorses. Irwin has never stopped writing. Nowadays his Op/Eds are regularly seen online in the Thoroughbred Daily News, Paulick Report and Thoroughbred Racing Commentary. In 2002, Irwin had his story about his favorite racehorse Swaps published by Eclipse Press as part of its biographical series of legendary racehorses. In 2016, Irwin published his memoirs in the book "Derby Innovator; The Making of Animal Kingdom." As a lifelong fan and former high jumper/hurdler, Irwin follows Track & Field as his main hobby and he and his wife have attended the Olympic Games in London, as well as the Olympic Trials, National Championships and Prefontaine Invitational meets in Eugene, Oregon. Irwin and his wife have been together for 20 years and divide their time between their Kentucky residence and wherever their horses are running. Irwin has campaigned two Scottish Terriers to championship honors and currently has a 4-year-old Scottie "Raider" as a Westminster-bound showdog. The Irwins travel extensively to Europe, where Barry visits his Edinburgh, Scotland-based daughter Chloe Alys.
Heyman grew up in greater Baltimore, was a high school All-American wide receiver, and graduated cum laude with a degree in political science from the University of Maryland. After graduating from Temple University School of Law 1987, where he was awarded the William R. Spofford Scholarship for outstanding legal scholarship, he practiced law. In the racing industry, he managed the racing and Marathon Farm operations of the late Baltimore Orioles owner Peter Angelos and sat on the board of Fair Hill training center. He has formed racing partnerships and managed stakes-winning runners in the Mid-Atlantic. He also worked privately as a consultant to owners and breeders in acquiring racing and breeding stock, both privately and at public auction. Fred will also contribute to the in-house client newsletter The Insider's Bulletin which the administration staff produces twice weekly.
Born in Oklahoma, Kathleen spent her teen years in the Northwest, where she became enthralled with racing at nearby Playfair racetrack in Spokane, Washington. What led the fair maiden to that den of iniquity on the leaky roof circuit was something as innocent as a Stallion Register bought at a downtown used bookstore in Portland, Oregon. "I have always been interested in genealogy," admitted Kathleen "and I just became fascinated with the families and pedigrees in that book. It led me to the racetrack, where I found the game intriguing in all of its aspects." Kathleen eventually moved to the Bluegrass region of Lexington, Kentucky, where she operated the foreign research wing of Bloodstock Research Information Services full time for 7 years, and still contributes foreign stakes results from home on a part-time basis for BRISNET. An award-winning author, Kathleen has written both fiction and non-fiction of distinction and import. Her tutorial on Dosage, which can be found on this website on the Library page, has aided many a newcomer to the industry in understanding the basic principles of the discipline. She has written extensively about the history of the Triple Crown and its participants. Along with her sister Joy, she started and helps to maintain an on-line database of all horses to ever participate in the Triple Crown races. Two of her short stories have been included in an anthology of award-winning fiction published in 2007 by the Thoroughbred Times named "Thoroughbred Tales." She is married to Barry Irwin. They currently have one dog; a Scottish Terrier named Raider. Her time spent in the Pacific Northwest has left her with a lifelong affliction as a Seattle Seahawk diehard. She also follows University of Kentucky's basketball team. Kathleen's interests outside of racing are genealogy (i.e. human pedigrees) and the unique hobby of reuniting family members with old photographs of relatives that she places on a dedicated website after finding them in antique shops and flea markets. She has sent "home" more than 200 vintage photographs to descendants and relatives.
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Clover Racing Stables
In the winter of 1987, as introduction of simulcasting held out a promise of increased purses, Irwin and Siegel became the prime founders of Clover Racing Stables. Luck was with the venture from the beginning, as the first horse to wear the black silks with green clovers was Political Ambition. Before that first racing season was in the books, Irwin and Siegel became the majority stockholders in Clover, Political Ambition became a Grade 1 winner in the Hollywood Derby and English import Lizzy Hare won the Grade 2 Del Mar Oaks. Within two years, Irwin/Siegel gained reputations as the "upset kings." First they sent out 50-to-1 longshot Martial Law to win the $1 million Santa Anita Handicap. Then Prized shocked the racing world by upsetting Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner Sunday Silence in the Swaps Stakes. Then they sent out Prized to win the $2 million Breeders' Cup Turf in his first start on grass.
Team Valor Early in 1992, when the two other shareholders in Clover were unwilling to inject capital into the venture, Irwin/Siegel ceased syndicating horses as Clover and formed a new entity in which they owned all of the stock.
