Boyd Browning Jr. | Horse Racing Free Tips

Market Momentum Builds with First Ky Yearling Sale in the Books

by Jessica Martini, Brian DiDonato & Christie DeBernardis

LEXINGTON, KY–Fasig-Tipton’s two-day Selected Yearlings Showcase concluded Thursday with solid enough trade–especially on flashier offerings–given the global uncertainty leading up to the first major yearling sale in the year of COVID-19.

The auction, necessitated by the cancellation of the July, Saratoga and New York-bred sales, featured 348 transactions for gross receipts of $61,765,000 at an average of $177,486 and median of $120,000. The buy-back rate was 33.7%.

The sale topper came on Wednesday when Robbie Medina, bidding on behalf of Joe Allen, went to $1.5 million to acquire a regally bred Quality Road filly (hip 232) from the Hill ‘n’ Dale Sales Agency consignment.

“I would like to thank the 662 people who own horses and entrusted them with us in a sale that had never been done before. That is one of the greatest compliments you could ever expect, when they entrust something of value to you,” said Fasig-Tipton president and CEO Boyd Browning, Jr. “We demonstrated viability in the marketplace. It is not easy. We all know nothing is easy right now. It’s selective. You’ve heard me say a thousand times over the last 30 years it is selective. But, there is viability and there is hope. I have to take my hat off to my team. If anyone could have imagined six months ago, no Gulfstream Sale, no July Yearling Sale, no Saratoga Sale, no New York-bred Sale and we would be sitting here tonight having sold $60 million worth of horses over the last two days, I would have called BS on it. There were a lot of days people would say, ‘What are we going to do?’ I’d say, ‘Hell, I don’t know.’ We tried to do the right thing every day and we make a decision, we put our heart and soul into it and try to do the best we can.”

Browning, never one to hide his emotions, continued, “This spring, we lost a valuable member of our team, Dennis Lynch. Take COVID, sales cancellations and losing one of your key people, key friends in one year. I am pretty confident Dennis is up there right now mixing a couple of stiff drinks, one for him and one for Billy [Graves]. Dennis said, ‘Hey Billy, our people did a pretty good job.’ And Billy looked at him and said, ‘Yeah, but we taught them everything we knew. They had to do a pretty good job.’ And that is the truth. It is a cumulative effect of people that are here today and people that are no longer with us. We have a great team and their commitment to this industry is remarkable. I would be remiss if I didn’t thank the buyers. No one knows what is going to happen tomorrow or a month from now or next year, but people came and supported the industry and bid enthusiastically. They participated in an uncertain time and helped move everybody forward. The resiliency in our industry has been on display again in the past few days. It says something about how special our game is. It has been a very gratifying experience. It’s been a challenge. You think of all the obstacles everybody has had to overcome.”

Wednesday’s session kicked off with a section of New York-breds, but Thursday’s session was all open horses, yielding somewhat higher numbers. The session two average was $196,585 and median was $150,000 on $34,599,000 in gross receipts from 176 sold. The RNA rate was 33.1%.

Thursday’s topper was a $1.25-million American Pharoah colt (hip 400) consigned by Denali Stud on behalf of Bayne and Christina Welker and purchased by Speedway Stables.

A Curlin half-sister to GI Runhappy Santa Anita Derby winner and GI Kentucky Derby fourth Honor A. P. (Honor Code) RNA’d for $1.4 million.

With travel restrictions in place, foreign buyers were notably absent from the results sheets on both days.

“There was an overwhelming amount of horses bought by domestic buyers,” Browning said. “There was an effort made by Fasig, Keeneland, the Breeders’ Cup and the NTRA and Senator McConnell’s office to grant some waivers and we were able to do that. Once we got those waivers in place, there was a quarantine requirement in virtually all of Europe and Japan. It is unrealistic to expect broad participation internationally this year.”

Yearling sales season continues with the two-week Keeneland September sale starting Sunday. Fasig-Tipton will hold the Midlantic Fall Yearlings sale in Maryland Oct. 5 and 6, and action will return to its Newtown Paddocks in Lexington Oct. 26 and 29.

Watch our video with Browning below.

Speedway Stable Fends Off Coolmore for ‘Pharoah’ Colt

A son of Triple Crown winner American Pharoah was the first to set off fireworks at Fasig-Tipton Thursday, igniting a spirited round of bidding between a trio of powerhouse connections in Donato Lanni, Coolmore and Marette Farrell, acting on behalf of Speedway Stables. Lanni was the first to throw in the towel, leaving Coolmore and Farrell to duke it out and it was Farrell left to sign the winning $1.25-million ticket on behalf of Speedway’s K.C. Weiner and Peter Fluor.

“K.C. Weiner and Peter Fluor are two of the best owners a person could possibly have,” said Farrell, who was shocked to find out she had outbid the Coolmore team. “They are game. They are very successful in their own business world and they apply all of those principles to our little horse world. They have done very well so far. They love being part of the game. They love working with Bob Baffert.”

Consigned by Denali Stud, Hip 400 was bred by Fasig’s Bayne and Christina Welker, who purchased the MSW mare Swingit (Victory Gallop) for $50,000 in foal to Bodemeister at the 2016 Keeneland November Sale. Already the dam of MGISP millionaire Neolithic (Harlan’s Holiday) at that time, her second foal for the Welkers was new ‘TDN Rising Star’ Travel Column (Frosted), who was purchased by Larry Best for $850,000 at last term’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale.

“We just thought he was an absolutely stunning horse,” Farrell said. “We were the underbidder on his half-sister last year, who was the ‘TDN Rising Star.’ We had seen this horse on the farm and knew how much his connections thought of him and Bob Baffert, who is going to train him, loved him. I was on the phone with K.C. Weiner, who coached me through this. We are thrilled to get him. We think he is a really special horse and it looks like the mare has already produced a couple of very good horses. He fits what Speedway wants and what Bob Baffert is looking for.”

Baffert and Speedway have enjoyed a successful partnership over the years, campaigning the likes of Grade I winners Collected (City Zip), Roadster (Quality Road) and Noted and Quoted (The Factor). —@CDeBernardisTDN

Watch our interview with Marette Farrell below.

Welkers Strike Again

When Bayne and Chris Welker sold a filly by Frosted for a personal high at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale, Chris admitted she had one thought in mind.

“When the filly sold for $850,000 last year, all I thought to myself was, ‘What is the colt going to be worth?’ I tried to keep it in check for a year plus a month because that always creeps into your head.”

By American Pharoah, the colt proved worth the wait when selling for $1.25 million to bloodstock agent Marette Farrell bidding on behalf of Speedway Stables Thursday at Fasig-Tipton.

The yearling is out of Swingit (Victory Gallop), a 16-year-old mare Welker purchased for $50,000 at the 2016 Keeneland November sale. It was just months later that the mare’s son Neolithic finished third in both the GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational and G1 Dubai World Cup. He ended that season with another third-place effort in the GI Woodward S.

“I just wanted something that I could sell out of and then Neolithic came along almost immediately,” Welker said of her purchase in 2016. “So that was just a lot of luck with the mare. She had kind of a spotty produce record, so that kept her in my price range.”

Swingit was in foal to Bodemeister when Welker purchased her. That colt sold for $310,000 at the 2018 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale. But it was the following year at Saratoga that Welker had her best sales result–until Thursday–when Larry Best purchased the daughter of Frosted. Now named Travel Column, the filly timed her racetrack debut perfectly ahead of the Fasig Showcase, coasting to a ‘TDN Rising Star’-earning performance at Churchill Downs on Oaks day last week.

“She was awesome,” Welker said of the filly. “But completely different from him. She was very tough, like you want a filly, and this colt was easy from day one. Easy and classy from day one. She was classy, she was just tough. The difference in a good colt and a good filly, exactly what you want to see.”

The American Pharoah colt had originally been targeted to sell at the canceled Saratoga sale, but the extra time may have helped the yearling.

“It was pretty stressful,” Welker admitted. “He was originally going to go to Saratoga, but the extra time was actually good for him. He is a May foal and he was really immature for a long time. We had to let him mature himself. There is nothing you can do to make him look good against January foals except time. So really the COVID [pandemic] might have been a help to give him that extra month.”

Swingit produced a colt by City of Light this year, but is not in foal this year.

“She is barren this year,” Welker said. “She had a mid-May City of Light who is unbelievable, like she always does. She was barren to Audible. But that’s ok, because we had one shot and we had to short cycle her. It wasn’t the best. It’s all fine though, we’ll just regroup a little and get her in foal early. But she is some mare.”

Asked who the mare might be bred to next year, Welker said, “Don’t know. It doesn’t matter who you breed her to. She is going to have a good foal.” @JessMartiniTDN

SF, Starlight & Madaket Get Into More Mischief

Into Mischief has been very good to SF, Starlight Racing and Madaket Stables, providing them with last weekend’s GI Kentucky Derby hero Authentic. The team’s bloodstock agent, Donato Lanni, was back in action for another son of that red hot Spendthrift stallion Thursday, going to $800,000 for Hip 501.

