Brian Graves | Horse Racing Free Tips

Grade I Winner Offers ‘Perfect’ Opportunity at Fasig-Tipton

Gainesway Farm enjoyed an unforgettable Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale this year as the leading consignor of the elite auction with 12 yearlings sold including the $2.6 million sales topper.

Now, they hope to continue the same success at the upcoming Fasig-Tipton Night of the Stars Sale on Nov. 9 with a consignment that features three graded stakes winners including the speedy and precocious Perfect Alibi (Sky Mesa – No Use Denying, by Maria's Mon). The Grade I winner campaigned by Tracy Farmer will be offered in foal to super-sire Into Mischief.

“I've spent the past 20 years developing our yearling sales at Gainesway and it's been a real goal of ours to expand and try to be as competitive in the November market as we are in the yearling market,” Gainesway's Brian Graves explained. “For the Farmers to give us a Grade I winner in foal to Into Mischief means a lot to us and we're extremely appreciative for the chance.”

For Graves, Perfect Alibi offers everything breeders will be looking for in the days following Breeders' Cup weekend.

“She's an absolute collector's item,” he said. “A Grade I-winning 2-year-old and in foal to North America's leading sire. You don't get your hands on many of these kinds of broodmares that were so good at two. Speed and precocity make some of the best producers and combined with her physical-she's got balance, stretch and size- she's a broodmare that anybody would like to have.”

A daughter of Pin Oak Stud's stakes-winning homebred No Use Denying (Maria's Mon), Perfect Alibi was foaled in 2017 and was slated to sell at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale the following summer.

The auction company's president and CEO Boyd Browning remembers first hearing of the young filly as the sale approached.

“I can remember when she was just a yearling and [Fasig-Tipton's Executive Vice President] Bayne Welker was doing yearling inspections,” Browning recalled. “He called me and said, 'I found a really special horse at Pin Oak today. She's an absolute superstar.' When she got to Saratoga I remember walking into the courtyard where she was showing with Denali and when they brought her out, I was like, 'Wow, Bayne you were right.' She was a spectacular physical individual.”

The dark bay filly caught the eye of many in Saratoga including Kern Thoroughbreds' Lincoln Collins and Joe Miller, who were on the lookout for a race filly for Tracy and Carol Farmer.

Perfect Alibi as a yearling at the 2018 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale | photo courtesy Joe Miller

“She was a big, strong-looking filly and we knew she was going to be very precocious,” Miller recalled. “She was so well balanced and had a great hip and shoulder on her. She was just the one filly there that we really couldn't pick apart. We loved everything about her.”

They perused the rest of the catalogue, but when Miller and Collins sat down with trainer Mark Casse, they discovered they had all landed on the same filly. After sending a photo to Tracy Farmer and getting his stamp of approval, they purchased Perfect Alibi for $220,000.

The following May the filly made her first start at Churchill Downs, blowing away a field of fellow maidens to win by 9 1/2 lengths.

“We knew she would be precocious, we just didn't know she would be that precocious,” Miller said with a laugh.

After a close second in the Astoria S. at Belmont, Perfect Alibi returned to Saratoga to take on graded stakes company and came out victorious in the GII Adirondack S. She made it to the winner's circle again in her next start in the GI Spinaway S. to become the first filly in over 10 years to sweep both prestigious 2-year-old filly contests at Saratoga.

“We knew she would just get better with distance,” Miller recalled of the Spinaway. “It was a very, very good field that she ran against that day, but she proved she was the best 2-year-old filly on the East Coast.”

“It takes a special horse to couple graded stakes wins at Saratoga as a 2-year-old,” Browning added. “She did it with style and she did it with flair. To accomplish that in the way she did was very impressive.”

Perfect Alibi made her next start at Keeneland, running second to future Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies champion British Idiom (Flashback) in the GI Darley Alcibiades S.

“She got a little bit of a wide trip that day and she even ran a very good race in the GI Breeders' Cup [Juvenile Fillies] being five wide around the turn and still coming on to be a fast closing fourth,” Miller said of the conclusion of Perfect Alibi's juvenile campaign. “She always tried so hard. She had such a high cruising speed and she just loved to win.”

The Casse trainee returned at three with a fourth-place finish in the GI Longines Test and placed in the Weber City Miss S. at Laurel Park. She retired at the conclusion of her sophomore season with earnings of over $600,000 as one of several Grade I winners for longtime Thoroughbred owner and breeder Tracy Farmer.

Perfect Alibi takes the GI Spinaway | Coglianese

“Tracy and Carol love all their horses,” Miller said. “To have a filly of her class is special because it's not easy to come by, so it certainly means a lot to them.”

Browning said he believes that on top of her memorable racing career, Perfect Alibi's Pin Oak pedigree will be another attraction for buyers.

“Mrs. [Josephine] Abercrombie is a legendary figure and it's really unique to have a filly of this caliber offered for sale and in foal to a horse like Into Mischief,” he said. “The depth of pedigree is really special. You've got the combination of some of the best breeding from Pin Oak and some of the best breeding from others in the world. It's a quality pedigree from top to bottom.”

Perfect Alibi's stakes-winning dam has produced four other winners including the Grade II-placed Noble Thought (Harlan's Holiday). Their family includes champions Chris Evert, Chief's Crown and Winning Colors.

“It's a deep Pin Oak family and Sky Mesa himself has proven to be a good broodmare sire already,” Graves added. “He's the broodmare sire of three Grade I winners and, combined with her outstanding physical and with her size and scope, it just makes her the top of the shelf.”

Along with the opportunities attainable with Perfect Alibi's breeding career, Graves also places high merit on this first foal by Into Mischief she now carries.

“She could be carrying a top-caliber broodmare prospect or a future stallion,” he said. “Some of the top qualifications of a good stallion are that they are out of a mare who was fast and precocious at two and also that they are one of the first foals out of a mare. [Those factors] greatly increase your chances to have a good stallion, so the sky is the limit.”

Perfect Alibi will sell as Hip 218 on the Night of the Stars with the Gainesway consignment.

“She truly does have worldwide appeal,” Browning said. “I think whoever breeds her has the opportunity to produce a champion literally anywhere in the world. It's going to be the perfect opportunity for some of the top buyers in the world to pursue a mare of her quality and I can't wait to see what she does in her career.”

