Tag: Aidan O’Meara

Stonehaven Steadings’ Faith Rewarded at Keeneland September

Five years ago, Aidan O'Meara left his position at Hill 'n' Dale Farm, where he served as Stallion Division Manager for 20 years, to join his wife Leah and her family in running Stonehaven Steadings.

The decision was not an easy one. As Leah O'Meara recounts, John Sikura had seen something in Aidan when the native of Ireland was fresh out of college. Over the years, O'Meara worked his way to managing the likes of Curlin, Medaglia d'Oro and Candy Ride. The O'Mearas lived on site at Hill 'n' Dale for years at its former location on North Yarnalton Pike in Lexington and the farm was the first home of the couple's three children.

Now just a few years after O'Meara joined Stonehaven Steadings as the Director of Bloodstock and Client Development, the fruits of his increased presence on the farm are becoming even more apparent as the family-run operation is riding high through an unforgettable Keeneland September Sale.

On the first day of the auction, Stonehaven Steadings sold what will likely be the sale topper in their Quality Road colt out True Feelings (Latent Heat). Their success didn't stop with that $2.5 million achievement. Also in Book 1, they sent an $825,000 filly by Into Mischief and $775,000 Gun Runner colt through the ring. During Book 2, they sold four yearlings including a $900,000 Into Mischief filly and an $800,000 Street Sense filly.

“It's almost like twilight zone kind of stuff right now, to be quite honest,” O'Meara said during Book 2 after returning to the barn from selling a sixth offering for over half a million. “The first year after I moved from Hill 'n' Dale we had a couple of nice ones in Book 1 and we have been able to build off those since then. We came here this year thinking we would have our strongest sale, but this has been incredible.”

“We're so proud of all the horses,” he continued. “You can like them at home when they act like they do there, but to get out here and walk up and down 200, 250 times for people, you quickly find out the mentality of a horse. We're very fortunate that everybody acted so well.”

No yearling in their consignment handled themself better, O'Meara said, than the Quality Road colt that went on to become the highest-selling yearling in North America so far this year.

“He improved with every show and never balked at anything he was asked,” O'Meara explained. “He had almost a two-foot overstep and was just a locomotive with the way he used his shoulder and how he got his hind leg up. I've never seen so many people be so enamored by a horse with the way he moved at the sale. We started getting a little bit excited when we had 25 or 30 vet hits on him from all the right players.”

Last year at the same sale, Stonehaven Steadings celebrated their first million-dollar yearling when this colt's half-brother by Justify sold for $1.55 million to West Point Thoroughbreds and Talla Racing. Now named Nuclear, the juvenile is putting in steady works at Del Mar for John Sadler.

“We were blown out of the water at that stage,” O'Meara recounted. “We pretty much figured we had peaked in life as far as selling yearlings, but his brother at home was always one that we thought in the back of our mind maybe could have the potential to be that kind of quality horse again for the next year.”

Throughout the winter, the Stonehaven Steadings crew hesitated to get overly-excited, knowing the May-foaled colt might not reach the level of his older brother by the time of the auction, but the youngster blossomed as a yearling and was regarded enthusiastically by the Keeneland sales inspection team as the auction grew near.

When it came time for the colt to make his entrance into the sales ring, he was preceded by an air of anticipation. O'Meara turned to his wife to celebrate when the bidding stalled at $1.3 million, then stood dumbfounded as the number continued to grow.

Going to the same connections as his older brother with the addition of Woodford Racing, this colt will also train under John Sadler. As they did with Nuclear, Stonehaven Steadings stayed in for a small piece of the youngster.

“We're very fortunate that West Point has let us stay in on some of these good horses,” O'Meara said. “We had two with them last year and then three with them so far this year, so we're pretty excited to see what the future brings.”

Aidan O'Meara and the $2.5 million colt out of True Feelings | Keeneland

Stonehaven Steadings already has a reputation for breeding champions in its relatively short history. The list includes 2012 GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile champion Shanghai Bobby (Harlan's Holiday) and most recently, 'TDN Rising Star' and juvenile champion Corniche (Quality Road).

The farm was founded by Leah's parents Jeff and Chiquita Reddoch. The couple from Louisiana took an interest in the industry when Leah moved to Lexington for college. Starting off with just a handful of $30,000 broodmares, they eventually purchased property off Old Frankfort Pike.

The name Stonehaven Steadings was easy to come by. During their time in the oil field industry, the Reddochs traveled throughout Europe for business. Their favorite village in Scotland was called Stonehaven. There, a farmstead can be referred to as a steading.

Chiquita Reddoch is quick to credit her daughter and son-in-law for their operation's many achievements.

“Leah and Aidan have a really good talent to work together and do this,” she said. “Aidan is such a good horseman. When they first met and he was working at Hill 'n' Dale, I was always amazed at how he could speak about the horses and their races, conformation and pedigrees. Leah has always been interested in it also. They're together every day and they live and breathe the farm. It's not anything I could ever do. We turned this over to Leah and Aidan and now we get to do the things mommas and daddies do behind the scenes.”

While Aidan is on the farm every day, Leah focuses on marketing their business, organizing the sales consignments, and shopping year-round for potential additions to their broodmare band.

Asked what makes the couple such a good team, Leah laughed.

“His patience,” she retorted, but then gave a bigger-picture reply as she explained, “I think it's the reality that everything happens for a reason and it's about having faith when something seems like it might be a terrible thing. That will calm you down right away. There's no point in fretting when you've got faith like that.”

The O'Mearas also credit their longtime farm manager Colby Marks for their recent accomplishments. Marks was the one that picked out their star broodmare True Feelings in 2012. The daughter of Latent Heat ran second in the 2011 GIII Schuylerville S. and is from the family of champion Wait a While (Maria's Mon). Marks picked up the maiden mare for $210,000 at Keeneland November.

Farm manager Colby Marks and True Feelings | photo courtesy Stonehaven Steadings

“I think a lot of broodmares are like these top-class stallions in some ways in that either they have it or they don't,” O'Meara said. “You just try and pick the right kind of sires and match them up pedigree-wise, but you never know what you're going to get. We like to give these younger mares as good an opportunity as we can when we breed them to these better, proven sires. That helps build a mare's resume and you hope that down the line you have one that comes out looking the right way with a couple of half-siblings that are already stakes horses.”

Their $2.5 million colt is a shining example of this game plan. His dam already has three winners on her produce record including Royal Act (American Pharoah), a $500,000 yearling that went on to run second in the 2020 GIII Robert B. Lewis S., as well as stakes winner Feeling Mischief (Into Mischief).