“There are some new partners in this deal this year,” said Lanni. “SF, Sol Kumin and Starlight are all great guys. This year we spent a month looking at horses at the farms, myself, Tom Ryan and Caroline [Walsh]. He was a horse we saw at Indian Creek and we quite liked him. He is a very athletic horse. He looked like Practical Joke (Into Mischief), an early, fast horse. Those are the kinds of horses we try to buy.”

As for his thoughts on Into Mischief, Lanni said, “I am happy he got a Classic winner this year and I am happy for B. Wayne Hughes and his team. He is finally a Classic producer and B. Wayne deserved that. He has done so much for the business.”

Mike Ryan purchased Hip 501’s dam Blind Copy (Distorted Humor) for Bob Edwards of e Five Racing and Fifth Avenue Bloodstock for $180,000 at the 2016 Keeneland November Sale. This colt was her first foal and she was subsequently sold to Fred Hertrich for $105,000 in foal to More Than Ready at last term’s Keeneland November Sale. A daughter of SW & GSP Lucky Copy (Unbridled’s Song), Blind Copy is a full-sister to SW Lucky Folie.

“He is a horse that we have always been really, really high on,” said consignor Indian Creek’s Sarah Sutherland. “We had hoped to go to Saratoga with him, but obviously that didn’t pan out. So, Mr. Edwards said to bring him to this sale and give it a shot, try to support Fasig. It worked out beautifully. He is going to a great home.”

The horsewoman continued, “He has a great mind. He showed himself the same every single time someone came to look at him. I think that is one of his biggest assets. For a big horse, he is very light on his feet and covers a huge amount of ground. He is bred on the same cross as Practical Joke, so we hope he can run like him.” —@CDeBernardisTDN

Watch our video with Sarah Sutherland below.

‘Avengers’ Strike For More Into Mischiefs

On Wednesday it was Spendthrift Farm and MyRacehorse–later additions to the ownership group of Saturday’s GI Kentucky Derby winner Authentic (Into Mischief)–who took home a pricey Into Mischief colt, and on Thursday it was Authentic’s original owners’ turn to grab two sons of the Spendthrift Farm stalwart. Acting on behalf of the powerful partnership of SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, et al–nicknamed “The Avengers” by their trainer Bob Baffert–agent Donato Lanni went to $560,000 to secure hip 433. The son of SW/MGSP Twice the Lady (Quiet American) and half to August maiden special weight-winning 2-year-old Run Casper Run (Ghostzapper) was consigned by Woodford Thoroughbreds, Agent XIII on behalf of WinStar Farm.

“He’s an Into Mischief–we got lucky with him last weekend,” Lanni stated plainly. “He’s got everything we’re looking for. We’re happy with the price and happy that we’re here shopping.”

Lanni later landed another son of Into Mischief, hip 501, for $800,000.

When asked to describe him physically, Baffert’s go-to agent said, “This horse is going to change so much from now to next year when we go to the races with him. Hopefully, he stays the way we want him to stay… He’s just got to put the tack on now.”

WinStar general manager David Hanley offered: “He’s a really nice horse, bred to go two turns. He’s got plenty size, and plenty of Into Mischief kind of muscle tone–strength. He’s a very nice horse. We’re happy with the price.”

WinStar paid $350,000 for Twice the Lady at the 2013 Fasig-Tipton November sale.

While the Avengers were quiet during the first session, they sprung into action on Thursday, acquiring seven colts for a combined $2,820,000, including five youngsters in the span of some 20 hips.

In addition to hips 433 and 501, the stallion-making group also bought:

• Hip 342, a $180,000 son of Union Rags out of a half-sister to MGISW Paradise Woods (Union Rags) from Vinery Sales, agent for Spendthrift Farm

• Hip 439, by Twirling Candy and bred and consigned by KatieRich Farms. The May 19 foal cost $150,000 and is a grandson of GSP Daisyago (Affirmed), who produced GSP Victory Nor Defeat (Unbridled’s Song)

• Hip 445, a $420,000 Uncle Mo out of GSW Walk Close (Tapit), making him a half to last year’s GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile runner-up Anneau d’Or (Medaglia d’Oro). He was consigned by James M. Herbener, Agent II.

• Hip 447, a Maclean’s Music from the family of Starlight’s GII Fountain of Youth S. hero Itsaknockout (Lemon Drop Kid). The Denali Stud consignee cost $400,000.

• Hip 450, a $300,000 New York-bred son of More Than Ready sold by Indian Creek.

• Hip 531, a $470,000 Sam-Son Farm-bred and consigned son of Empire Maker out of MSW Checkered Past (Smart Strike) from a potent family. —@BDiDonatoTDN

Violence Colt to Allen

Robbie Medina continued adding yearlings to Joe Allen’s racing stable when he signed the ticket at $550,000 to acquire a colt by Violence (hip 480) from the Gainesway consignment Thursday at Fasig-Tipton. The chestnut colt is out of Antics (Unbridled) and is a half-brother to sprint champion Covfefe (Into Mischief).

“He’s a beautiful colt and half-brother to a champion,” Medina said of the yearling’s appeal. “Helen Alexander bred him and she breeds a great horse. He’s everything you would want in a new horse.”

Medina, longtime assistant to trainer Shug McGaughey and now general manager at Guinness McFadden’s Blackwood Stables, made the Showcase’s highest bid when going to $1.5 million to acquire a colt by Quality Road for Allen during Wednesday’s first session of the two-day auction.

“Reeve McGaughey and I are helping look for Joe here,” Medina said. “Reeve is Shug’s daughter and I worked for Shug for 25 years, so it’s pretty easy to deal with. I love looking at horses and bidding on them. The colt will go to Blackwood until the first of December and then to Florida.”

Also Thursday, Medina signed for a filly by Speightstown (hip 448) for $450,000.

In addition to Allen, Medina has also been buying for Bill Parcells’ August Dawn Farm.

“I have bought a couple for Coach Parcells,” he said. “I’ve bought horses for Coach the last couple of years.”

Alexander said she was happy with Thursday’s sale, especially in light of the uncertain market conditions.

“It’s hard to have outsized expectations right now in this kind of marketplace,” Alexander said. “Without having a lot of the principals here who can sometimes egg on their agents, there is less momentum. The nice horses are selling well, though. That’s always the case.”

Covfefe was purchased by LNJ Foxwoods for $250,000 at the 2017 Keeneland September sale. The filly won last year’s GI Test S. and GI Breeders’ Cup F/M Sprint and was named Eclipse champion 3-year-old filly and female sprinter.

The 22-year-old Antics has a 2-year-old filly named Caper (Nyquist) which has been retained by Alexander and has been working at Saratoga. The Violence yearling may be the mare’s final foal.

“Of course there is sentiment involved in selling,” Alexander said. “Right now, he is her last foal. She has missed the last couple of years and she is kind of at an age that I am considering retiring her. But I have a really nice 2-year-old filly out of her by Nyquist that is in training and getting close to running. I am excited about her. If this [yearling] was a filly, she would not have been here. I can guarantee you that.” @JessMartiniTDN

Partners Regroup with Gun Runner Filly

Trainer Jeremiah Englehart, bidding on behalf of a partnership headed by Richard Nicolai’s Fortune Farm and It’s All About the Girls Stable, went to $500,000 to acquire a filly from the first crop of champion Gun Runner (hip 570) Thursday in Lexington. Consigned by Gainesway, the filly is out of graded placed Divine Dawn (Divine Park), a full-sister to graded winner Divine Miss Grey. The yearling was bred by Oussama Aboughazale’s International Equities Holdings, which purchased the mare in foal to Nyquist for $285,000 at the 2017 Keeneland November sale.

“The first time that Travis [Durr] and I saw her, she just gave us the impression that she was a nice filly,” Englehart said. “She was later in the sale, so we had some other horses that we were looking at. But it worked out that we were able to buy her. I was a little nervous that she might go a little higher. We’re really excited to get a group of people together, Fortune Farm, It’s all About the Girls, Bob Hahn and Eric Johnson and other partners that were involved in a real special filly before and it’s kind of cool to be able to keep them together and have something to look forward to next year.”

In addition to hip 570, Gun Runner was also represented by a colt (hip 430) who sold for $420,000 to Centennial Farms, as well as a $400,000 colt (hip 486) sold to Joe Hardoon, agent, and a $400,000 colt (hip 366) purchased by Maverick Racing. During the two-day showcase, seven yearlings by Gun Runners sold for an average of $331,429.

“I’ve liked what I’ve seen so far from Gun Runner,” Englehart said. “He was one of my favorite racehorses, just watching him. I liked how he developed from early on his career to later on, he ended up being much better as a 4 and 5-year-old then he was as a 3-year-old. I’d like to see my horses develop like that, too. They don’t have to all be first-time out winners. It’s nice to see them develop over a whole career.”