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Bonanza Keeneland September Sale Concludes

The Keeneland September Yearling Sale, launched last week with a Bluegrass band, mimosas, and a boutique Book 1 section, continued its momentum straight through to the end of its 11th session, concluding with a sales record average, median and buy-back rate. The gross, which was over $300,000,000 for three straight years before falling to $248,978,700 during the pre-vaccination pandemic in 2020, rebounded to $352,823,000 by the time the last hip went through the ring Friday evening. It was the auction's sixth highest gross in history.

“The hope was that we would return to previous levels, essentially like last year never happened,” said Keeneland director of sales operations Cormac Breathnach. “Last year was a good sale for the time we were living in, but this year is a massive return to a vibrant market.”

The sale average of $132,045 was up 30% from the 2020 figure and bettered the previous mark of $129,331 set in 2018. The median of $65,000 was up 75.68% from a year ago and broke the previous record figure of $57,000 set in 2017.

“If you look at the median, the median is just consistently very strong, which is an important indicator for the health of the market in general,” said Keeneland's vice president of sales Tony Lacy. “It's not crazy spikes where we are getting one horse selling for multiple millions and every other horse selling for below that. The median is the most important number for us as we look at the health of the industry.”

The record clearance rate of 19.01% improved on the figure of 19.2% set in 2012 and far surpassed the 2020 figure of 29.29%.

“When we see the clearance rate the way it is–we are breaking records almost on a daily basis for the number of horses sold through the ring–I think it was 325 sold through the ring Wednesday. That's just a remarkable number,” said Lacy. “The clearance rate is a very clear indicator of the strength of where we are at.”

Fueled by colt-buying partnerships, the September sale returned to its pre-pandemic levels, surpassing its total 12-session 2020 gross after just six of 11 sessions this year.

The New York-based partnership of Mike Repole and Vinnie Viola, represented by bloodstock agent Jacob West, led all buyers with 43 yearlings purchased for $16,045,000 and was followed by the Southern California-based team of SF Bloodstock, Starlight Racing and Madaket Stables, represented by Donato Lanni, which purchased 24 head for $10,590,000. Also making a big impact on the result sheets was the BSW/Crow Colts Group, which purchased 20 yearlings for $6,805,000.

West Point Thoroughbreds partnered up to purchase the auction's top three lots, teaming with Woodford Racing and Mike Talla to acquire the sale-topping $1.7-million son of City of Light; with Woodford Racing on a $1.6-million son of Quality Road; and with Talla on a $1.55-million colt by Triple Crown winner Justify.

Through various partnerships, West Point purchased 25 yearlings for $11,315,000.

Partnerships to the Fore

Sheikh Mohammed's Godolphin operation and the Shadwell Estate Company of his late brother Sheikh Hamdan were the leading buyers at both the 2018 and 2019 auctions, but with those entities largely absent the last two years, American-based partnerships have filled the gap.

In 2019, Godolphin purchased 10 yearlings for $16 million and Shadwell purchased 18 head for $11,070,000. With Godolphin not appearing on the results sheets and Shadwell coming in as the fourth-leading buyer in 2020, the SF Bloodstock/SF/Madaket partnership led the standings a year ago with 28 bought for $11,250,000, while Repole and Viola were the auction's second-leading buyer with 15 purchased for $6,380,000.

The Repole/Viola axis came out on top in 2021, purchasing 43 yearlings for $16,045,000.

“We didn't necessarily have a plan in a sense of price ranges or numbers outside of just a certain type of horse we wanted to buy,” bloodstock agent Jacob West said. “The idea was just to buy as many two-turn Classic-distance type horses as we could. And I think that's pretty evident in the results when you go through and look at what we bought. There were a handful of horses, we bought one Karakontie colt and a couple of other ones and those were just athletes that we liked and we ran by Vinnie and Mike and they got on board with them. But the majority of the horses we bought were two-turn dirt horses, hopefully.”

Of the group's total haul from the September sale, West admitted, “I think if you held a gun to Mike and Vinnie's heads early on and asked if they were going to buy 43 horses, I don't think they would have said yes. But we never discussed a number and we never discussed a budget, to be quite honest. I know that doesn't make for good reading material, but we just went in there with the idea of trying to identify the best horses we could and secure the best horses we could.”

As partnerships among top buyers began to grow several years ago, there appeared to be some concern that the teaming up of people who had previously competed against each other in the sales pavilion would keep prices down, but as more and more partnerships form, the opposite seems to be happening.

“I think now you are seeing more and more partnerships all targeting the same thing,” West said. “And with the demand up for those horses, the prices in turn go up. And then there is a trickle down effect because that gives other people that wouldn't be targeting those horses the opportunity to buy horses that we may have passed on for whatever reason. It's kind of one of those rising tides rise all boats theory. When there are guys willing to spend more money, I think it opens up more opportunities for buyers.”

Consignor Peter O'Callaghan of Woods Edge Farm agreed the proliferation of partnerships was a plus for sellers.

“There is a lot of money pooling together in different groups and they are bidding for the good horses,” O'Callaghan said. “I think there is no question that they are helping now. There was a period where you felt like they were teaming up a bit, but I think there is a depth of partnerships now. Different money is pooling together in different groups and they are all bidding against each other. It's a new sort of competition. Long may it continue and I hope they all have success.”

Of the impact that partnerships had on the sale results, Keeneland's vice president of sales Tony Lacy said, “They are extremely important. I know that Jacob West is buying into Book 4 for the same partnership and Donato is doing the same thing. It's a recognition that people want nice horses and they are supporting every level of the market. And I think that's very encouraging. I think as you look, it's great what you find from syndicates like MyRacehorse all the way through to a partnership of two people. I think you see that the spreading of risk, but buying a large number of horses is incredibly healthy. And it allows people to have fun in a way that is probably more affordable and more viable for the long-term health of our industry. I would love to see more of it because the more people who get involved, the more fans, the more followers, that organically creates a fan base. And if we can encourage and incentivize more people to get involved that way, I think it's also an incubator for people who want to do it for themselves. I applaud it and welcome it strongly.”

A Little Less Top Heavy

There were 15 seven-figure yearlings sold at the 2021 September sale–led by a $1.7-million son of City of Light– matching the number from the 2020 sale which was topped by a $2-million colt by Tapit. In 2019, 22 yearlings sold for a million dollars or more, with seven over $2 million, including an $8.2-million filly and a $4.1-million colt.

With major buyers from years past on the sidelines, the top of the market may have been a little less top, but that may make for a healthier marketplace, according to Keeneland's director of sales operatioins Cormac Breathnach.

