Eye Am King, considered to be New Mexico’s top quarter horse stallion these days, has never actually had his picture taken in the winner’s circle.
“It’s quite a story,” owner Mac Murray said from his horse ranch, MJ Farms, a 100-acre spread located in Veguita, New Mexico, about an hour’s drive south of Albuquerque.
Murray and his wife, Janis, are the “MJ” in MJ Farms. The couple arrived in New Mexico around the turn of the century after having raised horses in Utah because the money and opportunity in horse racing was better here.
“It was back in 2015 that we had a mare named “Eye For Corona,” Murray said. “I watched as she gave birth to this strapping colt that walked around the pasture like he was king of the world.”
That’s why Murray named the colt Eye Am King. Murray then prepared the yearling for the All American Sale at Ruidoso Downs. If approved as a potential candidate for the sale, Eye Am King would be put in the sales catalog along with hundreds of other prospects.
“The sales manager at the time was Lowell Neumayer,” Murray said. “He came to the ranch and took one look at the colt, and Lowell said, ‘that’s the best looking yearling I’ve seen in years,’ and he knew horses better than anybody.”
Lowell’s compliment stuck with Murray. A few months later, Eye Am King was sold in the auction ring for $300,000. That’s a lot today and a huge sum for a race horse event years ago.
Here comes the unlucky part of Eye Am King’s story. Just before the 2-year-old was to make his debut on the racetrack, he suffered a severe case of colic (a digestive disorder that can be fatal in horses), which caused a giant setback in his training. Then came Eye Am King’s first race as a 3-year-old where he bowed a tendon (a common injury in performance horses that can result in lameness) in his right front leg—ending for good his racing career.
Eye Am King’s career race record: One start and nothing to show for it.
“It was very unfortunate,” Murray recalled. He also remembered exactly what his friend Lowell had said about Eye Am King.
Hearing the news about the injury, Murray contacted Eye Am King’s owner about the possibility of re-purchasing the colt and bringing him back to MJ Farms as a potential stallion. The two came to an agreement and Eye Am King soon returned to the farm where he was born.
Then came breeding season. Eye Am King joined Murray’s famous stallion Big Daddy Cartel and others to cover many New Mexico mares. A few studs have been prosperous for MJ Farms, but last year was an exceptional year for Eye Am King.
Eye Am King’s son, King of the Tide, won the 2025 $3 million All American Futurity at Downs of Albuquerque. King of the Tide’s yearling full-sister, Sea Pearl, was sold last year at the New Mexico-bred Yearling Sale at Ruidoso Downs for $425,000. That’s an all-time record for a New Mexico yearling. Eighteen yearlings bred by Eye Am King sold for an average price of $98,389, by far the highest average price of any stallion in New Mexico and across the nation’s quarter horse industry.
Eye Am King has made his mark. The famous 11-year-old race horse that has never actually seen a winner’s circle is now on top of the breeding charts, and his offspring are expected to be top-sellers once again at the New Mexico-bred sale next week.