Several of the partners on the Gun Runner filly were also owners in the filly Samborella (Outwork), who looked to be sailing to an easy victory in the Seeking the Ante S. at Saratoga last week only to take some bad steps as she crossed the wire. The filly had to be euthanized later that afternoon.

“It’s pretty much the same group,” Englehart said of the partnership group. “It’s the ultimate highs and lows in the game in a minute and 15 seconds. You go from thinking you have a really nice filly to having her take a bad step. But there are other horses in the barn that are counting on us every day. So we just have to get up the next day and get back at it.” @JessMartiniTDN

Ruis Buys Out Black on Kingman Filly

Mick Ruis partnered up with Christian Black on a mare named Amber Romance (Ire) (Bahamian Bounty {GB}), who Black picked out at Tattersalls March for 200,000 guineas with a Kingman (GB) filly in utero. Ruis liked the resulting filly so much, he decided he had to have her and bought out his partner for $500,000 Thursday.

“I was in partnership with Christian Black,” Ruis explained, adding that the filly would likely be sent to his daughter Shelbe Ruis in California. “He bought the mare when he went to Europe. I just bought out the partnership and will race her. She is beautiful. We have a Hard Spun weanling also. It is pretty rare that we are able to get this family in the first place.”

Amber Romance is a half-sister to Group 1 winners Free Eagle (High Chaparral {Ire}) and Search for a Song (Galileo {Ire}); and MGSWs Custom Cut (Notnowcato) and Sapphire (Medicean).

Hip 473, who is a Pennsylvania-bred, was consigned by Mike Recio’s South Point Sales Agency. Recio and Black teamed up Wednesday to sell a $510,000 son of Nyquist (Hip 297) bred by Black’s Blackstone Farm.

“We went to Tatts in December,” Recio said. “It was our first venture over there and it was more of a fact-finding mission. But, Christian found two very nice mares and I ended up buying a race filly who has done okay for Richard Baltas.”

He continued, “We hadn’t had a great day of finding things, but then we turned the corner and saw this mare with a great pedigree and so much class. Her feet weren’t great, but we figured we could take care of them and manage her. She came over here and had a fantastic filly. Mick supported her with Bolt d’Oro. It is a fantastic family and is getting better and better. It was a really good opportunity all the way around.”

—@CDeBernardisTDN

Albaughs, West Point Team Up to Take Home ‘Giant’ Colt

Albaugh Family Stables and West Point Thoroughbreds joined forces Thursday to land a Giant’s Causeway colt to be trained by Dale Romans. The $500,000 purchase was consigned by Wynnstay Sales, Agent I as hip 618. He is a half to hard-knocking MGSW and GISP Isotherm (Lonhro {Aus}) and GISP Gio Game (Gio Ponti).

“We partnered with them for the first time two years ago–they’re great partners, and they’re really a pleasure to work with. And they’re lucky!” said West Point’s Terry Finley, who stood along Albaugh bloodstock advisor Barry Berkelhammer during the bidding process.

Finley noted Dennis Albaugh and Jason Loutsch’s past success with sons of Giant’s Causeway, including GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile runner-up and freshman sire sensation Not This Time and MGISW Brody’s Cause, who sired Saturday’s GIII Iroquois S. winner Sittin on Go. Sittin on Go is campaigned by the Albaughs and Romans and was bred by Wynnstay.

“Interestingly, when I first started out, I remember Mariah’s Storm as she walked up to the ring to be sold [for $2.6 million at the 1996 Keeneland November sale] and Giant’s Causeway was in her belly,” Finley recalled. “That’s a lot of years between those two.”

As for hip 618’s appeal, Finley said, “He’s just the kind of horse that Dale has done well with. The Albaughs are obviously trying to get to the Derby. They had some tough luck this year, but I love to be around guys and partners who can put a bad situation in the past and can look forward. They’ve got some great young horses–they won the two [graded juvenile] stakes on Derby week… This is exactly the kind of horse that we try not to buy ourselves and instead try to partner up with people. We’re just glad they gave us a shot to participate.”

Team Albaugh also annexed the GIII Pocahontas S. last Thursday with ‘TDN Rising Star’ Girl Daddy (Uncle Mo). West Point made six additional purchases by itself for $647,000 total.

“I thought the New York-breds were solid–obviously, I don’t think the sellers were that happy, but overall I thought people got square deals,” Finley said of trade overall. “There’s still plenty of money–the world’s not in a depression. The equity markets are still very strong. So, I would surmise that Keeneland’s going to be tough to buy. You just have to be disciplined and do your homework just like everybody, and try to pick the best spots possible.”

Hip 618 was bred by Allen Poindexter, who paid just $8,000 for MSP dam Game for More (More Than Ready) in foal to Bwana Charlie at the Fasig-Tipton Heiligbrodt Dispersal back in 2011.

“This was [Wynnstay’s] Tim Hamlin’s cross–he had thought that this mare and Giant’s Causeway would get the kind of baby who we got,” Poindexter said. “So, I give all the credit to him for doing the mating. We got the physical we wanted.”

As a seller, Poindexter was slightly less bullish on the market: “I think you have to have good horses–it’s still a tough market. Hopefully it’ll improve as we get through with COVID. I think these horses are still bringing 25%-35% less than what they would’ve gotten [normally], but we’re still grateful for what we got given what the country’s going through right now.”

—@BDiDonatoTDN

Courtlandt Back in Action

Don Adam’s Courtlandt Farm is perennially active at the top end of the yearling market, and it took home four head this week at Fasig, including a $500,000 Nyquist filly (hip 487) from the Warrendale Sales consignment; and a Medaglia d’Oro filly (hip 560) for the same price out of the Gainesway draft.

“We were thankful to have Mike Cline and David Ingordo do some looking before we arrived, so it kind of made my job a little easier,” said Courtlandt farm manager Ernie Retamoza after bidding alongside retiring Lane’s End manager Cline on hip 487. “We just had to go through some of the better ones and decide the value. I think these are all horses that Mr. Adam is going to love to put in his race program and hopefully be successful with.”

Hip 487 is a half to this year’s GIII Iowa Oaks runner-up Aurelia Garland (Constitution) as well as talented 2015 OBS March topper Diamondsandpearls (Constitution). Her second dam is

GII Alcibiades S. winner Westerly Breeze (Gone West).

Darley resident Nyquist led all first-crop sires last year with a yearling average of $236,318, and those who bought in early have been rewarded–his runners ran one-three in Sunday’s

GI Spinaway S. at Saratoga, one day before a son of his won well in a Spa maiden special weight. Another son of Nyquist annexed Woodbine’s Soaring Free S. a few weeks ago.

“For a first-year sire like that who has done what he’s done over the summer, it sure makes you pay attention to a filly like this,” Retamoza said. “We just loved her–she was a great physical; met all the criteria, so we were happy to have her.”

The Medaglia d’Oro filly is out of a Bernardini half-sister to GISW Heavenly Love (Malibu Moon) and GSW Forever Darling (Congrats).

Courtlandt also bought a $280,000 Distorted Humor colt (hip 264) on Wednesday and a $190,000 Twirling Candy filly (hip 348) early in the day Thursday.

“I think it’s solid,” Retamoza said of the market. “Average horses are not doing well here, but the right horses are selling the way they should. We’ve had to stretch a couple of times for horses we’ve bought. It’s not unexpected, and I think it’s good for everyone.” —@BDiDonatoTDN

McCormack Gets His ‘Share’ Early Thursday

Agent John McCormack appeared equal parts elated and surprised after landing the well-related hip 350 early Thursday for $400,000. From the first crop of brilliant and undefeated Mastery (Candy Ride {Arg}), the Sam-Son Farm-bred and consigned filly is out of 2010 GI Breeders’ Cup F/M Turf upsetter Shared Account (Pleasantly Perfect), making her a half to last year’s GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf winner and ‘TDN Rising Star‘ Sharing (Speightstown), whose exploits this term include a second-place finish in Royal Ascot’s G1 Coronation S. and a clear-cut success in last week’s GII Edgewood S. at Churchill Downs.

“I loved her and I’m very surprised I bought her,” said McCormack, noting that the purchase was made on behalf of an existing client and that she would remain Stateside, at least for the moment. “I thought she was an absolute standout here. I loved the class of her; I loved the shape of her; I loved the big ears on her. She was just so elegant. We don’t know what Mastery can do–that’s the unknown–but the mare has done it, [given that hip 350] is out of a Breeders’ Cup winner and a half to a Breeders’ Cup winner. But, she has the physical. For me, I loved everything about her.”