“True Feelings is a really classy mare to mess with, but she's got a little grit to her as well when she wants to,” O'Meara said. “Everything out of her has been a beautiful mover. She has thrown all different kinds of types, but they all have had that class and that big walk to them. We kind of call her our Leslie's Lady now. To get one million-dollar yearling out of any mare is incredible, never mind to get two. It's just crazy.”

It was only a few years ago that Stonehaven Steadings was aiming to sell a few yearlings for $300,000 or maybe $400,000. Now after breeding and raising a $2.5 million yearling, what do they hope to do next?

“I just want to be here,” Leah said with a small shrug and a smile. “I want to live on the farm and have a thriving farm. I want to have staff who are like family that you can lean on and trust. We just want to enjoy it because horses are what we love. If we can do that for the rest of our days, I think we'll be pretty happy people.”

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Corniche Puts Stonehaven on Ascending Road

We've all seen those old thrillers where the sports car is twisting along a road cut into a coastal cliff, and suddenly one of the wheels is spinning over the sea far below. Well, that's pretty much how it feels when a commercial breeder decides to bring home a Book 1 yearling at $385,000. In both cases, you're putting an awful lot of trust in horsepower, admittedly in its sleekest form, getting you back on the road. Unlike Cary Grant in North By Northwest, however, you don't even have the excuse that someone has first poured a bottle of bourbon down your throat.

In the case of a Quality Road colt offered by Stonehaven Steadings at the 2020 September Sale, on behalf of co-breeder Bart Evans, the road was not just regained, but has opened up a spectacular new vista.

First the team got the de Meric family behind the wheel: Nick de Meric loved the horse, took 30%, thought he'd flourish in their program. Eight months later, after a :10 flat breeze, the September reject topped OBS April at $1.5 million, sold to Speedway Stables (with the ever-sage counsel of Marette Farrell).

Then, a month or so ago, even as the Stonehaven team was preparing their next September consignment, the Quality Road colt made his debut for Bob Baffert at Del Mar. He romped to the crop's highest Beyer to date, an automatic 'TDN Rising Star.'

It was a timely showcase for a farm owned by Jeff and Chiquita Reddoch, and run with the help of their daughter Leah and her husband Aidan O'Meara. The Reddochs had made a flying start at Stonehaven, previously part of Saxony Farm, as breeders of 2012 champion juvenile Shanghai Bobby (Harlan's Holiday). Now here was confirmation that Stonehaven could raise a horse not just to sell for big money, but to run for it too. That can only have encouraged a Talla Racing and West Point Thoroughbreds partnership when, just nine days later, they signed a very similar docket–at $1.55 million–for a Justify colt out of True Feelings (Latent Heat).

All parties could take heart, then, when, last week, Baffert bumped the star graduate of the farm's previous cycle straight into Grade I company for the American Pharoah S. For this colt, of course, is none other than Corniche: cleverly named for precisely those giddy coastal routes, with the elements of engineering and water respectively suggested by Quality Road and the 16-year-old dam Wasted Tears (Najran), who was bred, owned and trained by Evans to win half a dozen graded stakes.

“It's been a long process, since that cold February morning when you had a hold of his front legs pulling him out of his mamma,” reflects O'Meara. “When you've been through that whole process, raising them on the farm, it's always a bittersweet moment when you get back from the sale and see their paddocks standing empty. Yes, you know they've gone into good hands. But even bringing $1.5 million at a 2-year-old sale gives you no guarantee of success. So the way this horse has stood up to every question he's been asked–first going through our program, and then the de Merics', and then to breeze like he did, and now to come through as the kind of racehorse he's turning into–has just been phenomenal to see.”

The problem, last September, had been drawing Hip 10 in a sale so exposed to the unprecedented uncertainties of the pandemic. The partners had to choose: roll with the punches, or hold their ground and fight back?

“Obviously we're biased,” Leah O'Meara accepts. “But we thought we knew what we had. And, honestly, that ended up giving us an opportunity out of what was potentially a pretty bad situation. We're just so thankful that the de Merics had faith in the horse. They did a fantastic job with him, and then Marette and her clients appreciated him for what he was. We did everything we could, but after that there's been a whole group of people that has brought him to where he is now.”

“In some ways, it was a no-brainer,” Aidan O'Meara says. “But at the same time, it was tough to RNA one of your best yearlings, at that kind of money, when you couldn't know what was coming round the corner. So seeing the whole vibe surrounding the horse, when we went down to the sale [in Ocala], was a special moment. Anyone who'd ever bought a serious 2-year-old was vetting him. So of course you start to get excited, but nobody could ever have expected him to go to the point he did.”

For Corniche to vindicate both his price and his upbringing, either side of the auction, vividly compounded the momentum achieved by the farm at the September Sale-when in the top 10 consignors by average, and as high as third among those trading 10 or more yearlings. A gross of $5.6 million for 19 hips sold (of 20 offered) generated an average yield of $294,737.

Besides their big score, they also sold another Justify colt (out of the Bernardini mare Venetian Sonata) in Book 1 for $600,000, and fillies by City Of Light and Uncle Mo for $500,000 and $425,000. And then there was the next yearling out of Corniche's dam, a filly by Mendelssohn, a $750,000 buyout by Evans–a cherished partner since being introduced to the farm by manager Colby Marks.

“I said to Bart, 'You might want to think about buying this one, because you might not get another shot at a filly,'” recalls Jeff Reddoch. “Bart's a legendary horseman himself and has been so great to work with. This was a fantastic filly and we're so proud and happy that he bought her.”

But the headlines went to the colt that brought Justify his first seven-figure sale in the U.S., despite having lurked in Book 2.

“We had these two beautiful Justify colts and really it was a toss of a coin which would go in Book 1,” Aidan O'Meara recalls. “But book placement is a very important part of our decision-making process, and the two of them had dams that were very close alphabetically, T and V, so it was conceivable that we might have found ourselves in the first 20 hips with our two best colts.”

He continued, “So we were very happy to put him in Book 2. I suppose as a little bit the bigger and stronger of the two, he just really blossomed those last two and a half months. And he did show like a beast out there: just this magnificent powerhouse of a walk to him, everybody hanging onto the big beautiful presence. And just got better and better, you could see the class coming out more every day. You never know until you get out there, how they're going to react, especially colts being with a bunch of fillies. But he just thrived on the whole environment.”