“We view that as a positive, to be honest,” Breathnach said of his view of the top of the market. “For some years, the middle was suffering, but the upper market, the top 1% or 2% of horses were selling well. So averages looked good, but sometimes the median suffered and the RNA rates were higher. The spread of that equity and that response to the horses the breeders are supplying us with is very strong. It's very positive for the market and for the players in the industry that are hopefully getting a good pay day here at the sales. So I think, as much as we would like to see the continued participation in the multi-million dollar level–there is nothing wrong with that at all–but it's probably more valuable to have the really healthy middle market with plenty of million-dollar horses up top.”

Consignors found plenty of strength in the middle market, which many had found soft in years past.

“I thought [the sale] would pick up steam as the books went, and it did,” said Gainesway's Brian Graves. “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.”

While the cumulative buy-back rate for the entire auction was a sparkling 19.01%, the Book 1 buy-back rate was 34.2%.

That figure wasn't a concern for Keeneland's Tony Lacy, who attributed it to high-end breeders who were happy to race their yearlings.

“If you look at Book 1 and 2, a lot of people were very active in there,” Lacy said. “If you speak to the vets, the vets have never been busier. I spoke to one vet who vetted almost every horse in Book 1 just for clients that he had. I think you'll find that some people who were selling were protecting their horses quite heavily and that was their right. That they are wanting to race if they don't get a certain valuation is showing the strength of the support and belief they have in their horse.

Lacy continued, “If you look at the median and averages for Book 1, it's pretty much double Book 2. So the quality was there–there were certainly a number of outs that were never on the grounds for whatever reason. I think we have to look at it in a more holistic way rather than just the final number. Because I think you'll find there is more to the story when you have buyers who are very diligent in their selection process. And it's not just a raw figure, 'Well, they didn't like them.' I think every horse got heavy traffic and was strongly considered. I think we want to try to build the market for horses in that price range. I think as you get some of those partnerships coming together, you want to build that model for a greater number of horses at that price level.”

Buy-Back Rate a Positive

The back walking ring at Keeneland remained crowded right to the end of the 11th session Friday and trade was conducted at record levels. At the close of business, the buy-back rate was just 19.01%, bettering the previous mark of 19.2% set in 2012. It was 29.29% in 2020 and 24.24% in 2019.

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.

“I think that the biggest positive along the lines of maybe being a surprise is the clearance rate,” Keeneland's Cormac Breathnach said Thursday. “The clearance rate is outstanding. We are running at 8% or 9% buy-backs the last two days. That's rare in any market. There are a lot of happy sellers and happy breeders out there and that's a great sign for the industry.”

He continued, “And overall, the post-sale RNA market is extremely strong. We have about 110 published RNAs to sale already, but there are others that didn't get in the published results, so we have a very strong market in the RNA to sale area as well. And that's going to continue. It's only going to grow in the next day or so.”

Economics Make Sense for End-Users

Strong purse structures across the country, plus racing's increased exposure to new players, created a September buying bench dominated by domestic end-users.

“One of the most encouraging things from the sale has been the activity of domestic end-users and for a very long time that has been something that we wanted more of,” Keeneland's Cormac Breathnach said. “With purses being up, the energy around the sport and increased exposure at a time when other sports were shut down feels like it is paying off in a tangible way here at the sales. There was a lot of new money. The sale itself has been so strong despite the lack of participation from some very wealthy supporters in years past. So that has been very encouraging. The international market is not taken lightly and it's really stepped up, but the domestic end-users market I think is what pushed a lot of the buyers back in the later books.”

The 2021 results reflected a shift in the economics of the industry, according to bloodstock agent Jacob West.

“I think the economics of horse racing have changed in the favor of horse ownership,” West said. “We have four or five tracks that are running maiden special weights for $100,000 or more. I think we are second to Australia in million-dollar races here in America. We trump everything that is overseas outside of Australia. They can't even compete with us. Their maidens are like £10,000. They are nowhere near where we are here even at some of our lower level tracks. The prize money that is on offer in the United States is very strong right now and we just have to keep that going. If we can keep that going then more people will be willing to spend.

West continued, “There is another factor, too. Though there is a reducing foal crop year after year, there is still an appetite for horse racing. And supply and demand and availability comes into play. Fewer horses but higher demand equals higher prices.”

Racing is reaping the benefits of increased exposure during the pandemic, according to consignor Peter O'Callaghan.

“Horse racing did a great job managing COVID and staying going through COVID,” O'Callaghan said. “I think we captured a lot of new fans there with the FOX coverage, which has been great, and exposing us to a much greater audience and helping bring in new people and new money. And then betting handle is through the roof everywhere. Purse money is getting better and better and it's exploding. And we are seeing the effects of all that this week.”

With plenty of added competition from end-users, pinhookers found buying at the September sale extra tough this year.

Veteran pinhooker Ciaran Dunne said his team found the competition at the September extra tough as they vied with the various powerhouse partnerships for the top-level colts, while finding value by focusing on individual over pedigree was difficult with the fillies the group tried to buy.

“The sale was unbelievably tough,” Dunne said. “Colts were virtually impossible to buy and even the fillies with physical you wanted were incredibly expensive. It seems the emphasis is all on physical now, which makes our job nigh on impossible.”

Pinhooker Joe Pickerell's Pick View purchased 10 yearlings for $972,000 during the September sale.

“From top to bottom, there was a lot of competition for horses in all price ranges and at all levels,” Pickerell said “It was a little tough in the beginning, but then we started finding spots and getting horses bought. We ended up being really pleased with how it turned out overall.”

Pickerell continued, “Between foal crop being down and the purse structure higher, end users were buying in later books compared to past years.”

The Pick View team, which shopped from Book 2 through the end of the sale, stuck to its original plan despite the increased competition.

“I think it's very important that we don't panic, stay patient and stick to our program,” Pickerell said. “We got a little frustrated early, but then we reassured ourselves to just stick to the program and stick to what we've got to buy. We ended up prevailing and got some really nice horses bought.”

Format Draws Praise

Keeneland has been tinkering with the format of its September sale for several years now, but drew positive reviews for its 2021 format which featured two-session books and a dark day following Book 2.

“The consignors and the sellers were very happy to have 1,100 horses on the grounds prior to the dark day,” said Keeneland's Cormac Breathnach. “It was really something that, combined with the new atmosphere in the pavilion and some of those changes created the energy at the start of the sale–the champagne, the various hors d' oeuvres that were being passed around–that really worked in the sense that it kicked the sale off in a very positive way and it created a lot of momentum. That momentum set the tone for Book 1 and into Book 2 and so on and it's really carried on.”

