Trainer Doug Cowans and owner Michael Foster constantly look for opportunities in the claiming ranks. They devote hours to scrutinizing past performances and race replays in an incessant search for horses they believe are underachieving and can be improved.

Cowans cannot put into words exactly what drew him to Next as he observed him over several starts. It was more intuition than anything else. When the gelded son of Not This Time was made available for a $62,500 claiming price — a “claiming race” is a  race in which each horse entered is eligible to be purchased at a set price — in a seven-furlong dirt race on April 16, 2022, at Keeneland, Cowans quickly called Foster.

“I’ve watched this horse all winter. There is something about this horse I really like,” he told the owner.  “I think we should take a shot.”

Doug Cowans (Bill Denver/EQUI-PHOTO)

They were the only ones to make a claim as Next finished ninth of 11, beaten by 23 ½ lengths. Despite that dismal result, the veteran trainer became increasingly intrigued by the gray gelding the more he got to know him.

“As I started to breeze the horse, he had a lot of stamina. He was different from all of the other horses I had been around,” Cowans said. ‘His gallop outs after his breezes were unbelievable, like no horse I’d seen. He’d come back to the barn like he didn’t even breeze.”

Fast forward to the present. Thanks to Cowans and gentle handling from jockey Luan Machado, Next surely ranks among the best claims made, at least in modern history. He transformed into racing’s Marathon Man, a seemingly tireless runner who found a home in long-distance races. He would ride a seven-race winning streak into a potential Breeders’ Cup start, with the $7 million Longines Classic and the $5 million Longines Turf under consideration.

Next’s combined margin of victory in those seven races? An astounding 91 ¾ lengths. He has not lost since May 3, 2023, when he finished third in the Isaac Murphy Marathon Overnight Stakes at Churchill Downs. He is perfect through four starts this season, boosting his lifetime earnings to $1,336,361.

“I keep trying to find words to describe this horse. He’s just an amazing animal altogether,” Foster said. “He’s something you dream about.”

The seven-race blitz is comprised of the 1 ½-mile Isaac Murphy, the Grade 2 Brooklyn Stakes (twice, once at 1 ½ miles and then at 1 3/8 miles) in New York, the 1 ¾-mile Birdstone Stakes (twice) at Saratoga and the 1 ½-mile Grade 3 Greenwood Cup Stakes (twice) at Parx Racing in Bensalem, Pa. In his most recent start, he took it easy on the other overmatched runners in the Sept. 21 Greenwood Cup and bested them by 10 lengths. He had dusted them by 25 lengths the previous September.

“There is no horse in racing that dominates the competition like he does,” Cowans said. 

The winner of 13 of 23 career starts appears to be almost unbeatable at a game relatively few horses have the endurance and heart to play. And he knows it.

“He’s a show off. He loves to have his picture taken,” Foster said. “He wants everybody to know he’s around and he’s the guy.”

Michael Foster (purple hat), Luan Machado, and Next. (Walter Wlodarczyk/NYRA)

As flawless as Next has been, the connections are hesitant about advancing to the Breeders’ Cup World Championships, which will be contested Nov. 1 -2 at Del Mar. While there is big money and a whole lot of prestige to be gained there, there is no ideal spot. 

The Classic is run at a mile and a quarter. For many runners, that distance is a reach. For Next, it may well be a quarter of a mile too short. He would get the ground he craves in the Turf. That means a return to grass, a surface he has shown he can handle but which he has not competed on in more than two years.

“The problem with the Breeders’ Cup for me is I’m going to have to give up one of two things, either distance or surface,” said Cowans.

Foster, 74, is a serious handicapper who has owned horses for 18 years. He would like nothing more than to see his Marathon Man bear his silks at the season-culminating championships. At the same time, the former Wall Street mover and shaker emphasizes his desire to always put his horse first. He  understands what a big ask the Breeders’ Cup would be.

“You are going to see the best of the best,” he said. “You’ve got to step up and bring something running or don’t waste your time.”

According to Cowans, Next came out of the Greenwood Cup well. The plan is to breeze him on Oct. 8 at his Turfway Park home base and make a decision fairly soon after that.

“The horse is my main concern,” the trainer said. “Ultimately, that’s one of the big reasons the breeze is going to determine a lot of this. If there is any one thing that says this is probably not the best thing to do, then we’ll scrap the whole idea.”

Meanwhile, Next’s legion of fans are eager to learn what is next for the remarkable gelding.