One way or another, then, the stars have certainly aligned over Stonehaven this past month. And while the team is far too seasoned to be tempted into any complacency, it does feel like something of a turning point–even if those must be negotiated with care when driving along a corniche!

“It does feel like it's been a watershed month,” concedes Aidan O'Meara. “It's been fantastic, and obviously we're very proud of the crew here. We do try to do things in a particular way, so it feels like a great validation for our program.”

And that's just what is so interesting, whenever things come together for one of many operations all striving to achieve much the same ends. Because everyone, no matter how respectful of the opposition, must believe that they are placing a worthwhile emphasis on something that sets them apart.

Aidan O'Meara responds: “Well, I think the foundation we're working on here is the land, which has a tremendous history. Four champions were raised here before we ever came on the scene, and then we got lucky right out of the gate with Shanghai Bobby. And we're also trying to blend old school horsemanship with the best of what medicine and technology has to offer. At the end of the day, you're trying to raise a racehorse. With the way the sales environment is nowadays, I think people tend to get a little bit paranoid about what might show up on x-rays. Maybe they don't let young horses do what they need to do, living that rough-n-tumble life in the paddocks. We try to do that as much as we can. Okay, so sometimes there might be a little bit of price to pay on an x-ray or two. But that's one worth paying, in the long term, if you want the reputation of a farm that will give you the best possible opportunity of coming out the other end with a racehorse.”

That same priority, “run”, also governs broodmare recruitment.

“We like a filly that has shown stakes caliber on the racetrack,” Aidan O'Meara explains. “Sometimes it won't be super obvious. Like Venetian Sonata, she was a sneaky-good filly: didn't have black-type, but had been right on top of the placings in stakes races, with a huge female family backing her up.”

She was recruited for $170,000 at the 2013 Keeneland January Sale, just a few weeks after True Feelings, runner-up in the GIII Schuylerville S. in her youth, had entered the fold for $210,000 at the November Sale.

“We'll be forgiving enough on a broodmare sire if there's depth to the family, and if the mare had quality on the track herself,” Aidan O'Meara reasons. “And even be fairly forgiving on physique. There's a lot of good mares out there that don't have a particularly pretty front end on them, and we've a couple here that might scare you in the sales ring, but they have thrown fantastic-looking babies.”

Nobody, equally, will be more heedful than Aidan O'Meara of the sire part of the equation. For the Irishman spent 20 years as stallion manager at Hill 'n' Dale before transferring to his in-laws' operation in 2017.

“In some ways it's the biggest factor that comes into it, where the sire is in his career and what he can bring to the table,” he acknowledges. “We like to use higher-end sires to help the younger mares, but also, like everybody else, try to identify the up-and-coming stallions. We bred to Quality Road when he was still $35,000, and Corniche himself was bred off a $70,000 stud fee, and that has obviously skyrocketed since.”

That didn't stop the Lane's End sire being favored as the 2019 mate for Steelin' (Orientate), the dam of Shanghai Bobby. Following the tragic loss of the mare to colic this year, their daughter was deemed far too precious to keep her engagement at the September Sale.

“It was very hard for us all, losing Steelin',” Aidan O'Meara admits. “She was a sweetheart to be around, all class, and basically the foundation mare for the farm. But she's left a huge legacy for us through her daughters and thankfully Miz Kella, her first to have runners, is already a stakes producer.”

Of course, the loss or pensioning of mares in the initial Stonehaven cycle does create scope to upgrade a broodmare band that will be confined, in quantity, to a couple of dozen.

“With a small batch of mares, they've been very good at improving their producing record,” says Jeff Reddoch, applauding his team. “And that improves what you get from the offspring as well. We have nearly 20% stakes horses to runners in our racehorse program.”

Not every graduate will hit the bull's-eye, naturally, and the Stonehaven team goes to exemplary lengths to monitor those that do miss; and to secure their future care, whether on their own farm or via retraining.

“We really want to see the horses taken care of,” Chiquita reddoch insists. “So I always say a prayer when they're on the bid block, 'Please go to someone who'll take good care of them.' Because at the end of the day–at the end of anyone's lives–it's what we did on earth that's important. And these are animals, they do have feelings, and they can't fend for themselves.”

By the same token, Leah O'Meara is a director at TCA; and urging friends and associates to move the Stonehaven team up the Hagyard “Race To Give” chart. As she says: “We have to thank these horses, because they give us everything we have.”

So there's no mistaking this firm's grasp of the mutual dependence of our industry, from their repeated appreciations for their staff to their conviction that if you do the right thing by the horse, everything else falls into place.

Yet this kind of immersion was never remotely in mind for the Reddochs, during their days running an oilfield service business. But luckily their horse-mad daughter chose Midway University, Jeff and Chiquita Reddoch started visiting from Louisiana, and the Bluegrass enchantment gradually did its work.

“We bought a farm and started learning from the bottom up,” says Chiquita Reddoch. “I'm a registered nurse, my husband's an engineer, we really didn't know much about it. But it just kind of snowballed. We didn't plan anything. We worked hard, the way we always have in all our businesses, and put our best foot forward. And now we're just very thankful to have Leah and Aidan and Colby and the boys on the farm, because they're doing a great job and we're so proud and happy to be involved.”

Leah O'Meara can't quite believe how things have unfolded. She has seen so many ventures capsize in this most precarious of industries, and yet now they can dare to sense the possibility of a tangible legacy in the breed. Certainly the left-field pedigree of Wasted Tears has been vindicated afresh, as in her racing days; and Corniche looks eligible to extend her family's influence into future generations.

“I've always said it was about little growth, little growth,” Leah O'Meara says. “And just hoping to keep some progressive momentum. So it almost feels harder to tell my parents. 'Okay, we'll try to do all this again!' They've been part of this business since 2005. They've put a lot into it. So I'm just really thankful they've stuck around, and we've had an opportunity to give them a little payback.”

Jeff Reddoch gives a laugh. “Truth is,” he says, “we don't know how to quit!” But then, more seriously, he stresses the sheer breadth of the team effort, from farriers to feed suppliers to the people who buy their horses. Those, increasingly, can sign their dockets with a firmer hand. But the Reddochs raised Leah O'Meara to that vital compromise between accepting the unknowable workings of destiny, on the one hand, and doing everything within your own compass, on the other.

“We know how tough this business can be,” Leah O'Meara says. “And for these things to happen in such a short time, we know it's pie-in-the-sky. We do just feel incredibly thankful and blessed. We're firm believers that things happen for a reason. All we can do is try to show up every day, do our job, do our part. And just pray that the rest happens. All this is very fulfilling, but we won't be patting ourselves on the back. We just want to be consistent, to keep showing up.”