Hip 350 is also a half to stakes winner Riley’s Choice (Distorted Humor). Her dam is a half to GSW Colonial Flag (Pleasant Tap) and hails from a deep family jam-packed with graded performers. The Samuel family’s legendary Sam-Son Farm purchased Shared Account for $550,000 while she was carrying hip 350 at the 2018 Keeneland November sale.

“I just loved her class, and Sam-Son Farm–there’s nothing they don’t know about the horse business,” McCormack said. “They’re great breeders up in Canada, and everywhere. It’s lovely to buy from Sam-Son.”

While Wednesday’s first yearling session of the season started off a bit slowly, it picked up steam as the higher-dollar horses began to sell and McCormack said he expected that momentum to continue into Keeneland September.

“It started off a bit slow with the New York-breds and people were sort of on their back haunches a little bit,” he said of Wednesday’s trade. “But it picked up as the day went on, and I think nice horses are starting to show themselves and with better pedigrees. The money’s coming for them. Put it this way, I’m glad I bought her today, rather than waiting for Keeneland, because I think that momentum is going to continue as we move forward. But she was a filly who fit everywhere. I can’t believe I bought her, because I just loved her.” —@BDiDonatoTDN

Lord Nelson Proves Worth the Wait

Three-time Grade I winner Lord Nelson (Pulpit) has been a bit of a passion project for the team at Spendthrift. He developed laminitis shortly after retiring to B. Wayne Hughes’ stallion barn, forcing him to miss his first breeding season. The chestnut fought his way back and was represented by his first yearlings at Fasig Thursday, topped by a $325,000 colt.

“Lord Nelson has been a special project from day one having developed laminitis right after his racing career,” Spendthrift General Manager Ned Toffey said. “At one point, it was touch and go on whether or not he was going to make it. We had to skip his first breeding season all together. The horse is so tough, so smart and such a kind horse. He is a big part of why he was able to even make it. He is such a good-looking horse and so talented.”

Consigned by Four Star Sales on behalf of Spendthrift Farm, Hip 624 was purchased by John Fort, who also bought Lord Nelson as a yearling at the 2013 Keeneland September Sale. Spendthrift privately purchased Lord Nelson at the conclusion of his sophomore season and he won all four of his starts carrying the operations purple-and-orange silks, including his trio of Grade I sprint victories.

Spendthrift purchased Hip 624’s GSP dam Goldrush Girl (Political Force) for $210,000 in foal to More Than Ready at the 2015 Keeneland November Sale. She hails from the family of Grade I winners Daredevil and Albertus Maximus.

“What we are seeing at this sale is what we thought we had all along, so it is nice to see him getting to this point,” said Toffey. “We bred some very nice mares of our own to him and have been very happy with how they have been received, how they sold and who bought them. They are getting into the right hands and we are really happy about it.”

A total of 11 yearlings by Lord Nelson changed hands during the two-day Fasig-Tipton sale for a total of $1.475 million and an average of $134,091.

Spendthrift’s flagship stallion Into Mischief has been having a sensational sale, fresh off his first Classic victory with Authentic in last weekend’s GI Kentucky Derby. Seventeen of his offspring sold for $6.745 million throughout the two sessions, averaging $396,765.

“Into Mischief is just such an amazing horse,” said Toffey. “He is so consistent. He just does everything right. He gets really commercial, good-looking horses. He gets really talented horses and now he has shown that he can get a sprinter as well as a stayer. That was sort of the last box he had to tick off. Goldencents has done so well. He has demonstrated that he can be a sire of sires as well as a Classic sire. I don’t think there is anything else you can ask a stallion to do.” —@CDeBernardisTDN

Krikorian Takes Curlin Filly Home

Late in Thursday’s second session of the Fasig-Tipton Showcase, it looked like the auction might have its third seven-figure yearling, but hip 648, a Curlin half-sister to GI Runhappy Santa Anita Derby winner Honor A. P. (Honor Code), was led out unsold at $1.4 million. Breeder George Krikorian watched the bidding from inside a nearly empty pavilion, even taking a video of the yearling in the sales ring.

“She was close to selling, but we were hoping to get a little bit more for her,” Krikorian said. “She is such a special horse and she’s so well-bred. With a racing career and a few foals, she will easily exceed what we were willing to sell her for here today.”

Krikorian purchased Hollywood Story (Wild Rush) for $130,000 as a yearling at the 2002 Fasig-Tipton July sale and she went on to win the 2003 GI Hollywood Starlet and 2006 GI Vanity International S. in his colors.

As a broodmare, Hollywood Story has produced a $1.35-million Keeneland September yearling, as well as foals who sold as yearlings for $650,000, $550,000, and $875,000.

CRK Stable purchased Honor A.P. for $850,000 at the 2018 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale. In addition to the Santa Anita Derby, the sophomore was second in the GII San Felipe S. and Shared Belief S. and was fourth in last week’s GI Kentucky Derby.

Hollywood Story was also represented on the racetrack by multiple graded stakes placed Hollywood Star (Malibu Moon).

The 19-year-old mare produced a filly by Tapit this year and was bred back to Triple Crown winner Justify.

“I’m very happy to take her home,” Krikorian said of the yearling. “We haven’t thought about a plan for her yet, but we’ll just move forward with her career. And we’ll look forward to racing her. We hope she stays healthy.” @JessMartiniTDN

Lanni Eyes Classic Double in Queen’s Plate

Bloodstock agent Donato Lanni, part of the team which picked Authentic (Into Mischief) out at the 2018 Keeneland September sale, stood in the winner’s circle when that colt won the GI Kentucky Derby last week. But the Montreal native could win a more personally meaningful Classic when Clayton (Bodemeister) lines up for the Queen’s Plate at Woodbine Saturday. While he helped purchase Authentic for the partnership of SF Bloodstock and Starlight West, Clayton was a horse the agent purchased in his own name for $50,000 at the same sale.

“He looked like a cool horse,” Lanni said of Clayton while taking a quick break from another buying spree for SF, Starlight and Madaket Racing, at the Fasig Showcase Thursday. “I was looking for a Canadian-bred to take up there and have some fun with my friends and family. I have a lot of family and friends up there and it was something I’ve always wanted to do.”

Clayton started showing promise early in his training with Barry Eisaman in Ocala and opened his career with a 7 1/2-length debut win at Woodbine last November. He earned a spot in the Queen’s Plate with a half-length tally in the Aug. 15 Plate Trial S.

“We took our time with him and then when he won first time out back in October, we knew he was a runner,” Lanni said. “I ended up turning some money down for the horse because he’s a horse I share with my family and friends. [Trainer] Kevin Attard has done a great job with him-he’s one of the most underrated trainers in North America.”

Among the partners on Clayton are eight friends from Lanni’s school days in Montreal, all first-time owners, and his father Giuseppe, who owned harness horses when Lanni was growing up and helped nurture his son’s love of the sport.

Lanni purchased Clayton with the hope of spending days at the races with friends and family, but those plans have been squashed by the pandemic. While Lanni will be home in Kentucky for the Queen’s Plate, his colt’s co-owners will be at the track for what will be an emotional day as the elder Lanni battles health issues.

“I’m so happy I get to share this with him and it’s nice that he gets to go,” Lanni said of his father. “He got me involved in racing. I gave him a piece of the horse, so he gets to feel like it’s his horse, too. It is helping him keep going. Horses do that for people.”

Lanni continued, “Being Canadian, the Queen’s Plate is so special. It’s such an historic race. I never thought I’d be in a position to have a horse like this.”

Lanni worked at John Sikura’s Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms for over two decades and one of the horses Clayton will face in the Queen’s Plate is Curlin’s Voyage (Curlin), a filly co-owned by Hill ‘n’ Dale.

“He is going to run against one of my good friends, John Sikura, who I worked for for 20 some years and it’s ironic we both have horses running in the Queen’s Plate,” Lanni said. “I will be the first guy to congratulate him if he wins and I’m sure he’ll be the first guy to congratulate me. We both wish each other the best of luck.”

Of a possible Classic double, Lanni said, “I don’t think about it. It’s just part of the job. We try to find them and then the chips fall where they fall. You’ve got to get lucky. If you look what happened in the Derby, how many scratched, you just don’t know what’s going to happen until they put them in the gate. You just have to consider yourself very lucky, very fortunate and very blessed to be there.” @JessMartiniTDN

What They’re Saying

“It is hit or miss. I think Fasig did a great job with the catalogue and picking out physicals. They always do. The New York-breds were tough. There is nothing like Saratoga. That was a little rough. I did get all three [New York-breds sold], but I think I would have gotten two to three times more up there under the lights. It is kind of hard to compare a Freud with a Kingman in the same shedrow or the [$510,000] Nyquist colt with a very good Mucho Macho Man New York-bred. I don’t know what the right venue would have been or if maybe they should have mixed them in the catalogue or put them at the back to let the sale get some momentum. The sale got strong yesterday and was pretty good today for the right ones. It is a mix of July, Saratoga and New York-breds, so it is pretty hard to gauge. The top end is going to be electric and I think as you get later in the sale, you have to have a good physical and vet or you are going to struggle a little bit.” –Mike Recio, South Point Sales

“I think the perceived good horses are making a ton of money, the same as normal. But, I think, as time goes on, there is going to be a point where it falls off the cliff, sadly. The good ones each day will sell well, but the under-the-radar horses may not have the people they hope for, so that is where I’m going to be.”

