Lil Wayne Is Racing for $2 Million: Inside His Breeders' Cup Bid With Run Fast Racing

Former music executive Adam Kluger is teaming up with Lil Wayne, Lil Yachty and Rauw Alejandro to shake up the horse racing world, bringing hip-hop star power to the Breeders' Cup and giving everyday fans a chance to get in on the action.

The Breeders’ Cup draws a crowd of more than 65,000 people over two days. This year, at Keeneland in Lexington, Kentucky, those in attendance may do a double-take when they spot rapper Lil Wayne cheering on Listenupshance, the horse he co-owns with Lil Yachty and Rauw Alejandro through Run Fast Racing, as the horse competes in the $2 million Sprint on October 31.

A longtime fan of the sport, the rapper now has a shot at the winner’s circle. Founded by Adam Kluger, Run Fast Racing offers fans a shared ownership experience and a chance to be part of the action. “Horse racing is an incredible sport, but traditionally, there’s been a real barrier between the average fan and the experience of actually being part of it,” Kluger tells OK!. “I wanted to change that. The idea behind Run Fast Racing was to take something that has historically felt exclusive and make it accessible, social, and exciting for a new generation.”

For $100 a month, members can help name horses alongside the musicians, visit the barns, access the owners’ lounge and receive cash prizes when the horses win. “You don’t need to be a millionaire or have a background in horse racing to be part of something special,” he adds. “We want someone who has never stepped foot on a racetrack to discover this world and feel like they belong here.”

In just five months, Run Fast Racing has proven it belongs on the track, too. Trained by Doug O’Neill, Listenupshance secured his place in the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Sprint on October 31 with wins at Del Mar, Calif., in July and Santa Anita, Calif., in September, though the horse wasn’t an obvious future star. Run Fast bought him for roughly $30,000 last summer to give Lil Yachty his first experience as a racehorse owner. When his intended claiming race overfilled, O’Neill entered him in a tougher turf race instead. He won at 17-1, and the team kept him.

“Most owners spend $25 million and 25 years trying to get a Breeders' Cup contender,” the former music exec shares while admitting, “I did expect something like this to happen relatively quickly as every decision has been made in a surgical fashion to respectfully disrupt. I'm operating at the exact intersection of what I'm extremely good at, and what I love with all of my soul.”

Kluger, who has worked with Lady Gaga, Beyoncé and Jennifer Lopez during his 20-year music career, is applying the same lessons to his racing venture. “In music, the artists who break through are often the ones who make people feel like they’re part of something bigger than the music itself,” he says. “I see the same opportunity in horse racing. I’ve also learned that attention alone isn’t enough, and you cannot buy cool. You have to give people a reason to stay, participate, and feel connected. That’s why the membership experience and community are so important to us.”

But coming in first at the Breeders’ Cup would certainly be nice. “Obviously, winning would be an incredible moment,” Kluger acknowledges. “We’re competitive, and we want to win at the highest level, but success means more than the result of one race. What makes the Breeders’ Cup even more meaningful to us is that we’re not just building a racing operation. We’re building an entire company, community, and brand around the sport simultaneously.”

And for those who join, saying you co-own a horse with Lil Wayne isn’t so bad either.

To join Run Fast Racing, head to https://www.runfastracing.com/.