The post Corniche Puts Stonehaven on Ascending Road appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Keeneland September Yearling Sale Post Record Average, Median Prices

Keeneland's September Yearling Sale, a bellwether event for the Thoroughbred industry, concluded Friday with gross sales of $352 million, sixth-highest in sale history, and record cumulative average and median prices. Large crowds of enthusiastic buyers and buoyant trade from start to finish of the 11-day auction drove a record high clearance rate of just over 80 percent that reflected a confident market and an excitement for owning racehorses.

Vibrant pace throughout the sale, held Sept. 13-24, produced gross receipts of $352,823,000, a 47.96 percent rebound from last year's gross of $238,454,300 when the 12-day sale was impacted by the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic. This year's gross is just shy of the $359,787,700 realized in 2019 to signal a resumption of the bull markets of previous years. A total of 2,672 yearlings sold through the ring this year compared to 2,346 in 2020.

Records were established for both cumulative average and median prices. Average price of $132,045 represents a 29.91 percent increase over last year's $101,643 and surpasses the previous record of $129,331 set in 2018. Median price rose 75.68 percent from $37,000 to $65,000 and smashes the record of $57,000 set in 2017.

Fifteen yearlings sold for $1 million or more, led by a colt from the first crop of City of Light who brought $1.7 million.

“Thanks to all our breeders, consignors and buyers, whose passion for racing clearly showed through these past two weeks,” Keeneland President and CEO Shannon Arvin said. “This September Sale felt completely different from any other in recent memory – lots of hustle and bustle. We elevated our hospitality throughout the sale, with a particular focus on the first two days, to create excitement and anticipation. We worked to set the tone and stage. Our breeders and consignors delivered high-quality bloodstock, and the buyers responded fervently. People are emerging from the pandemic with a renewed sense of vitality, and they are ready to have fun. That positivity, coupled with the increased prize money available at tracks around the country, created a pent-up demand for racehorses coming into the sale. We were thrilled to see lots of happy buyers and consignors.”

“This sale exceeded expectations in nearly every measure,” Keeneland Vice President of Sales Tony Lacy said. “The positive takeaways are very encouraging. The level of confidence across the spectrum of the industry is extremely high. The clearance rate has been very healthy, especially in the middle market. The strength of the young sires has been remarkable and shows excitement for the next generation. The diversity of buyers and the spread of equity among them are broad and deep. We're seeing a lot of new faces and new money, and these people are excited about their participation.”

Brian Graves, General Manager of Gainesway, the sale's second-leading consignor that sold 131 horses for $30,120,000 concurred.

“I thought (the sale) would pick up steam as the books went, and it did,” Graves said. “The middle market has been the strongest part of the market for horses all year long, and (the September Sale) just proved that there's a lot of people in the middle. There's a good stable, solid domestic market out there right now, and that's good for all of us.”

The strong demand for horses was borne out in the record clearance rate, the highest for the September Sale since 2012. Records were twice set for number of horses sold through the ring during a single session: 319 in session seven followed by 325 in session nine. Keeneland officials noted the clearance rate is higher than the published figure since a large number of horses sold privately after not meeting their reserves in the sale ring.

“It's been a great sale – nobody can deny that. Every indicator tells us as much. Such a low RNA rate yesterday (session nine); nine percent is remarkable,” said Peter O'Callaghan of Woods Edge Farm, who sold all but one horse in his consignment, which was highlighted by a $1.05 million colt by City of Light purchased by West Bloodstock, agent for Repole Stable and St. Elias.

“(The sale is) the best it's been in quite some time. I don't think it's an accident, either,” O'Callaghan added. “Horse racing did a great job going through COVID and got a lot of new eyes on the game, a lot of new bettors in the game. Handles were going up everywhere. Prize money is exploding. People are recognizing that. They know it really makes sense to own a racehorse in this country. You can make money, you can pay your way. If you win a nice race at a prominent track, you can almost pay your training fees for the year. It's great, and long may it continue.”

Several days prior to the sale, Keeneland announced an innovative venture with Kentucky Downs aimed at further strengthening racing opportunities for this year's September Sale graduates. They are eligible to run in a pair of $250,000 allowance races – one for fillies and one for colts and geldings – at the 2022 FanDuel Meet at Kentucky Downs.

The optimistic outlook for racing contributed to a deep buying bench at the September Sale, consisting of domestic buyers along with returning international buyers from 27 countries such as  England, Ireland, France, Japan, China, Australia, Hong Kong, Peru, Argentina, United Arab Emirates, Russia and Singapore. The sale's 15 seven-figure horses were bought by 13 distinct buyers.

From the outset, major buyers packed the sales pavilion and back show rings and competed with waves of new buyers who arrived daily as the sale moved into Week 2.

Domestic buyers, particularly end users, drove the market.

“The domestic end-user activity was sensational,” Keeneland Director of Sales Operations Cormac Breathnach said. “It's been great to see them step up in such a big way. It's encouraging that as an industry we're able to maintain strong growth while we're missing some historically significant players.”

The sale also benefited from the increased participation of partnerships and syndicates. Partnerships comprising West Point Thoroughbreds, Woodford Racing and Talla Racing purchased the top three highest-priced horses: a City of Light colt from the family of Grade 2 winner and sire Broken Vow for $1.7 million, a Quality Road colt who is a half-brother to Grade 1 winner Girvin and classic-placed Midnight Bourbon for $1.6 million and a Justify colt from the family of champion Wait a While for $1.55 million.

Jacob West's West Bloodstock, agent for Repole Stable and St. Elias, was the sale's leading buyer, purchasing 43 yearlings for $16,045,000. They included a son of City of Light for $1.05 million. West acquired horses for Repole and St. Elias as late as the eighth session.

Other leading buyers who represented partnerships were Donato Lanni, agent for SF Bloodstock/Starlight/Madaket, who spent $10,590,000 for 24 colts, and BSW/Crow Colts Group, a new entity that acquired 20 colts for $6,805,000.

“Partnerships were very dominant in the market, and they hugely benefited this sale,” Lacy said. “While they may take away the $3-$4 million horse, partnerships spread the money among buyers and allows investors to spread their risk. They also enable people to have fun in a more affordable way. And by bringing more people into the sport, they create a fan base.”

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Established sires continued to be highly prized with American Pharoah, Curlin, Into Mischief,  Quality Road, Street Sense, Tapit, Uncle Mo and War Front represented by yearlings who brought seven figures. Into Mischief was the leading sire by total sales with 62 colts and fillies grossing $25,967,000.