—Agent Marette Farrell

“The horses that we like have sold well. It seems like the higher-end market is still there, but you can definitely tell people are being a little cautious because 2020 has just been a very strange year. There is a lot of uncertainty still and we don’t know how it will be next year. But it gives you a little hope that the sales are still looking pretty strong.” –Trainer Jeremiah Englehart

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Bright Spots As Unusual Yearling Season Kicks Off at Fasig-Tipton

by Brian DiDonato, Jessica Martini & Christie DeBernardis

LEXINGTON, KY–The Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearlings Showcase, a hybrid of the company’s July yearling sale, Saratoga sale and New York-bred yearling sale brought about by COVID-19- induced rescheduling, kicked off the 2020 yearling sales season Wednesday with signs of life for the market.

A total of 172 yearlings changed hands for gross receipts of $27,166,000–good for an average of $157,942 and median of $100,000. The RNA rate was 34.4%.

“At the outset, we had no expectations for the statistics,” said Fasig-Tipton president and CEO Boyd Browning, Jr. “It was impossible to know how to compare this sale to 2019 results. What we hoped to achieve was to have a viable marketplace, to have commerce be conducted amongst buyers and sellers and to create an environment which would help to restore some confidence in the marketplace and to provide it some stability and foundation for the 2020 yearling sales. We are only halfway through, so I am going to be cautious in my overall analysis at this point, but I am very encouraged. These sales grounds have been jam-packed with buyers since Sunday. They bid pretty enthusiastically. I think any time you start a sale, there is a little bit of trepidation and it takes you a little bit of time occasionally to find its way to get a little confidence. I think that was certainly the case today, but I think as it progressed through the day, people gained more confidence. The bidding was very competitive. We are only halfway through the catalogue, but I would say we are very encouraged by the level of participation and the enthusiasm that people participated in the sale and the enthusiasm of the people who came to attend the sale.”

Watch our complete interview with Boyd Browning below.

Hip 232, a regally bred Quality Road filly from a potent Coolmore family, was the lone seven-figure seller from a $1.5-million bid by Robbie Medina on behalf of Joseph Allen. The bay filly was consigned by Hill ‘n’ Dale Sales Agency, agent.

The sale began with a section of 164 New York-breds, and that group seemed to struggle a bit more than the open horses, with a significant percentage failing to find new homes as fewer New York-based connections were on the grounds than would be in Saratoga.

“Traditionally, if you look over the last 10 years, the New York sale has had probably the highest RNA rate of any of our major sales because there are so many racing opportunities for the New York breeders,” Browning said. “There is less pressure on them to begin with. Certainly the group that got dealt probably the toughest hand in terms of the marketplace was the New York breeders. Saratoga has a wonderful environment with the race meet going on and all of the interest and enthusiasm with so many folks that participate in the marketplace, both owners and trainers, who are used to being in Saratoga that are engaged. So they have probably been the most impacted of any segment of the market, not being able to have the sale in Saratoga. It was unrealistic to have a meaningful Thoroughbred auction in Saratoga in the summer and fall of 2020, so those breeders certainly had to adapt. And we have adapted with them and tried to have the best possible alternatives, but there were no perfect alternatives in the environment that we were dealing with in 2020.”

What They’re Saying…

“[The market] is extremely selective, which is nothing new, but I think this year is probably going to be more so. People are all landing on the same horses. They work it very thoroughly. They know what they want. They know what they like. There is competition for, as Boyd Browning says all the time, perceived quality, but below that is tough.” –Agent Mike Ryan

“I thought when you measure the sale today, factoring in the crazy world we are in, I thought the folks at Fasig should be reasonably comfortable. There was enough buying power where people could get out. It could be worse, let me put it that way.” –OXO Equine’s Larry Best

“Those horses have sold on an island, so to speak, up in New York. Then they come down here and start knocking heads with Into Mischiefs and Curlins and Tapits and Medaglia d’Oros and sires like that–they can still be nice horses, but your eye is going to gravitate to something that’s fancier. At the end of the day, these breeders–Fasig-Tipton has done an incredible job offering this right now in the times that we’re in–but the breeders are kind of hampered, a little bit, by not having those middle-of-the-road trainers here to buy those horses. They couldn’t travel in for whatever reason. When they’re in Saratoga, it’s a little different–they just have to go across the street. It’s a little different getting on a plane and coming down here. Hopefully, everybody made it through, and now it looks like the sale has picked up a little bit with these open-session horses. Hopefully, it just means that tomorrow it’ll be stronger and for all the breeders’ sakes we’ll go into Keeneland [September] and it’ll be strong.” –Agent Jacob West

Allen Strikes For Quality Filly

A daughter of Quality Road ignited a fury of bidding at Newtown Paddocks Wednesday, jumping into the seven-figure range in a matter of seconds and dropping the hammer at $1.5 million, which was the highest price of the day. When the smoke cleared, it was trainer Robbie Medina left signing the ticket on Hip 232 on behalf of longtime owner and breeder Joe Allen.

Watch our post-sale interview below.

“She had the best pedigree in the book, so Joe wanted her,” said Medina, who worked as an assistant to Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey for years before taking over training duties at Blackwood Training Center. “I have known Joe for 25 years when I worked for Shug. Joe had a team here and he asked me to go look at her and she is a beautiful filly. You can’t get a better pedigree than that. There is plenty of horse there and, as you can see she is a late April foal, so there is plenty of horse still to come.”

Bred by Orpendale, Chelston & Wynatt, hip 232 is out of Group 1 winner Marvellous (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), who is also responsible for SW & MGSP Fort Myers (War Front). Out of GSW You’resothrilling (Storm Cat)–a full-sister to Giant’s Causeway–Marvellous is a full-sister to multiple Group 1 winners Gleneagles (Ire) and Happily (Ire), as well as MGSW & GISP Taj Mahal (Ire), GSW & GISP Coolmore (Ire) and Vatican City (Ire), runner-up in this year’s G1 Irish 2000 Guineas.

“She is a wonderful, lovely filly,” said John Sikura of Hill ‘n’ Dale, who consigned the youngster. Coolmore owns the best mares in the world with the top pedigrees, so, for the long term, this is great value. Wonderful, classy filly with pedigree full of black-type, just a fantastic page that is still productive. We have a couple of really well-bred fillies, but she was the pearl of the group. For collectors like Joe Allen, who race and breed internationally at the highest level, that is what they seek. It is rare that you find those fillies, but when you do, you have to bid with authority and that’s what he did. I wish him the best of luck with a wonderful filly.” —@CDeBernardisTDN

Lanni, Baffert Buy Curlin Filly for Petersen

Agent Donato Lanni and now six-time GI Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Bob Baffert teamed up to secure a $700,000 Curlin filly (hip 285) Wednesday on behalf of Michael Lund Petersen. She was consigned by her breeder, Bonnie Baskin’s Blue Heaven Farm.

Lanni purchased the Baffert-trained and Petersen-owned GI Longines Acorn S. and GI Longines Test S. heroine and recent GI Kentucky Oaks third Gamine (Into Mischief) for a sale-topping $1.8 million at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-year-olds in training sale last year; and bought Petersen the $1.1-million Uncle Mo colt topper at that auction this June.

“I’ve seen this filly at the farm before, and she just keeps getting better and better,” said Lanni, who bid from the press box alongside Baffert and his wife Jill. “She’s a really sweet, fast-looking, athletic filly by I’d say the top sire in the country–one of them, at least. Bob and I thought she was just a real classy filly that would fit in his barn. You never know what they’re going to bring, but the price was plenty.”

Blue Heaven paid $600,000 for hip 285’s graded stakes-winning dam Our Khrysty (Newfoundland) in foal to Tiznow at the 2011 Fasig-Tipton November sale. Our Khrysty is a half to GSIW Bullsbay (Tiznow).

“They raise a good horse, [Blue Heaven vice president and general manager] Adam [Corndorf] and [farm manager] Jamie [Corbett],” Lanni said. “It’s a mom-and-pop farm–they own all their own mares and they raise them all. I feel good about how we did, and having Bob here with me makes my job a lot easier. It’s fun having him here. He’s the best.” —@BDiDonatoTDN

O’Byrne Hangs Tough on Into Mischief

Demi O’Byrne was determined when Hip 274 came into the ring, winning a furious bidding war with trainer Kenny McPeek to take home the son of red hot Into Mischief for $700,000. He was one of four yearlings purchased by O’Byrne, who was bidding on behalf of Peter Brant throughout the day. The colt was bred by Jeff Lewis, son of Bob and Beverly Lewis.