"We were always bold and our business partners had been restricting our creativity," Irwin said. "The first move we made on our own was to buy My Memoirs, who had never run on dirt in England. We thought he was a Belmont Stakes horse, so we had him trained on the all-weather by Richard Hannon, who produced him on race day for the race of his life. The colt came flying to finish second to A.P. Indy." In its second season of operation, Team Valor won 21 stakes races, a figure exceeded only by multiple Eclipse Award-winning owner John Franks, who raced many more horses than Team Valor. Seasonal earnings for Team Valor was $3,465,369. The upsets continued as before, as Star of Cozzene first shocked Lure in the Caesar's International, then robbed him of a $1 million bonus from sponsor Early Times in the Manhattan Handicap at Belmont Park. Team Valor continued to develop Triple Crown horses, such as Captain Bodgit, Thomas Jo and The Deputy, as well as a bevy of brilliant fillies such as Golden Ballet and Cashier's Dream. Team Valor moved its headquarters from California to Kentucky in order to sharpen its focus on acquisitions both at home and abroad, as well as allowing Irwin more accessibility to Team Valor's horses trained in the Midwest and the East Coast. "We went from a marketing centric organization to a more client-orientated company," Irwin said. "We said goodbye to our sales staff and other employees and I worked in a one-room office with Kathleen Jones (who later became Mrs. Barry Irwin). We began to communicate one-on-one with our racing partners, relying heavily on the phone and e-mail to communicate so our partners were able to get all of their information directly from the top. "With no staff to supervise and no salesmen to pay, I had more time to spend on managing horses and prospecting for new ones. The results spoke for themselves." Team Valor developed a loyal client base that is interested equally in success and fun. "We have a sophisticated group of partners," said Irwin. "They participate with us because they want to have the satisfaction that comes from owning a horse that can run at the top level of the sport. "Their enjoyment comes from the pride of owning a quality racehorse. They don't just want to participate, they want to compete. They expect us to produce winners. We know this and that is why we work so hard to keep the winners coming. If we don't continue to produce, we know they won't stay with us. So we never stop trying to do better."
Team Valor International As of July 1, 2007, Barry Irwin bought out Jeff Siegel and renamed the stable Team Valor International, to reflect a change in the company's business plan that had taken effect in the years immediately preceding the buyout. "Truth be told, we had been international for years," said Irwin. "We sensed the world was going 'flat' with the revolution of the Internet and I have always been more interested in prospecting talent abroad than locally, because of the variety of horses in other countries. "I have always said that a good horse can come from anyplace and we set about to prove the notion as the new millennium began. "Look at all the good ones we've bought abroad, such as Santa Anita Handicap winner Martial Law and Belmont Stakes runner-up My Memoirs. "What changed, though, was into the new millennium we began racing a lot of horses abroad before bringing them to the United States."
After Barry Irwin moved to Kentucky just before 2000, Team Valor dramatically increased the number and scope of its international quest for equine talent. During this period of time, Team Valor has had Horses of the Year, Champions and Group 1/Grade 1 winners in England, Ireland, France, Italy, United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, Canada, the United States and South Africa. "We scoured the globe to find and develop the best equine talent available," said Irwin, who in the past couple of years has bought horses in England, Ireland, France, Italy, Germany, South Africa, United States, Canada, Uruguay, Brazil and Argentina.
TEAM VALOR In perhaps its boldest move yet, Barry Irwin for 2020 has decided to eschew racing and breeding in the United States and focus on the Sport of Kings in Europe.
In 2019 TVI sent English-based Spanish Mission to New York to win the $1-million Jockey Club Derby at Belmont Park and more of this type of activity can be counted on in the future, as on the international stakes program races will be targeted in England, Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, Dubai, Australia, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Japan and Hong Kong.
Barry Irwin has long been recognized as an innovative entrepreneur who always seems to be one step ahead of a trend. Truth be told he has set the trend for many out-of-the-box ventures. Based on history, industry participants can expect to see other Americans follow his lead to Europe.
But newcomers to racing abroad will face a stiff learning curve that Barry Irwin has spent years negotiating. In 2020, Irwin will be racing in Europe for his sixth decade after having just celebrated his 50th year as a member of the racing world. He began as a staff writer for The Blood-Horse magazine in 1969.
"We look forward to conquering new worlds in horse racing." | ||||||||||||||||
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Barry Irwin and Jeff Siegel, great friends since meeting in the press box in 1970, in the ensuing years owned horses together and shared a mutual interest in scouting for runners with a future.
Barry Irwin designed the distinctive crimson and forest green silks and named the new venture Team Valor, after that aspect of equine character admired most in a racehorse by him.
Most famous horse in this trend was the fabulous filly 
As detailed herein on the Welcome page, Team Valor going forward will buy, race and sell horses strictly in Europe. It will raid foreign countries with its best horses, as it has done for decades, but it will stable its stock exclusively in Europe.