American Pharoah sired the auction's highest-priced filly, who sold for $1.4 million to Northshore Bloodstock, agent. Consigned by Betz Thoroughbreds, agent, the filly is a half-sister to undefeated Echo Zulu, who captured Saratoga's Grade 1 Spinaway Stakes eight days prior to the sale.

Yearlings from the first crops of Triple Crown winner Justify and Grade 1 winner City of Light fetched some of the sale's top prices to rank the stallions second and third, respectively, on the September Sale's leading sire list in terms of gross sales. Justify was represented by 61 yearlings sold for $22,431,000, led by a colt for $1.55 million. City of Light grossed $17,525,000 for 47 yearlings, including the $1.7 million sale-topping colt and a $1.05 million colt. He sired the highest-priced horses in two sessions.

“The market is probably the strongest we've seen here in the last 15, 20 years – just in depth of the buying bench and quality of the prices,” said Aidan O'Meara, Director of Bloodstock and Client Development at Stonehaven Steadings, consignor of a $1.55 million Justify colt. “We've never been as busy at the barns with the number and intensity of the buyers and the number of shows. The amount of back ring action in the past couple of days has been astonishing. We were very fortunate with a couple of big touches, but the market held all the way through until the last one we just sold.”

Among the other young stallions to rank among the sale's leaders were Horse of the Year Gun Runner, champion Good Magic and Grade 1 winners Mendelssohn and Practical Joke.

“There was exceptional quality in this yearling crop that extended into Week 2,” Keeneland Director of Sales Development Mark Maronde said. “The quality of this crop, the variety of stallions represented and the professionalism of our breeders and sellers made this sale a success.”

Small, family-run farms made a splash this September by consigning homebreds that sold for seven figures. The sale-topping colt by City of Light was consigned by Rosilyn Polan's Sunday Morning Farm. The Knelman family's Farfellow Farms sold a $1 million colt by Street Sense to BSW/Crow Colts Group and a $700,000 colt by City of Light to West Bloodstock, agent for Repole Stable and St. Elias.

“The sale has been extremely strong,” said Jak Knelman. “It's pretty amazing walking to the back ring and seeing everybody who is looking at horses in the barns and just purely waiting for them to come to the back ring. Purses in Kentucky and across the nation in the big markets are really exploding, and it affects the people who are raising horses. For (us with) a small band of broodmares and (being) commercial breeders, the yearling sales are really what we target. This is what makes or breaks the year. You're sure to be looked at by everyone when you come here, and that's all you can ask as a seller.”

Keeneland made several adjustments to the format this September that were well received by consignors and buyers. Week 1 was structured so Books 1 and 2, which consisted of two sessions each, were held on four consecutive days before the sale took a one-day hiatus. As a result, 1,102 yearlings were cataloged to be presented to buyers. Keeneland also combined the final two sessions (those horses originally cataloged to Sessions 11 and 12) into a single session on today's final day to conclude the sale during a three-day Book 5. Both changes were made to present a critical mass of horses to buyers.

For the first time, Keeneland offered an RNA Reoffer program that allowed consignors to reoffer horses not sold on Day 1 at the conclusion of the second session. Four horses that did not meet their reserves on opening day went through the RNA Reoffer at the close the second session and one of those sold.

“The RNA Reoffer served its purpose in that it incentivized a lot of post-sale transactions,” Lacy said.

Keeneland once again offered tools such as online and phone bidding to facilitate buying. Online bidding resulted in the sale of 135 horses for a total of $19,206,500.

Taylor Made Sales Agency, agent, led all consignors at the September Sale for the seventh consecutive year and the 23rd year overall since 1988. Taylor Made sold 304 yearlings for $37,306,500.

During Friday's final session, 244 yearlings sold for $3,937,500, for an average of $16,137 and a median of $12,000.

Bill and Anne Scott purchased a Silent Name (JPN) filly for $120,000 to be the highest priced yearling sold Friday. Consigned by Hidden Brook, agent, the filly is out of the graded stakes-winning Awesome Again mare Ice Festival.

The post Keeneland September Yearling Sale Post Record Average, Median Prices appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Million-Dollar Babies Pace OBS Wednesday

By Jessica Martini & Christie DeBernardis

OCALA, FL – A pair of million-dollar juveniles punctuated a day of lively trade in Central Florida as the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds reached its midway point with a second session Wednesday.

“We certainly picked up where we left off yesterday and the action was just as good, if not better, and we hope it continues to move forward into the next two days,” said OBS Director of Sales Tod Wojciechowski. “We came into the sale with some expectations given the enthusiasm that we saw in March. We were certainly hoping that would carry over. And the consignors have done a fabulous job of selecting horses, whether they need to be in March or April. And the quality of horse that they bring seems to step up every year, no matter what.”

Marette Farrell, bidding on behalf of Speedway Racing, made the day's highest bid when going to $1.5 million to acquire a colt by Quality Road. Katsumi Yoshida, bidding via the internet, made the day's other seven-figure bid when going to $1 million to acquire a filly by Juddmonte's late champion Arrogate.

During Wednesday's session, 181 head sold for $21,056,500. The average was $116,334 and the median $47,000.

Through two sessions, OBS has sold 373 head for a gross of $39,258,000 and an average of $105,532. With 78 horses reported not sold, the buy-back rate before the inclusion of post-sale transactions is 17.3%.

At the midway point of the 2020 Spring Sale–delayed two months and held amidst the pandemic which had shut down much of the sport–288 head sold for $28,103,500 for an average of $97,582 and a median of $50,000.

Half-way through the pre-pandemic 2019 Spring sale, 331 juveniles had sold for $37,416,500 before the inclusion of post-sale transactions. The average was $113,041 and the median was $70,000.

“I think we are surpassing 2019's levels,” Wojciechowski said. “There is an ebb and flow between the days, but right now, I think we are on par, if not a little ahead.”

The first session's buy-back rate, which was 19% at the conclusion of business Tuesday, continued to decline and had fallen to 14% Wednesday evening.

“It's obviously very strong for the right horses, but you can move horses on as well,” Wavertree Stables' Ciaran Dunne said of the market in Ocala this week. “We've sold everything so far and we've taken what they want to give us. But it's nice when that's there to get. So I would say the market is very respectable.”

Consignor Tom McCrocklin continued to see polarization in the market.

