de Meric Sales | Horse Racing Free Tips

Second Time’s A Charm For De Meric Sales With $625,000 Tapit Filly At Record Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sale

The Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream Selected 2-Year-Olds In Training Sale is one of the most unforgiving marketplaces on the North American auction calendar, offering windfalls for the flawless specimens in the catalog and relative crickets for the ones that leave even one box unchecked.

Fortunately, the auction's early placement on the calendar offers the horses that didn't jump through every single hoop a chance to regroup and find the right fit at the right price somewhere down the road.

The patience to wait for that second chance paid off for the de Meric Sales operation, which consigned the session-topper during Tuesday's closing session of the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds In Training Sale, a Tapit filly out of the Grade 1-winning Uncle Mo mare Gomo who brought $625,000 as Hip 492.

Tuesday's trip through the ring was the second during the current juvenile auction season for the Tapit filly. In March, she hammered for $475,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream sale after breezing an eighth in :10 2/5 seconds, and she was brought home as a buyback.

Tristan de Meric said the filly did a fair bit of growing in the two months since the Gulfstream sale, and she shipped north to Timonium, Md., a different horse.

“Physically, she put more weight on, even since the Miami sale, and she looked even better in company,” de Meric said. “I was really happy to see her develop physically as well as she did since the sale. She got better, bigger, stronger. She even grew an inch. She changed a lot since that sale, and the track here ended up suiting her.”

The filly shaved a fifth of a second off her time over the Maryland State Fairgrounds racing surface during last week's under tack show for the Midlantic sale, covering a furlong in :10 1/5 seconds – just a tick off the overall fastest time for the entire breeze show.

When the hammer fell on Tuesday, the ticket went to the back ring of the pavilion to trainer Mac Robertson, who signed it on behalf of Mike and Vicki McGowan's Xtreme Racing Stables.

“I thought she was the best filly in the sale,” Robertson said between placing bids for the horse immediately following the session-topper. “Mike and Vicki McGowan, are looking for really good fillies. I thought she had the best breeze, and being out of a Grade 1 horse, by a sire that everyone wants, it made sense to me. We went a little more than we wanted, but the sale is strong.”

Even if the filly never runs a step, her page stood out in the catalog as one with instant broodmare potential.

Bred in Florida by Bridlewood Farm, she is the second foal out of Gomo, an Uncle Mo mare who won the Grade 1 Alcibiades Stakes as a juvenile. The page also features several graded/group stakes-producing mares.

While the long-term residual value was appealing, Robertson was more concerned in the moment with taking things one step at a time, and that starts with the racetrack.

“They're looking to win good races,” he said. “If they buy good fillies like that, I think they'll have a good chance.”

The transaction was one of the highlights of what was a record-setting renewal of the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sale, which set all-time high marks in gross, average, and median sale price.

Over the course of two sessions, a total of 357 horses changed hands for revenues of $33,692,000. The gross surpassed the previous record of $29,374,000 set in 2019.

The average sale price also reached a new high previously set in 2019, finishing on Tuesday at $94,375, after hitting $90,104 two years ago. The new record median of $50,000 bettered the previous mark of $45,000 set in 2015.

The buyback rate for the overall sale was 16 percent, and it was an even more impressive 13 percent during Tuesday's session.

Much like what de Meric said about the placement of Tuesday's session-topping filly, Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sales director Paget Bennett said the auction's spot on the later portion of the juvenile sale catalog has made it an increasingly popular target for quality horses, instead of a “last chance” stop at the end of the season.

“So much of it is the consignors just like the sale because of the extra time it gives a lot of these horses,” Bennett said. “A lot of the horses were May babies, so they don't want to push them early, because if they ding them early, they don't have anything, so when they buy horses, a lot of times, they target this sale.”

Even after an all-time edition of the sale, Bennett said she foresaw this week's results spurring on a further evolution of the Midlantic 2-year-old sale catalog, potentially attracting a new group of sellers who might have still held reservations about selling in the marketplace. However, she did not expect the catalog would expand any further than its current size.