On the other side of the ledger, Breathnach said, “Every buyer commented that they were appreciative of the number, the critical mass, of horses they had to look at. And they felt like the dark day really allowed them to get ahead, so they weren't playing catch up. They had a lot of horses on the grounds, but in a way that they could get through them and evaluate them and take their notes and not miss any. From that point of view, I really think that the format is tremendously successful this year and was definitely a factor in the success of the sale.”

Consignor Peter O'Callaghan of Woods Edge Farm agreed Keeneland hit upon the right format for its mammoth September sale.

“They got this Book 1 right, a little bit by accident, because there was a promise of three days and they managed to fill it properly with two days,” said O'Callaghan. “The trick now is to maintain it–keep this Book 1 right and keep enough horses in it for a two-day format followed by the two-day format all the way through. And having moved their dark day worked out really well. If they can keep this Book 1 right, the rest of it takes care of itself. It all starts with Book 1, they just need to maintain this now and keep it.”

While Jacob West was happy overall with the format, he had one possible adjustment.

“At the end of the day, I pray to God they don't change it,” West said. “We have had so much volatility in the format with Keeneland over the last couple of years and I think they got it right this year. If I had one small change, you didn't see a decline in prices, but going into Book 2, the change from 1 p.m. start time with Book 1 into the 11 a.m. start time, we had that one day where it was just raining all day long and we were scrambling to try to catch up. I wish they would have had some sort of flexibility in that day to push the start time back an hour or two to allow people to catch up. With more horses going into Book 2, I wish we had an hour or even two. That makes a big difference. You can look at 50 horses in an hour, if you're rolling through them and you're organized and you can get to the right consignments at the right time. More time equals more research you can get done.”

Indian Creek's Shack Parrish would like to see the September sale kick off with an even more select Book 1 section.

“To me, we still need to work out the Book 1 thing,” Parrish said. “I think one day of Book 1 and being very, very select might work better than trying to place some in there that are overwhelmed by the strength of the other horses. I think it would be easy enough to do that.”

Familiar Names at the Top

Taylor Made Sales Agency was the leading consignor at the September sale for the seventh straight year. The operation sold 304 yearlings for $37,306,500.

For the second year in a row, Spendthrift Farm's Into Mischief was the leading sire by gross, with 62 yearlings selling for $25,967,000.

Into Mischief was followed by a pair of first-crop sires with Triple Crown winner Justify represented by 61 yearlings sold for $22,431,000 and City of Light, who had 47 sell for $17,525,000.

Into Mischief had three yearlings sell for seven figures. City of Light was represented by a pair of million-dollar yearlings, led by the $1.7-million sale-topping colt consigned by Rosilyn Polan's Sunday Morning Farm, and that number was matched by his sire Quality Road. Claiborne's War Front also had two yearlings surpass the $1-million mark.

South Point, Herbener Teams Carry On

The Keeneland consignor ranks were hit by a pair of tragedies during the September sale, with South Point Sales Agency's Mike Recio and consignor James Herbener both passing away.

“I think there needs to be a special recognition of the teams at South Point and with Jim Herbener,” Jacob West said. “They were absolutely blind sided by tragic events. Mike [Repole] and Vinnie [Viola] bought one Arrogate colt off of South Point, hip 830. It's one of those deals where we bought the horse because we liked him, but it did mean a lot to support South Point and the team that kept the flag flying for the Recio family after his passing. I do want to make sure there is some special recognition to those teams for sure.”

Silent Name Filly Tops Keeneland Finale

A filly by Silent Name (Jpn) (hip 3807) brought the top price of Friday's final session of the Keeneland September sale when selling for $120,000 to Bill and Anne Scott. The yearling, one of two to bring six figures on the day, was bred by Adena Springs and consigned by Hidden Brook. She is out of graded stakes winner Ice Festival (Awesome Again).

In all, 244 yearlings sold at Keeneland Friday for a total of $3,937,500. The session average was $16,137 and the median was $12,000. With 256 of 453 catalogued head going through the ring, just 12 horses were reported not sold for a buy-back rate of 4.69%.

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Into Mischief Reigns Supreme at Fasig-Tipton July

by Christie DeBernardis & Christina Bossinakis

LEXINGTON, KY – It was a very strong day of trade across the board at Fasig-Tipton's July Selected Yearlings Sale Tuesday, and, to no one's surprise, offspring of Into Mischief proved to be the auction's most coveted offerings. The Spendthrift kingpin accounted for three of the day's top four sellers, including the $800,000 sales topper (hip 123), who sold to Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and LNJ Foxwoods.

“He is an amazing stallion,” Fasig Tipton President Boyd Browning. Jr. said of Into Mischief. “He is always at the top of the boards. He produces colts, fillies, Derby winners, Classic winners, grass, dirt, short, long. He is the consummate professional as a stallion and there is a high demand for [his offspring], as there should be because of the potential reward on the racetrack.”

The stallion that broke up the Into Mischief party with the co-second highest-priced yearling was Lane's End stalwart Candy Ride (Arg). Perennial leading sires Uncle Mo, Munnings, Hard Spun and Street Sense all accounted for yearlings in the top 10. The only younger stallion to break that barrier was Practical Joke, who has his first runners this year.

Stallions represented by their first yearlings also made a strong showing at the July Sale, which opened Tuesday with the return of the freshman sire showcase. The top sale by a first-crop sire went to MGISW City of Light, who had a $230,000 yearling, and Triple Crown hero Justify was a close second with his lone offspring in the catalogue bringing $210,000. Other freshman sires who made a noteworthy impact were Army Mule, Mor Spirit, Girvin, Mendelssohn, Good Magic, Cloud Computing, West Coast, Tapwrit and Bolt d'Oro.

“It is kind of going back to our roots,” Browning said of the freshman stallion success. “For years our reputation in July was great physicals. We may be forgiving a little bit on pedigree and sire power, but if you have a good-looking colt or filly that looks precocious, that is what we are about in July. It helps build momentum for the farms as well.”

Ned Toffey represents one of those farms trying to get its first-season stallions off to a good start in Spendthrift, which offered yearlings by new stallions Mor Spirit and Free Drop Billy.

“The market has been really good,” Toffey said. “Fasig has always done such a great job with the new sire showcase. And we were obviously very happy watching our new stallions and how they were received. We sold a Mor Spirit for $200,000 and there just seemed to be good activity on all of those.”