“It's more of the same,” McCrocklin said. “Strong at the top and struggling everywhere else. We need more owners, especially at the middle and lower end. They can't all be good horses and they need to find homes for racing. Owning a racehorse has gotten so prohibitively expensive. It is gravitating back towards the Sport of Kings.”

The OBS Spring sale continues through Friday with sessions beginning daily at 10:30 a.m.

Quality Road Colt to Speedway Racing

A colt by Quality Road (hip 381) was the first to reach seven figures at this week's OBS Spring sale when selling Wednesday for $1.5 million to bloodstock agent Marette Farrell, acting on behalf of Peter Fluor and K.C. Weiner's Speedway Racing. The youngster will join the Southern California barn of trainer Bob Baffert.

“They asked me who my favorite horse in the sale was and my whole team here, Tescha von Bluecher and Zoe Cadman, every single one of us absolutely loved this horse,” Farrell said. “He just had the composure of a real racehorse. He's physically spectacular. He's got the pedigree. This horse really looked the part. They are thrilled to have him.”

Speedway has already enjoyed Grade I success with sons of Quality Road, having campaigned 2019 GI Santa Anita Derby winner Roadster.

“I was afraid that we might have to go that high,” Farrell said of the colt's final price. “They buy very few horses. They always try to zone in on the ones that they really love. They want the best they can buy.”

The juvenile, who worked a furlong in :10 flat during last week's under-tack preview for de Meric Sales, is out of multiple graded stakes winner Wasted Tears (Najran). He was co-bred by Chiquita and Jeff Reddoch's Stonehaven Steadings and Bart Evans, who bred, owned and trained Wasted Tears, winner of a half-dozen graded stakes from 2009 through 2011. The colt RNA'd for $385,000 at last year's Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

“We held on to 70% of him [after the Keeneland sale],” said Stonehaven Steading's Leah O'Meara. “We grabbed Tristan [de Meric] on the fly and said, 'We really love him. Do you love him? And they did.”

Aidan O'Meara, who serves as bloodstock director at Stonehaven Steadings, added, “He's been a class act from the moment he entered the world. He was probably the best-looking colt we've raised on the farm to this stage. He just went on as a yearling. He got unlucky at the September sale with the COVID situation and then he drew hip 10 on top of all that. We had very high expectations going out there before the sale, but then we got our hip numbers and we knew we would be compromised there and we went out and RNA'd him. I was about as disappointed as I've been coming down from the ring just because of what we thought of him. But we had a huge amount of faith in him and the De Meric's bought into him after that and he rolled down here and the rest is history.”

Wednesday's result is the first seven-figure sale for the Reddochs' operation.

“It's huge for us,” Aidan O'Meara said of the milestone. “We are a medium-sized operation and are constantly in a building mode. We are always trying to improve year over year from what we've done to date. And this has obviously taken us to another level. The stock that we have at home are our best homebreds set to come to auction. We've bought some nice mares the last couple of years trying to build up the broodmare band.”

The 16-year-old Wasted Tears has a Mendelssohn yearling filly who will be targeted at the Keeneland September sale this fall.

“I am delighted for the colt, but I'm also delighted for the mare because she's done so well for us at auction,” Aidan O'Meara said. “She's been a little bit unlucky with some of the runners who didn't get on as much as you thought they might. Her Mendelssohn is the best-looking filly on the farm this year. So this colt is validation for the mare. She's knocked on the door with some runners and she has been great to the team and for Bart.”

Wasted Tears' best foal to race to date is the stakes-placed Coffee Crush (Medaglia d'Oro), a $360,000 Keeneland September yearling purchase in 2016.

Stonehaven Steadings traditionally offers all its foals at the yearling sales.

“We may hold on to one or two horses if there is something that holds them back from being sold as a yearling,” Leah O'Meara said. “Because of the obvious situation with COVID and the pandemic, we actually held on to more yearlings than we ever have. Which was scary, but I am a true believer that God takes care of us and everything happens for a reason. And I am really proud of this horse and what he's done for us.”

The operation has one more 2-year-old to sell this week in Ocala.

“We have a filly by Malibu Moon (hip 870) with Woodford tomorrow,” Leah O'Meara said. “She is a full-sister to [multiple Grade I placed] Conquest Eclipse.” @JessMartiniTDN

Nice Guys Finish First

They say nice guys finish last, but the opposite was true in Ocala Wednesday. Steve Spielman's Nice Guy Stables purchased a filly by the late champion Arrogate (Unbridled's Song) (Hip 463) for $150,000 at Keeneland September and she summoned a cool $1 million from Japan's Katsumi Yoshida, making her the most expensive filly of the sale so far. Yoshida did his bidding over the internet.

“She is just a nice filly,” Spielman said of the :10 flat breezer. “We figured we would give her a shot through the ring and see what she brought. We don't just race. We sell too.”

Breeder Town and Country Farms purchased Hip 463's dam, MGSW & MGISP Amen Hallelujah (Montbrook), for $950,000 in foal to Distorted Humor at the 2013 Keeneland November Sale. She is the daughter of four-time stakes winner Sara's Success (Concorde's Tune).

“I loved her since she stepped foot on the farm out of the September Sale,” said April Mayberry, who consigned the filly through her Mayberry Farm. “She did everything she is supposed to do from day one. She has a great mind and is just a lovely filly. I thought she would be our sales topper. I am thrilled she went over our expectations.”

Hip 463 is from the first of just two crops by champion and three-time Grade I winner Arrogate, who was euthanized due to an undetermined illness in June of 2020.

“I absolutely love them,” Mayberry said of Arrogate's offspring. “I have another one at the farm. I have loved both of them the whole time.”  —@CDeBernardisTDN

Arrogate Colt to West Point

In a busy half-hour for Juddmonte's late champion Arrogate, a colt from the stallion's first crop (hip 490) sold for $750,000 to West Point Thoroughbreds, following quickly on the heels of a $1-million filly. Out of Ask the Question (Silver Deputy), the gray colt is a half-brother to West Point's graded-stakes placed Lady Traveler (Quality Road), as well as to multiple Grade I winner Heart to Heart (English Channel).

“We are thrilled we got him,” said West Point's Jason Blewitt. “We've had success with the older half-sister Lady Traveler and obviously we all love Heart to Heart. We loved Arrogate when he was running. His Pegasus was one of the best efforts I've ever seen. We are just thrilled to add this colt to the stable.”

Of the big filly/colt double for Arrogate, West Point's Chief Operating Officer Tom Bellhouse said, “We knew she was going to ring the bell. They are all collector's items, these Arrogates. This filly and the colt were the two, at least in our opinion, that stood out in the Arrogates so far. The connection with the colt having the half-sister, we don't think she's scratched the surface yet, so we are hoping that she is going to be a graded stakes winner and this colt's value will grow further. You couldn't go wrong either way. You don't get to take home horses like this everyday, so we're very happy.”