“That was the true market value,” said Conrad Bandoroff of Denali Stud, where the colt was born and raised. “It is what two guys said the horse was worth. Who is to say if in a normal year he brings more. He is a nice horse and we are happy with the price. We are thrilled for Mr. Lewis and we are thrilled for Demi.”

Hip 274 is out Night and Day (Unbridled’s Song), who is a daughter of the Lewis family’s Hall of Fame mare Serena’s Song (Rahy), as well as the dam of MGSW Made You Look (More Than Ready). Serena’s Song’s resume on the racetrack and in the breeding shed speaks for itself. An Eclipse Award winner and 11-time Grade I victress, she produced Group 1 winner Sophisticat (Storm Cat), who was also purchased by O’Byrne; GSWs Grand Reward (Storm Cat), Harlington (Unbridled) and Schramsberg (Storm Cat); and SW Serena’s Tune (Mr. Prospector), who is the dam of MGISW Honor Code (A. P. Indy).

“That is a special horse to us,” Bandoroff said. “He was born and raised on the farm for Jeff Lewis, who has continued on the family legacy. He is from the family of Serena’s Song out of a graded stakes producer. That is home team. It is obviously a family that has meant a lot to us. He is a horse that from the day he hit the ground, we always liked him and thought pretty highly of him. It is nice when a judge like Demi O’Byrne, one of the top judges of horse flesh, agrees with you. It is a testament to the team and to Serena’s Song legacy, which is something near and dear to us.”

Watch the complete interview with Conrad Bandoroff below.

Into Mischief has been getting hotter by the minute with his most recent success coming this past Saturday when Authentic became the Spendthrift sire’s first GI Kentucky Derby winner. His offspring proved exceptionally popular Wednesday, topped by this $700,000 colt. Eight yearlings by Into Mischief changed hands Wednesday for a total of $3.25-million and an average of $406,250. —@CDeBernardisTDN

Sondereker Hits a High with War Front Filly

John Sondereker usually plans to spend around $500,000 to buy yearlings for his West Coast-based racing stable, but he blew past that budget to acquire just one filly for $625,000 Wednesday at Fasig-Tipton. The yearling (hip 248), a daughter of War Front and out of Miss Chatelaine (Pulpit), was consigned by Brookdale Sales, as agent for her breeder Highland Yard LLC.

“I didn’t plan to spend that much money, but you get caught up in it and it’s so much fun,” Sondereker said. “Instead of buying two or three horses, maybe I’ll just buy one.”

Multiple graded placed Miss Chatelaine is a half-sister to graded winner Big Bend (Union Rags).

Asked what he liked about the yearling, Sondereker said, “Everything. She is a beautiful filly, she’s so correct. She had great movement. She was a really easy horse to buy–it’s not hard to buy those kind, you just have to have the money, right?”

Sondereker’s involvement in racing began several decades ago, but his foray into ownership started in the early 2000s.

“I was mucking stalls at Thistledown in 1959,” he said. “And then I worked for 40 years in the financial industry at Wells Fargo. I retired and I started buying racehorses on the West Coast in 2003.”

Sondereker has about 20 horses in training in California with Eric Kruljac. His 3-year-old Kiss Today Goodbye (Cairo Prince) was third behind Thousand Words (Pioneerof the Nile) in the Aug. 1 Shared Belief S. and was fifth in the GII Del Mar Derby Sunday. In partnership, he campaigned last year’s GIII Santa Barbara S. winner Causeforcommotion (Americain).

“We’ve always had fun,” Sondereker said. “And this filly is going to be my best one. I’m counting on it.” @JessMartiniTDN

Lows Get In on the Mischief

Prominent owners Robert and Lawana low got involved in Wednesday’s frenzy for progeny of red-hot Into Mischief as their bloodstock advisor Jacob West stretched to $600,000 to secure hip 268. The bay colt was consigned by Francis and Barbara Vanlangendonck’s Summerfield on behalf of Barbara Banke’s Stonestreet Bred & Raised.

“We thought he was in the $500,000 to $600,000 range and we had all the right people [on him],” said Francis Vanlangendonck. “These guys, they’re sharp, they know what a good horse is. That was in the ballpark that we thought.”

The Feb. 15 foal is out of speedy GSW and GISP My Wandy’s Girl (Flower Alley), who Stonestreet bought for $700,000 at the 2014 Keeneland November sale.

“He’s a really good Into Mischief,” Vanlangendonck said. “He’s correct, he’s got a good body on him; a good mind. Those horses are easy to sell. I’m just blessed to have Stonestreet give me horses like that. He’s a nice horse.”

West, like the other buyers who landed Into Mischiefs Wednesday, said hip 268’s sire power was obvious.

“Obviously, the stallion doesn’t need any introduction,” West said. “He’s out of a mare who could run; a cross that has worked before; and he comes from in incredible nursery in Stonestreet. We have a lot of faith in buying off of them; they raise incredible horses. They brought an incredible horse here to sell in support of Fasig, and they ended up getting a good result.”

Hip 268 is bred on a version of the same Into Mischief–Distorted Humor cross that produced Grade I winner and buzzed-about young sire Practical Joke.

“He’s the hottest stallion in the world right now, so you know you’re not going to steal one,” West said of hip 268’s price tag. “He was a beautiful horse; obviously, he was well sought after by a lot of other buyers, I’d assume. So, we just feel lucky to get him.” —@BDiDonatoTDN

Crawfords Take a Shance

Al and Michelle Crawford enjoyed graded stakes success at Saratoga last summer with the speedy Shancelot (Shanghai Bobby) and the couple went back to that family to acquire a filly by Speightstown for $600,000 at Fasig-Tipton Wednesday. The bay filly is out of multiple graded placed One True Kiss (Warrior’s Reward), a half-sister to the GII Amsterdam S. winner. She was consigned by Taylor Made Sales Agency on behalf of Bill and Corinne Heiligbrodt, who purchased her for $325,000 at the Fasig-TIpton November sale just days after their Mitole (Eskendereya) defeated Shancelot in last year’s GI Breeders’ Cup Sprint.

“What was there not to like about her?,” Michelle Crawford asked after signing the ticket on hip 283. “We were one of the underbidders when she was a weanling. We bid up to maybe $280,000 or $290,000 and were very sad not to get her.”

The Heiligbrodts maintained a half-interest in the yearling.

“We are going to partner with Bill on her–new partnerships are fun,” Al Crawford confirmed. “We are using Steve Asmussen–he has all of our horses now. To go in with Bill and using Steve on a filly with the Shancelot connection, it seemed like everything came together. But I’ll let you know in two years.”

Of the yearling’s final price tag, Al Crawford admitted, “It was our top. Right there. We watched it and, if it had clicked again, we were probably out.”

Hip 283 was bred by Geoff Nixon’s Tolo Thoroughbreds and Ryan Conner, who purchased One True Kiss with the filly in utero for $250,000 at the 2018 Keeneland November sale.

Shancelot has not raced since last year’s Breeders’ Cup, but returned to Steve Asmussen’s barn earlier this week.

“He had a little injury back in February and we’ve been ultra-conservative with him,” Al Crawford said. “Hopefully we will see him in early 2021. Obviously his speed is there, it’s just a question of being ultra-conservative with that little injury.” @JessMartiniTDN

Perfect Note Rewards Blackstone

When Perfect Note (Elusive Quality), a daughter of MGISW Music Note (A.P. Indy), went through the ring at Keeneland September in 2016, she was not as perfect as her name suggests, hammering for just $17,000 to Blackstone Farm. The commercial Pennsylvania nursery, which is a partnership between Christian and Douglas Black and Mark Weissman, took a chance on the filly despite her issues, buying her as a future broodmare and she rewarded their faith in a big way Wednesday when her first foal, a colt by Nyquist, sold for $510,000 to Mike Ryan.

“I actually bought the filly as a yearling,” Christian Black said. “She had some issues so I bought her as a broodmare prospect. I fell in love with her and we bought her for a very small amount, turned her out and let her be a mom eventually. This is the first foal. We put her in foal to Nyquist because we liked his race record and the way he looked. He was a great physical fit for our mare.”

As for the price, Black said, “It is difficult to put that kind of money on a foal or any horse that you have. He has been special from the beginning. I know a lot of people say that, but he has. He has a great mind set, very easy to be around and he showed it here at the sales too. He has been out over 200 times and he never missed a beat. If you saw him here in the back ring, he has been acting the same as he has the last three or four days.”

The breeder, whose farm also produced MGSW & GISP Tom’s Ready (More Than Ready), added, “The timing was also good with Nyquist’s recent success and Mystic Guide (Ghostzapper) winning. It is a live family.”