A total of 208 yearling summoned $21,608,500 with an average of $103,887 and a median of $80,000. Sixty-nine youngsters failed to find new homes for an RNA rate of 24.9%.

This auction was not held in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and was instead combined with the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Select and New York-Bred Yearling Sales and held at Newtown Paddocks in September. However, at the 2019 renewal of this sale, 202 yearlings sold for a gross of $18,621,000. The average was $92,183 and the median was $75,000. There were 98 horses led from the ring unsold for an RNA rate of 32.7%.

“It was a strong start to the 2021 yearling sales season,” Browning said. “We were very encouraged when we went to the farms to inspect yearlings by the quality of horses we were seeing, and certainly the 2-year-old sales were encouraging, so we had a lot of optimism going into the sale. I don't think any of us would have been hoping to surpass 2019 numbers, 2019 was a pretty daggone good marketplace, so to be over 2019 is very, very, very encouraging. I am proud of the group of horses our inspection team put together for this sale. Everybody in the marketplace ought to sleep pretty good tonight. It should be a very good yearling market in 2021. We are pretty optimistic about the one coming up in about three weeks [the Saratoga Selected Yearling Sale].”

Justin Casse said he felt there was some trickle down into the middle market, which is often a weak spot in the marketplace.

“The groups I am involved with are generally on the top end ones and it is hard to buy them,” Casse said. “This year is no different. I think we are getting some trickle down to the middle market, which is awesome. I think it is going to be a good year to sell stuff.”

There was a very diverse buying bench on display at this year's July sale with the top 20 horses being purchased by 20 individual buyers. There was also a healthy mix of both end-users and pinhookers buying at all levels.

“There is a depth of buyers and a variety of buyers that really makes you feel good about the spread and the balance of the marketplace,” Browning said.

One of the most active end-users was trainer Ken McPeek, who was quite busy Tuesday, buying a total of 13 yearlings for $1.4 million.

“I think the market seems fair,” the conditioner said. “It seems like there are a lot of people here that are really working it. I'm also glad to get it back to normal as compared to last year when they were all lumped into September and October which was a little bit challenging.”

On the consignor end of things, Four Star Sales accounted for three of the top 10 and Taylor Made Sales Agency and Eaton Sales each had two yearlings in the top 10.

Fasig Tipton's next auction will be held at its New York location with the highly anticipated return of the Saratoga Selected Yearling Sale Aug. 9-10, which will be followed by the Fasig-Tipton New York-Bred Yearling Sale Aug. 15-16.

Into Mischief Filly Sparks Fireworks at Fasig

A daughter of super sire Into Mischief proved to be quite a standout at Newtown Paddocks Tuesday, inspiring a furious round of bidding across the pavilion from some of the industry's heavy hitters. It came down to OXO Equine's Larry Best, bloodstock agent Steve Young, and Eclipse Thoroughbreds' Aron Wellman in the final bids, but it was Wellman who came out the victor at $800,000. Hip 123 is the second-highest priced yearling to sell at the Fasig July Sale in the last 10 years, following the Medaglia d'Oro filly Brill, who brought $1 million from Best here in 2017.

Bidding upstairs alongside bloodstock agent Jacob West, Wellman announced that Eclipse would be partnering on the filly with the Roth family's LNJ Foxwoods. The Roths' bloodstock agent Alex Solis was the first to shake Wellman's hand following the sale.

“She is an absolute queen,” Wellman said. “She really stood out heads and shoulders above everything else here, with all respect to the other entrants, of course. As soon as I laid eyes on her, I picked up the phone and called Alex within seconds of seeing her. I knew we were going to need to bring out the big guns, so I am very grateful to Alex, Jason [Litt] and their team, and of course, the Roth family. They've had extreme success with [champion] Covfefe by Into Mischief. Eclipse has had some success with the sire. She has a beautiful page on the bottom side and from a physical perspective, she's a knockout.”

As for the price, Wellman said, “She was craftily placed, that's for sure. It was no surprise that we had to go to war for her. I think all the heavyweights were on her. We were right in the neighborhood of what we thought she was going to be, maybe a bump or two more. Fillies like her are hard to get your hands on and Alex and I thought this was the right one to take a swing for the fences.”

Hip 123 is out of the unraced Indian Charlie mare Cashing Tickets, a full-sister to MGSW sire Conveyance. The Into Mischief/Indian Charlie cross has already produced the likes of Grade I winner Dayoutoftheoffice and MGSW Frank's Rockette.

Jack Sims's McKenzie Bloodstock purchased Cashing Tickets for $55,000 carrying a foal by Bayern at the 2016 Keeneland November Sale. The resulting foal is a now-4-year-old filly named Leggs Galore, who has won three stakes for her breeder and most recently finished second in the GIII Wilshire S. at Santa Anita.

“She has always been a really special horse,” said Lyn Burleson whose Burleson Farms consigned the filly. “We haven't sold over here in several years, but we had a client that wanted to bring a few over here, so we tried to round out the consignment. We decided to stick her in here thinking that hopefully she was going to be one of the better individuals in here and stand out. That was our reasoning behind it and it worked out great for us.” —@CDeBernardisTDN

Candy Ride Colt Brings $350K at F-T July

The buyers were warmed up by the time hip 111, a colt by Candy Ride (Arg), entered Fasig-Tipton's ring Tuesday afternoon. With bidding rising rapidly for the son of the 6-year-old mare Beyond Grace (Uncle Mo), the volleys slowly subsided, before finally ending with a final $350,000 bid from Baton Rouge, Louisiana resident James Bernhard, seated inside the pavilion during the bidding. The colt's breeder, Larry Best, came over to congratulate the successful bidder immediately following the sale.

“He's a lovely Candy Ride and Taylor Made did a lovely job with him. He was one of the best horses in the sale,” said Equine Analysis System's Matthew Weinmann, acting as agent for Bernhard. “We're going to go to Steve Asmussen and he's going to get broke at [Keith Asmussen]'s farm in Texas and see how he does.”

He continued, “We do run a system where we take physiological data. He came up on our model as one of the colts who are most likely to have success, so that's the reason we went after him.”

Explaining the exchange between Best and Bernhard, Weinmann added, “Larry came over to congratulate us after the purchase and to tell us he has the year-older [full-brother] to this colt and that he hoped he could have some success ahead of us.”