Lady Traveler was second in this year's GIII Forward Gal S. and was most recently fourth in the Apr. 2 GIII Beaumont S.

The juvenile colt was consigned by Ciaran Dunne's Wavertree Stables on behalf of the pinhooking partnership of David Miley, John Wilkinson and Scott Ford. He worked a furlong in :10 flat during last week's under-tack show.

“He was a horse we were excited about all year,” Dunne said of the colt. “He came in and did what he needed to do. I'm delighted for the guys who are in him. They take the good with the bad and they've been a little lucky here recently, so it is well deserved. And I think West Point and their partners got a really nice colt.”

Miley, Wilkinson and Ford teamed up to sell a Quality Road colt for $1.25 million at last year's OBS Spring sale. He had been purchased for $240,000 at the previous year's Fasig-Tipton October sale.

“They are two for two,” Dunne said of the partnerships 2021 results. “They only had three horses this year. They had this one, they had a Midshipman in Miami and they have a Klimt colt in Maryland. So I'd say they are in pretty good shape.”

The Midshipman, bought for $150,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale, sold for $375,000 at last month's Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream Sale. The Klimt colt, catalogued as hip 311 in the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale, was purchased for $117,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton October sale.

The partnership has also enjoyed success on the racetrack. They campaign multiple graded stakes winner Leinster (Majestic Warrior), who was third in last year's GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint. Miley and Wilkinson are co-owners of Pregame (More Than Ready), who was runner-up in a Keeneland maiden race shortly after hip 490 went through the sales ring Wednesday and they will be represented by debuting Artos (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) in Keeneland's first race Thursday. @JessMartiniTDN

Patience Pays Off For O'Callaghan

Peter O'Callaghan purchased Hip 605 for $290,000 at Keeneland November under his Northface Bloodstock with the intention of pinhooking him as a yearling. Unfortunately, that did not work out as planned as the Union Rags colt RNA'd for $120,000 at Fasig-Tipton October. But O'Callaghan persisted, sending the horse to Jimbo and Torie Gladwell of Top Line Sales, and he was rewarded late in Wednesday's session when bloodstock agent Jacob West went to $750,000 to secure the colt for Mike Repole.

“He is such a good-looking horse,” O'Callaghan said. “Jimbo and Torie were very high on him. He was a beautiful foal when we bought him. He was the best foal in that book of Keeneland November and turned into a beautiful yearling. He had a little bit of sesamoiditis as a yearling and we got badly penalized for it, which was very surprising to us. He obviously grew out of that and came back clean here. He was vetted 12 or 14 times. They were all on him. I think we put him in at around $274,000 just to get him started and he did it all on his own.”

He continued, “I couldn't sell him twice, so really all the credit has to go to Jimbo and Torie. They did it. We are very grateful to Jacob and Mike Repole. We hope he is a good horse for them. He has certainly been a good horse for everyone else along the way.”

Bred by Brandywine Farm and Parker Place Breeding, Hip 605 is out of the unraced Champagne Ice (Roman Ruler), a full-sister to GI Belmont S. victor Ruler on Rice and a half-sister to MGISW Champagne d'Oro (Medaglia d'Oro).

The dark bay colt breezed in a sharp :20 4/5 for the Gladwells and West indicated he would be trained by Todd Pletcher.

“His performance on the racetrack did not have to be explained to people,” West said. “Everybody here in the back saw him and he was unbelievable. He had the physical, the performance on the racetrack, the sire power and female family. He was legit all around. He jumped through a lot of hoops for us. We put him through the ringer and he came out smelling like a rose on the other side. We got excited and Mike Repole was dead set on jumping in and getting him.” —@CDeBernardisTDN

Curlin Filly to Join Norm Casse Barn

As the second session of the OBS Spring sale was winding down, bloodstock agent Justin Casse bid $600,000 to secure a filly by Curlin (hip 594) on behalf of an undisclosed client. The chestnut filly will be trained by Casse's nephew Norm Casse. The two Casses did their bidding while standing at the back of the pavilion.

“Norman will train for a new client for him,” Justin Casse said. “He has to remain nameless for now, but hopefully you'll see it in the Racing Form sooner than later.”

The chestnut filly is out of the unraced Catch the Flag (A.P. Indy), a daughter of Canadian champion Catch the King (Seeking the Gold) and a full-sister to champion Catch the Thrill. She worked a furlong in :10 flat.

“The pedigree was important, as well as the performance,” Casse said. “Obviously these are performance-based sales. She performed well and she had the pedigree to back it up. She is a nice-looking filly.”

Looking ahead to the filly's potential value as a broodmare, Casse added, “It's nice to look at residual in all of these animals. Sometimes it gets thrown out the window at these sales, but it's always a bonus and we always consider it.”

Bred by Doug Branham's Pippa's Hurricane, the filly RNA'd for $120,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearlings Showcase and was then entered in the Lexington company's October sale.

“She was in the October sale at Fasig-Tipton, but had an abscess in her foot,” explained Wavertree's Ciaran Dunne. “So they had to scratch her. We bought into her at that point. We just got lucky.”

Maclean's Music Filly Headed to California

Red Baron's Barn and Rancho Temescal continued their buying spree in Ocala Wednesday, picking up their most expensive purchase yet, a $575,000 daughter of Maclean's Music (Hip 512). The chestnut breezed in :10 flat for Paul Sharp during last week's under-tack show.

“She stood out,” said Tim Cohen, who signed the ticket on behalf of the California-based owners. “I work with Joe Miller and [trainer] Mark Glatt and we all agreed she was one of the better fillies. We stretched a little further than we wanted to, as usual, but she will be coming to California. Good fillies are hard to come by and hopefully she is one of those.”

Bred by George Krikorian, the chestnut is out of an unraced daughter of GSW Makeup Artist (Dynaformer). She was purchased for $40,000 at Keeneland September by Walnut Stream Enterprises, a Sharp partnership.

“We bought her last year on kind of a low market for Maclean's Music,” Sharp said. “We were looking for horses with nice physicals and she developed very well. Every month she got better and she peaked at the right time.” —@CDeBernardisTDN

Another Rocket for Fletcher

Frank Fletcher, who famously uses Rocket in the name of all of his racehorses as an homage to his favorite dog, will be searching for a new Rocket name after paying $490,000 to acquire a colt by Runhappy from the Wavertree Stables consignment Wednesday at OBS.