“Six hundred (horses) is really what we can stable here, but we're seeing a lot of new consignors,” she said. “It's always nice for people to see other people be successful, and say 'Well, I wasn't sure about that sale earlier, but now I see the results, so perhaps it's something we need to put on our calendar for the future.' We've seen a lot of that, and I think we'll continue to see more.”

To view the auction's full results, click here.

The post Second Time’s A Charm For De Meric Sales With $625,000 Tapit Filly At Record Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sale appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Four Tie For Fastest Furlong During Final Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Under Tack Show

The third and final session of the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale under tack show featured four juveniles that breezed an eighth of a mile in :10 seconds flat to tie for the fastest time of the day.

Hip 394, a Maclean's Music colt out of the Grade 3-placed stakes-winning Storm Boot mare Coco Belle, whose six winners from seven foals to race includes stakes winner Cofactor and stakes-placed Coco Tiger. The colt sells as property of Shamrock Stable.

Hip 477, a first-crop Midnight Storm colt out of the stakes-placed Lit de Justice mare Freedom Come. The colt is a half-brother to Grade 3 winner Harlem Rocker, and he's consigned by James Layden, agent.

Hip 515, a Palace filly out of the Bluegrass Cat mare Honky Tonk Angel. The filly is a sibling to stakes-placed Tapiz Dream, and she's consigned by Top Line Sales, agent.

Hip 524, a Nyquist colt who is the first foal out of the winning Speightstown mare In It For the Gold. The New York-bred's second dam is the Grade 1-placed stakes winner All Due Respect. He is consigned by Wavertree Stables, agent.

Thursday's fastest worker at a quarter-mile was Hip 550, an Empire Maker colt who covered the distance in :21 4/5 seconds.

The bay colt is out of the Orientate mare Lady Pewitt, making him a half-brother to champion Jaywalk Grade 3-placed stakes winner Danzatrice. Grade 2 winner Mission Impazible is also in the extended family of this colt, who is consigned by de Meric Sales, agent.

The Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sale will take place May 17-18, with each session beginning at 11 a.m. Eastern.

To view the full breeze show results, click here.

The post Four Tie For Fastest Furlong During Final Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Under Tack Show appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Five Juveniles Clock Fastest Furlong At Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sale’s Second Under Tack Session

Wednesday's group of juveniles at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds In Training Sale under tack show was led by a quintet of horses that covered an eighth of a mile in :10 flat.

Hip 211, a Quality Road colt out of the unraced Storm Cat mare Stormy Welcome, whose runners include the stakes-placed Welcoming. His third dam is the cornerstone broodmare Weekend Surprise, putting this colt in the family of Horse of the Year A.P. Indy, Preakness Stakes winner Summer Squall, and Grade 1 winners Happy Saver and Court Vision. Eddie Woods consigns the colt, as agent.

Hip 260, a Munnings colt out of the winning Medaglia d'Oro mare Tweet, whose three foals to race are all winners. Wavertree Stables consigns the Pennsylvania-bred, as agent.

Hip 264, a first-crop Tom's Ready colt out of the winning Macho Uno mare Uno Royale. The Florida-bred is consigned by de Meric Sales, agent.

Hip 337, an American Pharoah colt out of the Theatrical mare Baroness Aamoura. King's Equine consigns the half-brother to stakes-placed Madam Aamoura, as agent.

Hip 340, Pippilotta, a Race Day filly who is the first foal out of the winning Into Mischief mare Battle Tux. Grassroots Training and Sales consigns the filly, as agent.

Wednesday's fastest worker at a quarter-mile was Hip 295, a Union Rags filly out of the stakes-winning Northern Afleet mare Afleet Lass. The filly is a half-sister to Grade 3-placed stakes winner Honor the Fleet, and Brazillian champions Juno and Love 'N' Happiness are in the extended family. Tom McCrocklin consigns the filly as agent.

The Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sale under tack show concludes Thursday, beginning at 8 a.m. Eastern. The auction will take place May 17-18, beginning each day at 11 a.m.

To view the full breeze show results, click here.