Perfect Note is a half-sister to last Saturday’s GII Jim Dandy S. victor and ‘TDN Rising Star’ Mystic Guide. On Sunday, freshman sire Nyquist was represented by his first Grade I winner in Vequist and was also responsible for the third-place finisher in that Saratoga staple, Lady Lilly.

Ryan is a big fan of Nyquist and is very familiar with the stallion. The bloodstock agent purchased Hip 297 from the South Point Sales Agency consignment on behalf of an undisclosed client.

“I am very partial to Nyquist,” Ryan said. “Niall Brennan and myself pinhooked him as a yearling, so obviously I followed him with great interest. I have been a big fan since he went to stud. I have bred multiple mares to him. I knew he was an exceptional colt and he had a great pedigree. The second dam produced the Jim Dandy winner the other day.”

He continued, “He looks like a horse that is hopefully going to be a top horse on a Saturday. He looked like he would get two turns and he has a stallion’s pedigree to carry him, so if he is a good horse, there is plenty of residual there. He is a lot like his father. The sire had the first and third in the Spinaway the other day and has two stakes winners already. He is one of the horses who can get you a Classic horse.”

Nyquist, whose first stakes winner came at Woodbine last month in Gretzky the Great, was another stallion who proved quite popular Wednesday. Seven youngsters by the Darley stallion summoned $1.84-million and averaged $262,857.–@CDeBernardisTDN

McPeek Active at All Levels of the Market

Trainer and highly regarded judge Ken McPeek was active in all segments of the market Wednesday at Fasig–he took home a total of 10 yearlings for a combined $2.145 million at prices ranging from $35,000 (the same price he paid for Peter Callahan’s GI Alabama S. heroine and GI Kentucky Oaks runner-up Swiss Skydiver {Daredevil}) to $500,000.

McPeek’s priciest buy was a Medaglia d’Oro half-sister to GISW and young sire Cupid (Tapit) consigned by Taylor Made Sales Agency, Agent L as hip 305. Bred by Turner Breeders, hip 305 is a half to a number of horses who cost big money as yearlings–Cupid was a $900,000 yearling, and his unraced 4-year-old full-sister topped the 2017Keeneland September sale at $2.7 million.

“A Medaglia d’Oro filly? With that female family? What’s she worth as a broodmare? There’s enough residual value there–she’s probably worth $250,000 if she never ran,” McPeek said, noting that hip 305’s principal owner would be Paul Fireman’s Fern Circle Stable but that he could take on additional partners.

As for prices in general, McPeek said before leaving with his better half: “I thought they were reasonable. I thought they might be stronger. I bought a couple horses for a lot less than I thought they’d bring. Now I can afford to buy my wife dinner.” —@BDiDonatoTDN

OXO Saves the Best for Last

Larry Best of OXO Equine had been quiet throughout Wednesday’s auction, but he snuck in late in the day to snap up the last yearling through the ring, a $500,000 daughter of Jimmy Creed.

Hip 330 is a half-sister to last season’s champion juvenile filly British Idiom (Flashback). Their multiple stakes-winning dam Rose and Shine (Mr. Sekiguchi) is also responsible for SW Parade of Roses (New Year’s Day).

“She was a great-looking filly with a decent pedigree,” said Best. “It was worth a shot. As usual, a little higher than I thought based on how the sale went. She is the only one I bid on all day.”

He added, “She will get a lot of good care. She will head to Eddie Woods in the next month and we will see how she does.”

Consigned by Warrendale Sales, Hip 330 was bred by Sandra Sexton and Silver Fern Farm. Sexton and her late husband Hargus purchased Rose and Shine for $21,000 with British Idiom in utero at the 2017 Keeneland January Sale. British Idiom brought just $40,000 from Liz Crow at the Fasig-Tipton October sale and Steve Landers bought the mare’s 2018 foal, a colt named Royal Prince (Cairo Prince), for $70,000 at last year’s Keeneland September Sale. —@CDeBernardisTDN

Spendthrift, MyRacehorse Shopping for Next Authentic

Just days after their colt Authentic (Into Mischief) ran away with the GI Kentucky Derby, Spendthrift Farm and MyRacehorse.com went back to the well for another son of the nation’s leading stallion. Hip 217, consigned by Paramount Sales, Agent XXV on behalf of breeder Don Alberto Corporation, cost $450,000.

“He’s a little cold, but we thought we’d take a chance anyways,” Spendthrift general manager Ned Toffey quipped in reference to Spendthrift’s super sire. “What’s left to say about Into Mischief, right? He’s done all the talking. We thought this was a really nice example of one; a big, scopey, rangy, athletic colt–we’re very happy to have him.”

Toffey received congratulations from MyRacehorse team members Nick Hines and Joe Moran after singing the ticket, and confirmed that hip 217 would be campaigned in partnership with the quickly growing micro-share syndicate in which Spendthrift is invested.

“We’ll try to do it all over again,” he said.

Hip 217 is out of an unraced Empire Maker daughter of GSW La Reina (A.P. Indy) and is a half to last year’s $650,000 KEESEP purchase by Juddmonte, Mayan (Uncle Mo). That colt had been breezing at Los Alamitos this summer. Their third dam is champion Queena (Mr. Prospector), who produced GISW Brahms. This is the deep female family of highest-level winners Chic Shirine, Verrazano, Somali Lemonade, et al. Don Alberto paid $240,000 for hip 217’s dam Lost Empire at the 2014 Keeneland November sale while she was in foal to Giant’s Causeway.

Spendthrift and MyRacehorse also teamed up to acquire hip 173 for $300,000 after he RNA’d. A fellow Paramount Sales offering, the son of American Pharaoh and GSW juvenile Just Louise (Five Star Day) was bred by Paramount partner Gabriel Duignan’s Springhouse Farm.

“He’s a really stout, athletic-looking guy,” Toffey said. “[Some of the American Pharoahs] have been a little bit turfy, but this guy looks a little more American dirt speed. He looks like a really athletic horse, so we’re really excited to have him as well.”

As for the market, Toffey said: “It’s a little spotty–we’ve sold some we’ve been really happy with. We had one we RNA’d who we thought we were reasonable with our reserve, so we were a little disappointed not to get that one [sold], but we’ve also sold some very well and thought the prices were fair on the two that we bought. I think it’s solid.” —@BDiDonatoTDN

Popular Into Mischief Filly Marks Emotional Sale for Brogden

Carrie Brogden was overcome with emotion, battling through tears as she thanked bloodstock agent Liz Crow for purchasing her homebred Into Mischief filly for $425,000 Wednesday.

“When I moved here in 2001, Dennis Lynch [Fasig’s beloved late Senior Account Executive] was my advisor for Fasig,” said Brogden as she wiped the tears from her eyes. “When we looked at this filly at the farm with [Fasig’s Recruiting and Marketing Manager] Evan [Ferraro], I said, ‘I know Dennis would have looked at this one and said, Car, Car, you know we want this one.’ So when she came up here, I just pictured him giving me a big bear hug. He is a big, bright shining light for our farm and our relationship with Fasig.”

The horsewoman added, “I am thrilled and delighted. Liz is a rising star in our industry. She knows I cheer for her in everything,”

Kicking off the open portion of the sale after the New York-bred contingent, Hip 165 was the first homebred through the ring for Carrie and Craig Brodgen’s new Machmer Hall Sales venture. Out of the unraced mare Jazz Flute (Unbridled’s Song), the bay hails from the family of European Highweight Sleepytime (Ire) (Royal Academy). She is bred on the same cross over Unbridled-line mares responsible for dual champion Covfefe.

“When she came in the back ring, Frank Taylor was like, ‘Oh my God, what is that,'” Brodgen said. “That is the way she has always presented herself. I am thrilled to bits. There are two things I love in the Thoroughbred industry, which everyone knows, and that is Into Mischief and Unbridled’s Song. They have produced in the sales ring and out on the track. I think that is what everyone wants right?”

The Into Mischief over Unbridled’s Song pedigree were big attractions for Crow, who was acting on behalf on undisclosed clients.

“I really like buying off Carrie,” Crow said. “I think they do a really good job. Whenever I see Machmer Hall as the breeder, it gives me a lot of confidence that they were raised the right way. She looked like an Into Mischief who could carry her speed around two turns and I loved Unbridled’s Song on the bottom side.” —@CDeBernardisTDN

Classic Empire Rewards Investors

Classic Empire had a pair of first-crop yearlings break through the $300,000 barrier Wednesday at Fasig-Tipton, with bloodstock agent Liz Crow striking late in the session to secure a son of the 2016 champion 2-year-old for $375,000. Out of stakes placed Rever de Vous (Distorted Humor), the bay (hip 323) was consigned by Gainesway. He had been purchased by the En Fuego pinhooking partnership for $185,000 at last year’s Keeneland November sale.

“He was a beautiful horse and a great-walking horse when we bought him,” Davant Latham, part of the partnership, said of the yearling. “Like most young horses, they go through stages, but we knew we had something special early this summer.”