“He was a big, strong colt,” bloodstock agent Donato Lanni said after signing the ticket on behalf of Fletcher. “He was a beast. He had a great work. Runhappy is slowly coming on. I believe in that stallion. I think he's coming. And this colt is a big, strong physical. Just a cool horse.”

Out of Bible Belt (Pulpit), hip 530 is a half-brother to graded-placed Hardworkcleanlivin (Colonel John). He worked furlong in :10 flat last week.

The colt was purchased by Columbia Bloodstock for $250,000 at the 2019 Keenleand November sale and RNA'd for $120,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale.

“The Runhappy was an expensive foal who went into a yearling sale when Runhappy was not the flavor of the month, shall we say,” Wavertree's Ciaran Dunne said after the colt's bullet work last week. “So they called an audible and figured they would give him more time. He was an expensive foal and when you look at him, you can see why.” @JessMartiniTDN

 Spendthrift & MyRacehorse Back in Action for Upstart Filly

Spendthrift Farm and MyRacehorse teamed up once again in Ocala Wednesday, scooping up a daughter of Upstart for $450,000. A :20 4/5 breezer, Hip 394 was consigned by Tom McCrocklin.

“We start with the breezes and she breezed exceptionally well,” said Spendthrift Yearling Manager Seth Semkin. “She is a big, scopey filly. McCrocklin does a good job. She behaved herself every time we saw her. She will probably go to California, but we haven't made a final decision on a trainer yet.”

As for the price, he said, “That was about it right there. We thought it was going to be less then we watched yesterday. Fillies like that who are big, pretty and fast brought money.”

Bred by Bret Jones, Hip 394 is out of the unraced mare Who'sbeeninmybed (The Daddy). A $10,000 KEENOV weanling buy, she was purchased by Michael Sucher's Champion Equine for $125,000 at last term's OBS October Sale.

“She was pretty when we bought her and she has been a piece of cake all the way through,” McCrocklin said. “She made my job easy. I am very happy Spendthrift got her. They are so good for the game. I think they are the biggest supporters of the industry right now.” —@CDeBernardisTDN

McElroy Strikes for Cupid Filly

A Cupid filly (Hip 576) became the latest offspring of a freshman sire to attract a good bit of attention in Ocala, bringing $440,000 from bloodstock agent Ben McElroy. He indictated on the ticket that he was acting as agent for Coolmore's M.V. Magnier, who signed the $900,000 ticket on Cupid at Keeneland September. The gray now stands at Ashford Stud.

“We bought her for a partnership to be trained by Simon Callaghan,” said McElroy, who did his bidding alongside the California-based conditioner. “Out of the fillies at the sale, she did probably the best breeze. I bought a Cupid in March too. She reminded us a lot of a filly we bought a few years ago named Fashion Plate (Old Fashioned). She went on to win a Grade I, so hopefully we have a similar result again.”

When asked his impressions on the first crop of the fleet-footed Grade I-winning millionaire Cupid, McElroy said, ” They are very good. I have only bought five 2-year-olds [so far] and two of them are by Cupid. I love the Cupids.”

Bred in Virginia by Daybreak Stables, the :20 2/5 breezer was purchased by Quincy Adams's Q Bar J Thoroughbreds for $42,000 at EASOCT after RNA'ing for $4,500 at EASDEC.

“She has filled out in all the right places and just got better every day,” Adams said. “We are blessed.” —@CDeBernardisTDN

Classic Empire Filly Gets the Ball Rolling at OBS

Just 10 hips into Wednesday's session, a filly from the first crop of champion Classic Empire (Pioneerof the Nile) set the early pace, bringing $410,000 from Donato Lanni. The bloodstock agent was bidding on behalf of an undisclosed client, but said Hip 317 would be trained by Jonathan Thomas.

“She breezed great [:20 2/5] and looked good doing it,” said Lanni. “She got over the ground really well and came back great. She's a nice filly.”

These 2-year-olds will be the first runners for MGISW and Eclipse-winning juvenile Classic Empire and they have been well received at the sales thus far.

“The Classic Empires are very nice,” Lanni said. “They are very solid and very precocious, just like him.”

Consigned by Golden Rock Thoroughbreds, Hip 317 was bred by Gabriel and Aisling Duignan's Springhouse Farm and RNA'd for $37,000 at Keeneland September. The chestnut is out of the unraced Tigress Tale (Tale of the Cat), who is a half-sister to GSW & MGISP Stays in Vegas (City Zip) and SW Miss Technicality (Gio Ponti). This is alsot he family of GISW Persistently (Smoke Glacken).

“We're happy with the money and we're happy with the home she's gone to,” Spider Duignan said. “We've still go the mare and this filly is going to good hands. I think those people bought a good filly.”

The horseman continued, “She's developed really, really well since she was a yearling. Her breeze was sensational. Keiber [Rengifo of Golden Rock Thoroughbreds] did a classy job with her.” —@CDeBernardisTDN

Maclean's Music Filly to My Racehorse, Saratoga Seven

A colt by Maclean's Music (hip 429) is joining the My Racehorse.com portfolio in partnership with Saratoga Seven Racing Partners after selling for $400,000 to the bid of bloodstock agent Phil Hager Wednesday at OBS. The bay was consigned by Woodford Thoroughbreds, which purchased him for $65,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale. He worked a quarter-mile during last week's under-tack show in :20 4/5.

“We will probably send him to New York,” Hager said of the colt. “We will pick the trainer after they get him back to the farm.”

The bay colt is out of You Make Luvin Fun (A.P. Indy), a half-sister to multiple graded stakes winner Classic Elegance (Carson City) and to the dam of GI Kentucky Oaks winner Believe You Can (Proud Citizen).

“He's just a really pretty colt,” Hager, who did his bidding alongside Myracehorse's Joe Mishak and bloodstock agent Roderick Wachman, said. “He wasn't overly heavy for the sire, which we liked. His work was really good and he had a lot of class to him.”

Myracehorse.com and Saratoga Seven also teamed up to buy a filly by More Than Ready (hip 414) for $250,000 Wednesday in Ocala.

“It's a small partnership group of a few guys out of Louisville,” Hager said of Saratoga Seven. “We bought a horse for them a few years ago named Honor Up (To Honor and Serve) that was a pretty nice horse. He was third in the [2019 GI] Carter.” @JessMartiniTDN

The post Million-Dollar Babies Pace OBS Wednesday appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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