Bayne Welker and Boyd Browning–Fasig-Tipton's executive vice president and president, respectively–were chin-wagging in the car recently when the conversation turned to how much the industry has changed, and Fasig-Tipton's role in that evolving landscape.“I think that's what separates us from the others,” Welker said, of what the two men agreed was Fasig-Tipton's predominating strength: “our ability to quickly adapt, quickly make a change and go with the times.”A prime example of that adaptability, said Welker, is Fasig-Tipton's March Digital Selected Sale launched in 2022, which ushered in an entirely new direction for the company.Many were skeptical of a digital sale, he said. Some still are.“But I will say, most people that have used it once, both the buyer and seller, most people are like, 'You know, this was not as hard as I thought it was going to be,” he said, with a self-deprecating laugh.And that spirit of adaptability can be witnessed in the company's regional markets.“Remember back when we did it at Santa Anita?” Welker said, of the 2019 2-year-olds in training sale at the California track.“We even had to go so far as to build stalls in the parking lot and send our own construction staff and everything else out there just to get that done. You know, we're kind of proud of how we do have a little bit of gypsy in us. Regardless of where it is, we feel that we can make it work,” Welker said.“Those regional markets are just so important to the industry as a whole,” he added. “As long as they can stay viable, we certainly want to be there.”The reason why Fasig-Tipton places such import in these regional sales is a simple set of knock-on consequences, said Welker: without a strong regional market, local breeding industries will be decimated, accelerating current foal crop declines while shredding the racing calendar.“It's going be a much smaller footprint of horses that are going to be fit and ready to race,” said Welker, if regional markets aren't protected.In that scenario, he forecasts a rise in seasonal racing.“You're running in summer months in some areas, winter months in others,” he said. “But yes, it's going to lead to a smaller footprint.”In buttressing these regional sales, however, Fasig-Tipton can only do so much.“Nobody works harder to try to get the customers there than us. An integral part of getting the horses in the sale is to get the buyers to the sale,” he said. “But at the end of the day we service the market, we don't make the market.”In that regard, Welker sees plusses in the changes the company has made to some of its markets, and room for improvement in others.In Maryland, Fasig-Tipton operates the Midlantic May 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale and the revamped Eastern Fall Yearlings Sale (formerly the Midlantic Fall Yearlings Sale) in October. The latter will now take place on Tuesday, Oct. 27 with the Maryland Million Day at Laurel Park held the preceding Saturday.“One of the things I like about that sale this year is the fact that it will now be the last sale of the year,” said Welker. “One thing that we have found is that the horses run out way before the money. We've never run out of money.”More broadly are the proactive changes the Midlantic region is making to its program, said Welker, epitomized by the state investment in revamping Pimlico, and the shifting of the Virginia Derby to become a Kentucky Derby prep.“That Midlantic region, those are good horse people. Whether it's pony club or fox hunting or whatever, that horse is a thread that's woven through the fabric of that area. They raise really good horses in that part of the world,” he said.“The only thing that area's lacking a little bit right now is they don't have a major stallion at the moment, a world-class type you could go anywhere with, and which they've had in the past,” Welker added.“But in a nutshell, that encapsulates our dedication and reason for being in those markets, trying to change some things and to help them,” he said. “Like I said, we understand what their issues are.”Welker highlighted the reciprocal program between Maryland and Virginia, allowing both Maryland-bred or -sired and Virginia-bred or -sired horses to compete in a series of stake races at Laurel Park and Colonial Downs.In doing so, Welker believes these kinds of reciprocal programs could work between Western states, mirroring similar comments his fellow Fasig-Tipton colleague Mike Machowsky made earlier this year.In turn, it could prove a boost for the company's September yearling sale in California.“Everybody has felt the pressure out there. The people that operate in these regional markets are not always as rewarded as they should be for the horses or yearlings they put through the ring,” Welker said, of Western racing regions.“But let's say we had an alliance of Western breeders that covers Washington state, Arizona, California and maybe New Mexico. You could draw in and start putting some races together to get your fullest fields and provide your best betting product. It's a matter of taking a racing secretary with a little bit of a creative thought process,” he said.“Now, the pushback that I've gotten to some of these conversations is, 'Well, it's legislated like X, so we can't do that.' But you can work through that,” Welker argued.The tough economics of California's racing program is emblematic of an overall sense of upheaval rippling through the sport.“The industry as a whole is kind of at this precipice of change that we haven't seen in some time. That's why it's incumbent on us as a company and as a leader in the Thoroughbred industry to be able to react to those changes, to find the positives, and be able to promote those positives that are happening and not necessarily dwell on the negatives,” said Welker.“We can't change the change,” he added. “I mean, it's there. It's inevitable. It's going to happen. We need to shift in the right direction, be prepared and move forward and try to embrace it, then try to help our customers on both the selling and the buying side work out the best way forward.”The post Bayne Welker: Regional Markets So Important to “Industry as a Whole” appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.