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Ahead of Fasig November, Amy Moore Bids Queen Caroline a Heartfelt Farewell

The chances might be one in a million.

The odds of campaigning a multiple stakes winner from the first yearling you ever purchase are certainly pretty long. But to have that horse go on and produce a champion as her first foal, what are the chances?

Amy Moore, the owner of South Gate Farm in Millwood, Virginia, knows better than to take this experience for granted. Besides her childhood family pony, the first horse she ever owned was Queen Caroline. Purchased by Moore for $170,000 as a yearling in 2014, the daughter of Blame out of Queens Plaza (Forestry) was cleverly named after the episode in British history when the wife of King George IV was “blamed” for adultery and put on trial in the House of Lords. Queen Caroline would go on to earn over $400,000, claiming five stakes victories for Michael Matz.

After she retired to Moore's small Virginia farm, the mare's first foal–and the first horse that Moore ever bred–was Forte. The son of Violence went on to be a Breeders' Cup and Eclipse Award-winning juvenile and one of the top sophomores of 2023.

“It has really been a thrill,” Moore reflected. “My sister, niece and I all came to Lexington for the Breeders' Cup last year, so we were there to see him win the Juvenile. Forte definitely has the mare's personality. Queen Caroline is a mare that knows who she is and she's number one in any field that she's ever been in. I think he has that too and it shows in these incredible victories where it looks like he's beaten at the top of the stretch and he gets up to win.”

Soon, the final chapter of Moore's fairytale story with Queen Caroline will come to a close when the Grade I-producing mare goes through the ring on Nov. 7 at the Fasig-Tipton November Sale. The sale of Moore's once-in-a-lifetime mare will make it possible for the breeder to further her boutique broodmare band for many years to come.

Sara Gordon

“It's definitely bittersweet,” Moore admitted. “She's done as much for me as any horse could possibly do. I'm running a business so I have to make decisions with those considerations in mind and she's really become too valuable to keep her in Virginia on my little farm.”

Offered in foal to Flightline, Queen Caroline will sell as Hip 171 with Bluegrass Thoroughbred Services. The mare has spent the last year with consignor John Stuart at his Chanteclair Farm in Versailles. Stuart reiterated that the mare has the attitude of racing royalty.

“She's definitely the queen,” he said. “She was really competitive on the racetrack and now she bosses everybody around in the pasture. She's a really pretty mare–16'1 ½ inches, a strong body, correct. She's got a really nice eye and head to her and just a lot of class.”

Stuart said that Queen Caroline's second foal shares the same confident air as his dam and half brother. A son of Uncle Mo, the colt now named Dr. Park sold for $850,000 last year to Mayberry Farm. Now in training with John Shirreffs, the juvenile is putting in regular works at Santa Anita ahead of his debut.

Meanwhile Queen Caroline had a stretch of bad luck when her third foal was born dead last year and she then ended up losing her foal this year due to the effects of the setback in 2022. Stuart attested to the 10-year-old mare's capability as a broodmare going forward.

“I'm confident that she's good to go and is going to have a lot of foals in a row because she's young and she's fertile,” he said. “Every year that she's been bred, she's been bred one time except for the second year when she had the Uncle Mo, when she was bred twice.”

Bred on an early Feb. 24 cover date, Queen Caroline will be one of the first mares at public auction to be offered in foal to undefeated Flightline. Last year's Horse of the Year, the new Lane's End stallion holds an esteemed place at Fasig-Tipton as a $1 million graduate of their Saratoga Sale.

Queen Caroline and her paddock mate First Passage (Giant's Causeway) | Sara Gordon

“Flightline is a very special horse to everybody in the industry,” said Fasig-Tipton's president and CEO Boyd Browning. “He captivated our imagination like no other horse has in my 35 years of being involved in the Thoroughbred industry. I think everybody around the world is excited to see the potential that Flightline possesses as a stallion.”

Another important component of Queen Caroline's resume, Browning said, is her pedigree. The mare's family includes Essential Quality and Contrail (Jpn), both champions at two and three in their native countries who are now embarking on their stud careers.

“The sky is the limit in terms of what could be happening within this pedigree,” Browning said. “It's already an exceptional pedigree. She's by Blame, who is emerging as one of the best broodmare sires in the world, and you've got Seattle Slew in the pedigree. But we could look up in 10 years and say the pedigree has exploded. Forte has become a great stallion or Contrail has become a great stallion. And who knows what else is going to happen with her own produce with the potential she possesses. It's a power-packed pedigree and the future is very bright for Queen Caroline.”

“I think anybody in the world could buy Queen Caroline,” he continued. “I would be hesitant to predict who the buyer would be or where they'll be from. She has truly international appeal. Her first foal is one of the best horses of the 3-year-old crop and a champion 2-year-old last year and her second foal brought $850,000, so she's the complete package of what you're looking for in terms of a commercial broodmare. She's going to be coveted by virtually every major breeder in the world.”