The Apr. 4 foal is out of Beyond Grace, a $1.5-million Fasig-Tipton Florida purchase for Best's OXO Equine. The yearling is the second foal out of the unplaced mare, who is also responsible for a year-older colt by the Lane's End sire.

“I told Larry Best that he would bring in the $250,000-350,000 range, so it was right where I thought,” said Taylor Made's Frank Taylor. “He is a very good representation of Candy Ride. He is just like his sire, he's well balanced with a beautiful head, neck and shoulder and good muscling. He's a little bit small footed, but that goes with the Candy Rides.

“I think the market is starting to realize that Candy Ride is becoming a sire of sires with Twirling Candy, and Mastery looks like he has a shot. I think in the back of some of these buyers' minds, if you get one of these Candy Rides in the summer, you will probably be in good shape.”

Later in the sale, Bernhard purchased hip 133, a colt by Empire Maker out of Clever Beauty (Indian Charlie) for $160,000.

Best Gets Good First Experience as a Seller

Larry Best has proven to be a force to be reckoned with among buyers at all the major North American Thoroughbred auctions, consistently purchasing some of the most coveted and expensive horses. The OXO Equine principal got a taste for what it's like on the other side of the sales industry, selling his first homebred, a Candy Ride (Arg) colt (hip 111), to James Bernhard for $350,000 Tuesday in Lexington.

“This is the first homebred I've ever sold and the first horse I've ever sold,” said a visibly pleased Best after shaking hands with the buyer. “It felt so good to go and congratulate the buyer! Everyone has always come up to congratulate me after I purchased their horse and now I know how it feels. It makes you want to come back. We got a fair value for the horse and hope he does well.”

Best added, “If you have quality fillies and quality horses, they should sell well. I have 35 mares and will probably go up to 40, so every year I will be a seller as well as a buyer.”

Best has been very active at the November sales the past two years as he began to build his broodmare band. Some of his top purchases include GI Breeders' Cup Distaff heroine Blue Prize (Arg) (Pure Prize), who topped the 2019 Fasig-Tipton November Sale at $5 million, and GISW Concrete Rose (Twirling Candy), a $1.95-million purchase at last term's Keeneland November Sale. Many of these mares were purchased to support his new stallions, GISW Instilled Regard (Arch) and GSW Instagrand (Into Mischief), both of whom stand at Taylor Made.

“I do like the breeding,” Best said. “I like breeding to sell and also breeding to race. With Instagrand and Instilled Regard, I am excited about keeping quite a few of those and racing them, but, of course, I will also have to sell some. We had a good year with Instagrand. He got 190 mares in his first year.”

Best has also retained some of his expensive race fillies for his breeding operation, like hip 111's dam Beyond Grace (Uncle Mo), who was a $1.5-million Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream Sale acquisition. She is a full-sister to MSP Mighty Mo.

“Larry bought the mare at the 2-year-old sale and then he bred her and raised the foal at Taylor Made,” said Frank Taylor. “We were a little concerned that people would question why Larry would sell a horse rather than buy. But anybody who is a buyer of horses has to become a seller at some point. Larry has a lot of horses now and we went through them and he let us pick out some horses that we thought were nice and would sell well. He has a lot of really nice pinhooks that he bought as weanlings, but they had large numbers on them, so we thought that would scare people away. So having a nice homebred that doesn't have this pricetag on it is ideal. We hope he'll become known as, not only one of the great buyers of racehorses, but also a seller like WinStar and Stonestreet.” —@CDeBernardisTDN

Making Mischief Late at F-T July

The crowd had begun to thin and the action was drawing to a close Tuesday, and it appeared that the day's highlights could already be spotted in the rearview mirror. However, a filly by leading sire Into Mischief, hip 339, had yet to enter the ring, and when all was said and done, the filly garnered a final bid of $350,000. Bidding on the phone while seated inside the pavilion was Bobby Powell, general manager for Mike Rutherford's Manchester Farm. The yearling was consigned by Four Star Sales, acting as agent for her breeder, Spendthrift Farm.

“She will go to the farm tomorrow, and I'll turn her out and let her be a horse for a while,” said Powell, who confirmed that Rutherford had been on the phone throughout the proceedings. “She'll probably go to Eddie Woods some time in the fall and then we'll get her going.”

While Powell did not immediately confirm who the filly will ultimately be trained by, he mentioned that the operation currently employs several trainers, including Steve Asmussen, Bill Mott and Ken McPeek.

The Apr. 5 foal is out of MSP Anahauc (Henny Hughes), who had been purchased privately by Rutherford early on before selling to Spendthrift for $160,000 at the Fasig-Tipton November sale in 2016. Rutherford is also directly associated with the yearling's granddam Foxcaller (Beau Genius), in addition to that mare's stakes-winning offspring Gangbuster (Langfuhr) and Dreamcall (Midnight Lute) and GSP Glorified (Honour and Glory).

“[Rutherford] has four to five generations of that family,” said Powell. “And Into Mischief? What can be said about him that hasn't already been said?”

And while Manchester had previously let go of Anahauc, the farm still boards Foxcaller and Dreamcall, according to Powell.

“She was a very good individual,” he said of the purchase. “She had a lot of Into Mischief in her, but we could definitely see the family in her. We just hope she's as good to us as the rest of her family has been.”

Commenting on the amount paid for the yearling during the buoyant market, Powell added, “It was a lot of money to pay, but when you know as much as we know about the family then we thought it was fair. Spendthrift does a really good job–I stayed informed on the filly all along.”

Tuesday's yearling session highlighted yet another powerful showing by Spendthrift's marquee stallion Into Mischief, who currently leads the nation with over $13.5 million in earnings. At the conclusion of Tuesday's sale, a total of five yearlings by the sire realized $1.8 million and an average of $360,000.

“We debated a lot about what sale to take her to and we thought she would be really strong here,” explained Spendthrift General Manager New Toffey. “She is quick-looking and athletic. She's typical of the Into Mischiefs and is very good minded. She was just an overall nice individual. It's a good position to be in because if we didn't get her sold, we were happy to race her ourselves.”

In total, Spendthrift sold four of six of its yearlings Tuesday, with the Into Mischief filly topping the nursery's receipts for the day.

“Most everything that we have comes through the ring and we just try to put a fair valuation on them,” he explained. “If we get it, then that's great, and if we don't, we're happy to go on and run them. It was very fair money for that filly.”