Classic Empire, who stands at Coolmore’s Ashford Stud, won the 2016 GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and the following year’s GI Arkansas Derby and was second in the GI Preakness S.

“They were consistently good as weanlings and I think they’ve proven here as yearlings, they are consistent physicals and they are good physicals,” Latham said of the champion’s first crop of horses. “You don’t have a lot of variation in physicals, they are all nice horses.”

Of the return on his investment Wednesday, Latham said, “I am very happy with the price. You think about what that would be in another year and it’s $100,000 more, maybe. But I am thrilled with the price. We bought him for $185,000. That’s a great return, especially today.” @JessMartiniTDN

Classic Empire Colt a Score for Gladwell

Tori Gladwell, regularly successful in the pinhooking arena in which she sold $1.35-million OBS Spring sale topper and now Grade I winner Princess Noor (Not This Time), had success sending a homebred through the sales ring at Fasig-Tipton Wednesday. Through Scott Mallory’s consignment, Gladwell sold a colt by Classic Empire for $325,000 to Ben McElroy as agent for Kaleem Shah. The yearling is out of Just Parker (Forest Camp), a mare Gladwell purchased in partnership for $57,000 at the 2018 Keeneland January sale.

Gladwell was familiar with the mare’s family when she made the purchase two years ago.

“Foxy Posse (Posse) was one of the first foals out of the mare and we trained her and sold her and there are a couple other horses in that family that we knew were really fast and precocious. And that’s why we bought the mare,” Gladwell explained.

Just Parker was in foal to Vancouver (Aus) when she was purchased, but Gladwell thought champion 2-year-old Classic Empire would be a good fit for the mare.

“I liked Classic Empire as a racehorse and I thought he would help put some leg on her,” Gladwell said. “Forest Wildcat mares are really speedy horses, but she needed a little more leg and that’s what we got when we bred to Classic Empire.”

The yearling’s final price was well above his reserve.

“That was about double what we were thinking,” Gladwell said of the result. “The market is kind of scary because there were a lot of RNAs earlier, so I was really worried we wouldn’t get him sold for what the reserve was, which was below $200,000. So we’re really happy with that result.”

Gladwell has 12 broodmares, with the Kentucky band boarded with Scott Mallory and a group in New York.

“I love the mares,” Gladwell said. “I have a couple in New York at the McMahons and the rest of them stay here in Kentucky. I have multiple partners on them with me. We’ve been really blessed this year.”

After the standout result Wednesday, Gladwell was asked if she would be selling more homebreds in the future.

“My husband just told me to sell more of them,” she said with a laugh.

Just Parker produced a filly by American Pharoah this year and was bred back to Good Magic.

Ben McElroy has been successful buying 2-year-olds for Kaleem Shah, most recently this year with Sunday’s Del Mar Juvenile Fillies Turf S. winner Madone (Vancouver {Aus}) and impressive maiden winner Vittorio (Ghostzapper).

“I told Kaleem this was the type of horse we’d buy at a 2-year-old sale and, if he breezes :10 flat, we are talking $700,000 or $800,000,” McElroy said of the rare yearling purchase for Shah. “[Shah] is more of a 2-year-old buyer and we’ve been very successful at the 2-year-old sales, but if we can keep an eye out for a top horse, we’ll take a shot.”

McElroy admitted he has been impressed by the first-crop offspring of Classic Empire.

“I’ve been around a few of the farms before the sale and he has been one of the freshman sires who certainly stood out,” McElroy said. “They are very well balanced. They are great movers. They seem like they have really good attitudes. The horse we bought was just one we decided we had to have.” @JessMartiniTDN

Team ‘Tiz’ Gets a Tiznow

Sackatoga Stable, fresh off its second-place finish in the

GI Kentucky Derby this past Saturday with Tiz the Law (Constitution), added another high-class New York-bred colt to its roster Wednesday in the form of a son of Tiznow, who just happens to be Tiz the Law’s broodmare sire. The $300,000 purchase, the priciest lot during the all-New York-bred portion of Wednesday’s session, was consigned by Hunter Valley Farm as hip 135. He had previously been acquired for $120,000 as a Keeneland November weanling.

Sackatoga operating manager Jack Knowlton bid while accompanied by trainer Barclay Tagg and Tiz the Law partner Eric Kordsmeier.

“Barclay’s our bloodstock advisor and and liked him better than any of the other New York-breds we looked at,” Knowlton said. “We only had two that we bid on–we got outbid on the first one, but luckily we got this one.”

Knowlton said hip 71, the $295,000 Candy Ride (Arg) colt purchased by Demi O’Byrne, had been Sackatoga’s other target. They had looked at Tiz the Law’s Mission Impazible half-brother (hip 73, $245,000), but he did not make it on to their short list.

“We’re just looking for athletes,” Knowlton said of hip 135’s appeal. “We look at families; we like stakes winners; and [Tiznow’s] a sire who we think can get a good horse. Physically, he’s a great-looking horse.”

The Mar. 4 foal is out of stakes-placed juvenile Eternal Grace (Gilded Time), who has already produced GSW Bye Bye Bernie (Bernstein) and two other stakes horses.

As for the price and market, he said: “It’s soft except for the real good horses, and we’re hoping he’s one of the good ones. Physically, we really like him a lot, and we really like the pedigree. We’re hoping he’s really going to turn into a runner for us.”

“This is the only one we’re buying–we’re done,” Knowlton said. “Now I can head out and be happy we got a horse. You never know; we’re very particular. Barclay’s very particular in what he advises us to buy, and his vets are even more particular. So, we’re really happy when we can find one.” —@BDiDonatoTDN

Tiz the Law Half RNAs

The half-brother to MGISW and recent GI Kentucky Derby runner-up Tiz the Law (Constitution) will remain with breeder Twin Creeks Farm to race in his home state of New York after leaving the ring unsold at $245,000. Hip 73 is by Mission Impazible and was consigned by Becky Thomas’ Sequel New York, where he was foaled and raised.

“They priced him at what they thought was a fair price, but unfortunately, we are in COVID times,” Thomas said. “So, they will keep him and race him. They really like the 2-year-old full-sister Angel Oak, who they plan to race themselves, and obviously Tiz the Law is magnificent.”

Tiz the Law, a $110,000 purchase at Fasig-Tipton’s New York-Bred Sale, scored ultra-impressive wins in both the GI Belmont S. and GI Runhappy Travers S. Heavily favored to carry his win streak into the Run for the Roses, the flashy bay finished second to a gutsy Authentic (Into Mischief). —@CDeBernardisTDN

Candy Ride Colt Stars in New York Section

Veteran bloodstock agent Demi O’Byrne, who recently launched O’Byrne and Grassick International Bloodstock Agency with agent Sean Grassick, signed the ticket to secure a colt by Candy Ride (Arg) for $295,000 on behalf of Peter Brant’s White Birch during the opening New York-bred yearlings section of the Fasig-Tipton Showcase Wednesday. Consigned by Eaton Sales, hip 71 is out of the unraced Sweet Love (Any Given Saturday), a full-sister to graded winner Adventist. He was bred by Joe Fafone.

“He was a great mover and a nice colt. That’s about it,” O’Byrne said of the yearling’s appeal.

Of the colt’s final price, O’Byrne added, “I thought he was a little high, but he was a nice horse.”

Sweet Love’s first foal is a colt by Brody’s Cause who sold to Curragh Racing for $170,000 at this year’s OBS Spring sale.

O’Byrne said he would continue to shop for Brant at the sale and later in Wednesday’s session purchased an Into Mischief colt (hip 274) for $700,000. @JessMartiniTDN

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Fasig-Tipton to Consolidate Saratoga Fall, Midlantic Mixed/HORA Sales

Due to current travel restrictions in place in New York State to prevent the spread of COVID-19, officials at Fasig-Tipton have announced that the Saratoga Fall Sale, scheduled for Oct. 20, will not go forward as planned. It will instead be combined with the company’s Midlantic December Mixed and Horses of Racing Age Sale and will take place in Timonium Dec. 7 and 8.

Governor Andrew Cuomo’s New York Travel Advisory requires any individuals that travel to New York–from any of the states currently listed–to complete a mandatory 14-day quarantine upon arrival in the state. There are currently 35 states/territories listed under this travel advisory, including horse racing regions Kentucky, Florida, Maryland, Virginia, South Carolina, California and Texas.

“The current travel advisory requirements make it virtually impossible for many buyers from out of state to attend an auction in Saratoga,” said Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning. “We do not know what the duration or scope of the New York Travel Advisory will be in October. Combining our Saratoga Fall and Midlantic December sales into a two-day auction in Maryland is the prudent and logical course of action at this point in time.”

Entries for the main catalogue will close Sept. 18, while the deadline for the HORA supplement is Nov. 13. Entry forms are available at www.fasigtipton.com.

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