In the days leading up to Queen Caroline's sale, Moore will be watching from Virginia as Forte looks to make his bid in the Breeders' Cup Classic. The breeder will make the trip to Lexington to watch her star mare go through the ring and hopefully from there, come home with one or two new additions to her small broodmare band.

“I'm sure Queen Caroline will go to a very good home,” Moore said. “That will be a comfort to me, to know she's well taken care of and she's getting the best in terms of breeding opportunities. I think her future buyer will have a very nice mare and will get some really nice foals from her.”

Even when she no longer owns the mare, Moore said she will always be proud to be listed as the breeder of Forte as he furthers his career on the racetrack and hopefully someday, the stud barn.

“It's been a roller coaster,” she said of Forte's campaign. “I'm sure Forte's owners can say the same. There have been a lot of ups and downs, as there always are in the horse business, but it's been a lot of fun to watch a really good horse compete and to own his dam. I will miss that, but I hope to produce another one and go around again someday. As soon as I have a chance, my mares will be going to Forte.”

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Six Supplemented to Fasig-Tipton’s The November Sale

Fasig-Tipton has catalogued six initial supplemental entries to its 2023 The November Sale, the auction company announced on Monday.

The late entries, catalogued as hips 247-252, include G3 Pocohontas S. winner Fun and Fiesty (Midshipman); the unraced Al Ula Princess (Tapwrit), a half-sister to Grade I winner Princess Noor in foal to Epicenter; Susie's Baby (Giant's Causeway), a half-sister to Group 1 winner and standout sire Caravaggio; 2016 GI Frizette S. winner Nickname (Scat Daddy) in foal to Uncle Mo; recent Iowa Sorority S. winner Won Happy Mama (Runhappy) offered as a racing or broodmare prospect; and Defining Hope (Strong Hope) carrying a full sibling to GI Ashland S. winner Defining Purpose (Cross Traffic).

These entries may now be viewed online and will also be available in the equineline sales catalogue app. Print versions of all supplemental entries will be available on-site at Fasig-Tipton at sale time. Fasig-Tipton will continue to accept approved supplemental entries through the Breeders' Cup.

The November Sale will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 7, in Lexington beginning at 2:00 p.m. EST.

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Secret Oath Retired; Will Sell At Fasig-Tipton November

Secret Oath (Arrogate–Absinthe Minded, by Quiet American), whose accomplishments include a win in the 2022 GI Kentucky Oaks, has been retired due to a minor problem with her right front ankle, reports trainer Wayne Lukas.

She will sell at the Fasig-Tipton November sale.

The story was first reported by Ron Flatter of Horse Racing Nation.

Owned by Rob and Stacy Mitchell, Secret Oath came down with the injury after working five furlongs in :58.60 on Sept. 28 at Churchill Downs. Lukas said that the injury caused him to keep her out of Sunday's GI Spinster S. at Keeneland and with her missing that race he did not think she could make the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff.

“She's fine and she's sound,” he said. “But she was not going to make the Spinster. Rather than try to get her back together we decided to just go ahead and sell her.”

Secret Oath, a homebred, flourished as a 3-year-old. After she won the GIII Honeybee S., Lukas ran her against males in the GI Arkansas Derby, where she finished third. The Oaks was up next and she won that race by two lengths over eventual Eclipse Award winner Nest (Curlin).

“There are about 10,000 female horses born every year and she's the only one among them who won the Oaks,” Lukas said. “Those are the one-of-a-kind accomplishments every trainer strives for.”

After the Oaks, Secret Oath lost five straight but rebounded with a decisive win in the GII Azeri S. to kick off this year's campaign. She ran four more times, a stretch that included second-place finishes in the GI Apple Blossom H., the GI La Troienne S. and the GI Personal Ensign S.

“She was a picture of consistency,” Lukas said. “She showed up every time. Whenever I ran her she was right there. Secret Oath was good every time we started her. She always hit the board.”

A year ago, the Mitchells announced that Secret Oath would be sold in the Fasig-Tipton November sale, but they changed their minds and withdrew her so that they could race her one more year.

“She's going to bring some serious money,” Lukas said. “They still own the mother and a half-sister to Secret Oath. They are a small breeding operation so she has been a real blessing for them.”

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Wonder Wheel, Who Took the Greens on the Ride of a Lifetime, To Sell at Fasig November

When Lois Green was a young girl, her family would take her once a year to Coney Island, where she thought the most exhilarating ride was the Wonder Wheel. So when the family bought a yearling by Into Mischief out of the multiple stakes winner and multiple Grade I stakes-placed Wonder Gal at auction, the name was a natural for the DJ Stable matriarch.