Into Mischief Filly Bound for Juvenile Sale

Those who took a liking to hip 320, a daughter of red-hot sire Into Mischief, will get another chance to take her home next year at a 2-year-olds in training sale, according to Justin Casse, who purchased the filly Tuesday for $345,000. The bloodstock agent, who signed the ticket as Bullet Bloodstock, was acting on behalf of an undisclosed pinhooking syndicate.

Casse was quite familiar with the bay's family as he pinhooked her mother Vaudevillian (Distorted Humor), a $170,000 KEESEP buy who sold privately after RNA'ing for $215,000 at EASMAY. The now 7-year-old mare is a half-sister to MGISW and millionaire Life At Ten (Malibu Moon).

“When you find something you like by that sire, I think you have to dig in deep to buy it,” Casse said. “I had actually pinhooked the mare. I bought and sold the mother. She was a nice model and I think this individual is a good representation of both the sire and the dam's sire [Distorted Humor]. She looks fast, looks powerful, looks quick. She has a nice hip and is a good mover.”

The filly was consigned by Taylor Made on behalf of her breeder, PTK.

To no one's surprise, the offspring of leading sire Into Mischief continued to be in high demand during Tuesday's auction. He was represented by a total of five yearlings who sold for $1.8-million and averaged $345,000, including the $800,000 sale-topping filly. —@CDeBernardisTDN

Munnings On the Money at F-T July

Holding the distinction as one of only six horses to surpass the $300,000 mark at Fasig Tuesday was hip 178, a filly by Munnings out of the 8-year-old mare Haraawa (Medaglia d'Oro). Consigned by Four Star Sales, the Feb. 3 filly was purchased by Jacob West, acting as agent for Robert and Lawana Low.

“She is a beautiful filly, well bred and well prepared,” said West, explaining the dark bay's allure. “She was well spotted in this sale and as a result, a lot of people were on her. It was right where we had priced her and we were lucky to get her.”

The Florida-bred filly, who was purchased for $92,000 at the Fasig-Tipton November sale last fall, is the second foal out of his unraced dam, also responsible for 3-year-old Gregory's Pride (Tamarkuz).

Hip 178's $300,000 price tag represents a notable increase over the Coolmore stallion's highest-priced yearling in 2020, a filly out of Show Me (Lemon Drop Kid) that brought $240,000 at Keeneland September before being pinhooked for $550,000 at the OBS March sale earlier this season.

“At the end of the day, Munnings is a very good racehorse sire and a good sales sire, obviously,” West said. “He is just a solid stallion. A son of Speightstown and he was very talented himself and he is passing that on to his offspring, including [Grade I winner] Kimari.”

According to West, the filly will go to newly named Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher, who also trains Grade I winner Colonel Liam (Liam's Map) for the Lows.

“She is the standard type of horse that they like: well bred and good physicals, they rely on me for that,” said West. “Mr. and Mrs. Low are not just hands-off owners. I would put them up against many of the sport's pedigree experts out there. They know a lot about families. So when they check those boxes, they let me be my guide, which is how this filly came up. This horse checked all the boxes. We were happy to get her.”

McPeek Strikes Early and Often

Trainer Ken McPeek came out swinging right from the start of Tuesday's Fasig-Tipton July sale, kicking off the day's purchases with hip 2 before ultimately signing the ticket for 13 yearlings for a total of $1.4 million during the one-session auction.

Hip 2, a colt by first-season sire Tapwrit, brought a final bid of $100,000. Consigned by Four Star Sales, the yearling is out of the Curlin mare Black Coronas.

McPeek's other early expenditures Tuesday included a $160,000 son of Cloud Computing (hip 51). Out of My Lady Lauren (Hard Spun), the dark bay was consigned by Gainesway. The colt hails from the family of Pioneerof the Nile.

During the early action, McPeek purchased eight yearlings within the first 76 offerings, all of them by first or second-crop stallions.

“It's just the way it landed,” he said of his early purchases. “I called my clients and told them it's going to be a lot of gunfire early.”

Also among the first-season sires secured by McPeek Tuesday were: hip 4 (f, Mo Town); hip 6 (c, Free Drop Billy); hip 18 (f, Awesome Slew); hip 31 (c, Good Samaritan) and hip 76 (f, Always Dreaming).

“This crop of first-season stallions seems to be pretty impressive,” he said. “The Cloud Computing I thought was just a fantastic colt. The Always Dreaming filly was a beautiful horse out of a Pure Prize mare. I also bought a Tapwrit who is out of a Curlin mare and he was a beauty, too. The Awesome Slew is a Florida-bred and although I try to stick with Kentucky-breds, she was really well made. She looked like she would be fast and we spend time in Florida, so it seemed like it was worth the shot.”

While some of his purchases appeared to be a chip off the old block, McPeek explained that wasn't always the case.

“I don't think [the Free Drop Billy] looked anything like his sire,” he said. “He is out of a Bertrando mare and he was a very good horse. I didn't see on the pedigree where it was coming from among the physicals. But I thought the Always Dreaming filly really looked like her daddy.”

The Kentucky-based trainer also secured hip 19, a filly by first-season sire Collected. The chestnut is out of Film Idol (Bernardini), a half-sister to the Grade I winning turf mare Film Maker (Dynaformer).

“I thought the Collected filly was exceptional, physically speaking,” McPeek said.

Asked whether he had made a concerted effort to buy yearlings by young stallions, he said, “I buy a lot of horses by first-season sires. And I buy them on physicals. And I think Fasig does a great job recruiting horses by first-crop stallions that have great conformation. I am not scared of buying those horses.”

Later in the session, McPeek bagged his most expensive purchase of the afternoon, a colt by Dialed In who sold for $185,000. Consigned by Burleson Farm, hip 146 is out of Dreamy Lady (Giant's Causeway). McPeek also secured a filly by Goldencents (hip 272) for $175,000 and hip 177, a Midshipman filly out of Grouse Grind (First Samurai), for $100,000.

Graves Hits Another Homerun With Army Mule Colt

Brian Graves has enjoyed plenty of pinhooking success at the yearling sales through the years and Tuesday was no different. The horseman purchase hip 8, a colt from the first crop of Army Mule, for $40,000 at OBSWIN and sold him to WinStar's Maverick Racing for $200,000 at Newtown Paddocks.

“I bought him with Danielle Jones at OBS,” said Graves, who offered the colt in the Gainesway consignment. “Danielle had him the whole time and did a good job with him, so I was glad to see her do well.”

He continued, “We are always pleased when we can make a profit, but we are even more pleased when we can watch them go on to do good things on the racetrack. [WinStar's] Elliott Walden has done really well with a lot of the horses he has bought from us in the past. One of them was [MGISW] Audible (Into Mischief). We appreciate his support and wish him the best.”