The post Five Juveniles Clock Fastest Furlong At Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sale’s Second Under Tack Session appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Union Rags Filly Swiftest in Timonium Wednesday

TIMONIUM, MD – The second of three under-tack sessions ahead of the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds-in-Training Sale got underway minutes after 8 a.m. with chilly temperatures in the mid-40s and a tailwind which remained fairly steady throughout the day's seven sessions at the Maryland State Fairgrounds Wednesday. Five of the day's six fastest times came during the session's first 20 minutes, with a filly by Union Rags equaling Tuesday's quarter-mile bullet time of :21 2/5 and four horses sharing the co-bullet furlong time of :10 flat. It wasn't until the day's fourth set that a fifth juvenile hit that mark.

Consignor Tom McCrocklin sent a filly by Union Rags (hip 295) out to work a quarter-mile in :21 2/5 Wednesday, matching Tuesday's fastest time for the distance.

“She is a super nice filly,” McCrocklin said. “She showed up and I expected her to. She was that way at the farm and she prepped that way here. She's really classy and sound. She galloped out good. She's a lovely filly–probably my favorite horse we had all year.”

The bay filly is out of stakes winner Afleet Lass (Northern Afleet) and is a half-sister to graded placed Honor the Fleet (To Honor and Serve). Bred by Gainesway, she was purchased by McCrocklin for $20,000 at last year's Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

“I'm still not sure how I got her for $20,000, but it was one of those things at Keeneland where you hit a soft spot,” McCrocklin said. “I bought her from Gainesway and I remember walking up there and [Gainesway's] Lakota [Gibson] said, 'No reserve.' That can be good or bad because when you hear no reserve, you never know what to think. But she's been really nice all year.”

The second horse on the track Wednesday, a filly by Race Day (hip 340), equaled Tuesday's bullet furlong time when working in :10 flat for Grassroots Training & Sales. Bred by Dala Farm, the bay filly is the first foal out of Battle Tux (Into Mischief).

Eddie Woods's consignment had its second bullet worker of the week when hip 211, a colt by Quality Road, covered his furlong in :10 flat Wednesday. Bred by Jon Clay's Alpha Delta, the dark bay colt is out of the unraced Stormy Welcome (Storm Cat), a half-sister to graded winner Guest Suite (Quality Road). The colt's third dam is Weekend Surprise (Secretariat), dam of A.P. Indy and Summer Squall.

A colt by American Pharoah (hip 337) shared the :10 flat bullet when working for Raul Reyes's Kings Equine. The chestnut colt is out of Baroness Aamoura (Theatrical {Ire}) and is a half-brother to stakes-placed Madam Aamoura (Zensational). His second dam is multiple graded stakes winner Anguilla (Seattle Slew).

“We were very happy with it,” Reyes said of the work. “He prepped pretty fast and he prepped fast at the farm, so this wasn't really a surprise.”

Bred by Zayat Stables, the juvenile RNA'd for $145,000 as a weanling at the 2019 Keeneland November sale and for $45,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale.

“I bought him right after [the September sale],” Reyes said. “I was looking for an American Pharoah for the right price and he looked kind of fast. He looked a little rough as a yearling, but he has changed a lot. He looks like a more serious, stronger horse. He is big-bodied.”

Kings Equine has sent out 12 juveniles to work through the first two sessions of the under-tack show in Timonium.

“The track here is very consistent,” Reyes said. “You can work good any time. I like that about Maryland. You can come at 4 p.m. and still do good.”

Rounding out Wednesday's first set :10 flat workers was hip 260, a colt by Munnings consigned by Ciaran Dunne's Wavertree Stables. Dunne purchased the dark bay colt, who is a Pennsylvania-bred out of Tweet (Medaglia d'Oro), for $55,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale.

“Munnings is a handy stallion. He's one of those middle-range horses. The Pennsylvania-bred thing didn't hurt and the price was right,” Dunne said of the colt's appeal last fall. “We always bought him with Timonium in mind. And we actually stuck to the plan for a change. We'll see how that works out.”

Dunne agreed the track in Timonium has remained consistent throughout the under-tack show's first two sessions.

“We worked a horse in the fifth set that we like quite a bit, a Klimt colt (hip 311) and he worked good, he went in :10 1/5,” Dunne said. “So I think it's been fine all the way through. It was the same for us yesterday. They all worked about like we would have expected them to work.”