Wonder Wheel would go on to become Into Mischief's first juvenile champion, winning two Grade Is including the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies, and four of five starts at 2, taking the family on the kind of exhilarating ride Lois remembered. Lois Green passed away May 31, not long after seeing her juvenile champion compete in the Grade I Kentucky Oaks, and when the family sells Wonder Wheel Tuesday night, Nov. 7 at the Fasig-Tipton November Sale, her son, Jon, the General Manager of DJ Stable, admits it will be “bittersweet.”

“Normally, we like to say we're very businesslike, but in this case, we're not,” said Green. “In this case, she really added so much happiness to us as a family and to watch her go to the ring, even though I know she's going to sell really well, is going to be difficult for my dad and for me–to watch her go through the sales ring and ultimately be out of our family at that point.”

Jon and his father Len are offering Wonder Wheel as a broodmare prospect, selling as hip 200, where she is expected to be one of the most sought-after offerings on the night.

“You can really summarize her potential very simply,” said Fasig-Tipton's president and CEO Boyd Browning. “She's by Into Mischief. She's a two-year-old champion with good looks and a brilliant pedigree. It's a complete package.”

Wonder Wheel will sell with Taylor Made Sales, adding another chapter to a long relationship between the Taylors and the Greens. Taylor Made's President and CEO Mark Taylor said that she was a rare filly who looked like she could be a Classic winner, but who was also an early, exceptional two-year-old.

“I think her two-year-old speed, precocity, and professionalism show a combination of physical and mental ability,” said Taylor. “And pedigree comes in to that precocity, too. Into Mischief is a very good two-year-old sire. Her broodmare sire, Tiz Wonderful, was a good two-year-old himself, but she physically looks like a two-turn Oaks filly. So this filly did all these great things at two. But really, if I would have looked at her as a yearling, I would have said she's going to be a three-year-old. So that just shows her talent, that she was able to have this big classic kind of frame, but yet be quick enough, early enough, and mentally good enough to handle a brilliant two-year-old campaign.”

Wonder Wheel surprised her connections by progressing forwardly enough to make her first start at two June 3 at Churchill, winning a maiden special weight by 2 1/4-lengths. One month later, she took the Debutante at Churchill by 6 3/4-lengths, before shipping to Saratoga to finish second in the Grade I Spinaway.

“When I got her up to Saratoga, I told the Greens this may be the best two-year-old I'd had since Classic Empire,” said Mark Casse, Wonder Wheel's trainer. “They said, `what does that mean?' I said, `I think she can win the Breeders' Cup.'”

“She got beat in the Spinaway,” said Casse. “But I really wasn't overly concerned with that because I had given her a little bit of a break. She came back and then she won the (GI Darley) Alcibiades and I thought she ran well, but I knew she was going to have to come with a better game in the Breeders' Cup. And oh boy, she did. Her win in the Breeders' Cup was amazing because she got away a little slow, got shuffled back, and the move she made from the half-mile pole to the wire? I've been doing this for 40 some years, and it was one of the more impressive victories that I've ever had.”

Wonder Wheel at Taylor Made | Sara Gordon photo

But before the race, Casse's prediction of a Breeders' Cup win caused him more than a little stress, as he had more or less guaranteed it.

“I was very attached to Lois, and she was there at the Breeders' Cup,” said “I had told them early on that we were going to win the Breeders' Cup, so it was a little nerve-wracking. If I had to do it over again, I wouldn't have done it. But to have Lois there and to be part of it was very special. We all miss her.”

Like the Greens, Casse said he would also miss Wonder Wheel.

“She has a wonderful personality couldn't give a hoot about anything,” said Casse. “She would go into the paddock and look around and say, `So this is my competition?' She was just a pleasure to train and never missed a beat. She loved what she's doing and she's one of the best horses I've ever trained. She has a lot more leg than most Into Mischiefs. She's got some stretch to her, and I've had great luck with that type of Into Mischief. It's what I look for.”

Casse said he expected a smooth transition into her next career.

“She's going to be a wonderful broodmare for a lot of reasons,” he said. “One, she's very sound. Even though she's big and tall, she was fast. Good broodmares, in my opinion, need some speed.

She had that. But she was able to carry it. And she had just a wonderful personality. If she passes her personality her traits on to her foals, there will be a lot of good ones. I'm sure she's going to make a super broodmare for someone.”

“She offers a ton of options for top breeders from around the world to match her up with the best stallions here, in Japan or Europe or anywhere else,” Taylor agreed, pointing out the appeal of a multiple-Grade I winning champion daughter of Into Mischief with an impressive female family, but who is still only three. “Wonder Wheel's Dam is Wonder Gal and she herself was a brilliant two-year-old. She was a stakes winner. She was second in the Frizette and then she was third in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile. So, you know, by any other filly standards, that would be a really good benchmark to set. But then she produces this daughter in Wonder Wheel who just goes one better. These type of opportunities are really what I love most about my job. All the possibilities down the line and what she could produce, it's really energizing.”

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