When asked what attracted him to this Florida-bred son of Congarette (Congaree), Graves said, “He was a refined horse with real definition to his neck and shoulder. He also had a good hip and hind leg, but he moves really freely and loosely.”

A $35,000 EASOCT yearling turned $825,000 EASMAY 2-year-old purchase, Army Mule (Friesan Fire) made just three starts, but won them all impressively, capping his career with a win in the GI Carter H. He stood for $10,000 when Caperlane Farm bred this colt in 2019 and now stands for $7,500 at Hill 'n' Dale.

“I saw several Army Mules that I liked,” said Graves. “It seems he is getting a nice refined horse and that is the type of horse that I like.”

Four yearlings by Army Mule grossed $455,000 Tuesday with an average of $113,750. —@CDeBernardisTDN

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Selling Around The Dispersal: Sellers Navigated Uncharted Waters In Fasig-Tipton July Breeding Stock Sale

Fasig-Tipton's auctions are well-known for their flexibility when it comes to adding late entries to an established sale, but Monday's inaugural July Breeding Stock Sale introduced an entirely new marketplace segment with the clock winding down.

The Breeding Stock Sale was introduced by Fasig-Tipton on June 15, less than a month before the auction was to take place on July 12. The initial announcement centered around the Far From Over/Fountain of Youth Dispersal, but it invited other sellers to enter the catalog with their mares and foals to take advantage of the tentpole liquidation.

Summer broodmare sales are uncommon on the U.S. landscape, save for an urgent dispersal here and there, meaning the July Breeding Stock Sale would be an untested marketplace in a business that clings harder to the sure things each passing year. Entering the sale would be a leap of faith, with the hopes that buyers would be there to catch the horses on the other side.

How successful that leap was depended on who one asked around the sales grounds on Monday afternoon, but the general ethos in the new offering didn't change from what one might see in any other sale.

“It seems like if you have something of quality, in foal to a quality horse, they're going to buy them, and I don't think it matters if it's now or November,” said Gainesway's Brian Graves.

Gainesway handled the breeding stock session's highest-priced offering, Jeweled Princess, a Cairo Prince mare who sold in foal to Horse of the Year Gun Runner to Stoneriggs Farm for $225,000.

Graves said the mare's owner contacted him about her potential chances in the new sale when it was announced, and they agreed she could do well in the venue, which was a common refrain among several consignors when it came to recruiting prospects for the auction, even on relatively short notice.

“When Fasig announced that they were going to have that dispersal, and they were opening up, the phone really started ringing for us,” said Mark Taylor of Taylor Made Sales Agency. “It wasn't a lot of arm-twisting, it was really more people calling and saying, 'I really hadn't thought about it, but I've got this mare I'd like to turn into some cash; I'm going into the yearling market, or whatever, and I just would rather get the money now, as opposed to pay bills and wait until November.'”

Consignors said the opportunity for mid-season liquidity on the open market was one of the sale's biggest selling points their clients discussed when considering a mare for the sale.

“Generally speaking, we did reach out, but didn't get a great reception,” said Derek MacKenzie of Vinery Sales. “Most of the ones we got, the people called us – partnership dispersal type stuff. Most people thought it was better to wait until fall.”

MacKenzie said the market showed up for his mare in foal to Omaha Beach, who is likely to be an early leader among commercial sires when his first foals hit the sales ring later this year. However, there was not as much depth as he'd hoped for horses below that level, and having a foal on the ground next to the mare was not necessarily the selling point one might assume it would be.

The buyer ranks made it clear that young mares were a priority on Monday. Of the six horses to sell for six-figure prices, only one had more than two foals on her produce record.

“I probably would have missed the market a little bit,” said Fasig-Tipton president Boyd Browning. “I was really surprised with how well some of the in-foal mares and broodmare prospects sold that weren't part of the dispersal. I was a little surprised that some of the mares with foals at their side didn't bring a little more money, but it's making a significant commitment to buy a mare that might have five or six foals on the ground. We've seen that be an area of weakness in the marketplace, whether it's in November, January, or February, and it's still there.”

However, that's not to say having a mare with a foal at her side made her an instant disqualifier in the July marketplace. Taylor said that the sale's placement on the calendar, before the foals are weaned from their mothers, has the potential to open up a more diverse group of buyers in time.

“We're pretty new into this, but I definitely thinks it was a plus,” he said. “It gets weanling pinhookers basically bidding on mares. Then, it gets mare buyers bidding also, so it just opens it up. A mare we sold for $40,000, the baby by her side was a Big Brown, but it was a New York-bred, and a really good foal. She's in foal to Maclean's Music, and I think a lot of people said, 'Man, if she can have a Maclean's Music that looks like that Big Brown, I'm rolling.'”

So much of selling a Thoroughbred comes down to getting the horse to look their best when they arrive at the sales grounds, and for those who might be looking to sell a young horse as a weanling in the fall, Taylor said moving ahead in the calendar to July might help a few horses be at their most marketable.

“When you're selling foals in the fall that have been weaned, it eliminates at least half of the foals from being good candidates, because the weaning process makes them go into a crash,” he said. “They get a weaning crash, where they lose weight, they lose their topline, they don't look as good as they did before, so this allows you to sell a foal that looks in good shape – still got that milk fat, looks good – but when you pull them off the mare, a lot of them just go really downhill, and you can't get them back to where they should be by November. This is just a whole new way to do commerce surrounding foals.

“A lot of times, you go look at all these babies before they're weaned, and I'll be giving a lot of high grades,” Taylor continued, “but then you go back and look at them in October when they've all just been weaned for a few months, all my grades go down, because they're pot-bellied, they've got no top line, they look like little guppies.”

From the group of six horses that sold for $100,000 or more on Monday from the breeding stock session, five of them came from outside the tentpole dispersal, proving there was buyer interest beyond the headline act.

There likely won't be a dispersal to serve as the foundation of future July Breeding Stock Sale catalogs, should it become an annual part of Fasig-Tipton's calendar, but solid returns among the sellers who took the chance in the new market could help fill catalogs in the future.

“The people that brought them thought there was an opportunity, and I agree with them,” said Pat Costello of consignor Paramount Sales. “I think it was a success.”

The post Selling Around The Dispersal: Sellers Navigated Uncharted Waters In Fasig-Tipton July Breeding Stock Sale appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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