Wavertree opened the juvenile sales season with a pair of blockbuster seven-figure pinhooks at the Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream Sale and Dunne said he was “cautiously optimistic” heading into next week's two-day Midlantic auction.

Turning heads during Tuesday's first breeze show session from the Wavertree consignment was a daughter of Quality Road (hip 46) who worked her furlong in :10 1/5. Out of a half-sister to champion Abel Tasman (Quality Road), the bay filly was a $230,000 purchase at last year's Fasig-Tipton October sale.

“The Quality Road filly that worked yesterday is a really nice filly with a huge pedigree,” Dunne said. “She was also always earmarked for here, being such a late foal [May 22] and coming from the October sale. Our breaking process is like watching paint dry, so it is hard for us to get those horses to the earlier sales.”

Rounding out Wednesday's :10 flat workers was hip 264, a colt from the first crop of multiple graded stakes winner Tom's Ready (More Than Ready). Out of Uno Royale (Macho Uno), the dark bay was consigned by De Meric Sales and was purchased by Silvestre Avila for $15,000 at last year's OBS October Sale. Avila, an exercise rider for the De Meric operation, has made a habit of turning bargain-priced yearling purchases into pinhooking coups in recent years.

“He keeps buying these $15,000 horses and turning them into $150,000 and then some 2-year-olds,” said Nick de Meric before adding with a chuckle, “We are starting to re-think our whole program. We are just going to give him all our money and let him go do it. He's done great this year, which is really heartwarming. A couple of guys in the barn are partners with him on the horse. So it is really great to see. Hopefully they will all make a little paycheck out of it.”

Tom's Ready won the 2016 GII Woody Stephens S. and GIII Ack Ack S., as well as the 2017 GIII Bold Ruler H.

“I haven't seen a lot of them,” de Meric said of offspring of Tom's Ready. “This guy is kind of built for this track. He's got that More Than Ready look about him and a good strong body type. He's not super big, but very fast and early looking. That type tend to do really well on this track and he was no exception.”

The de Meric family will be looking to turn a quick profit on another juvenile in its Midlantic consignment, having purchased a filly by Bernardini (hip 217) for $40,000 privately after she had RNA'd at the Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream sale in March. The first foal out of stakes winner Super Allison (Super Saver) had been part of Kirkwood Stables' Gulfstream Gallops group, which had purchased her for $25,000 at the 2020 Keeneland September sale. She worked a furlong Wednesday in :10 2/5.

“The plan was to flip her here and see if we could turn a dollar,” de Meric said. “To be honest, Tristan [de Meric] was contacted about that filly and went over to see her. She's a typical Bernardini, a lighter-framed kind of filly. She really stepped up here. She had a lot to learn in a relatively short space because she was in that galloping program and hadn't done much breezing. She's really moved forward and she prepped ok here, but she stepped forward on her breeze when it mattered. We are very happy with her breeze.”

De Meric continued, “You never quite dare think you got a bargain until they go through the ring. That's when you find out if you've got a bargain. We thought she was good value. Bernardini is such a good broodmare sire and over the years, he's been good to us. So we weren't afraid to give it a shot. The Gulfstream sale is a boutique sale. If everything aligns and falls into place, it can be spectacularly good, but there isn't much margin for error as we all have learned. She just didn't quite impress enough at the time, but hopefully she'll get it right up here”

Also coming out of Kirkwood's Gulfstream Gallop program is hip 166, a colt by More Than Ready who RNA'd for $115,000 in Hallandale and worked the quarter-mile bullet in :21 2/5 for Kip Elser's consignment Tuesday.

Another Gulfstream Gallop graduate is hip 221, a son of Street Sense who was purchased by the Wycoff family's Three Diamonds Farm for $25,000 in South Florida in March. The colt worked a furlong in :10 4/5 from the Crane Thoroughbred Services consignment Wednesday.

The Midlantic under-tack show concludes with a final session Thursday beginning at 8 a.m. The auction will be held next Monday and Tuesday with bidding commencing each day at 11 a.m.

The post Union Rags Filly Swiftest in Timonium Wednesday appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post