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Goffs: Orby Sale Could Still Take Place in Ireland

Officials at Goffs have released a statement clarifying announcements made June 30 as regards the venue and date options for the company's marquee Orby Sale.

As was previously stated, the Orby sale, with the cooperation of Tattersalls, is planned for Friday and Saturday, Sept. 24 and 25, at Park Paddocks in Newmarket. However, Goffs officials are expressing optimism that travel restrictions could be eased in time enough for the sale to take place at its originally scheduled dates of Tuesday and Wednesday, Sept. 28 and 29.

These plans follow discussions which have taken place between Goffs and Tattersalls as a result of the COVID – related issues which disrupted the recent Tattersalls Ireland Derby Sale.

Goffs Group Chief Executive Henry Beeby said: “I am pleased we are able to offer some clarity to the many mutual Tattersalls' and Goffs' clients, and I am sorry that we may have contributed to any confusion last week. As one might imagine, clarity is hard to achieve in the current climate as the situation appears to be ever changing in each country. However, I repeat our appreciation of the collaborative approach that Tattersalls have taken and their generous offer of assistance should it be necessary.

“It is such a shame that the overseas buyers 'bubble' that worked so well for the Goffs Land Rover Sale and was being replicated at the Tattersalls Ireland Derby Sale was inexplicably withdrawn at the eleventh hour but there is simply no way that vendors, or Goffs, can take the risk that the same thing could happen on the eve of the Orby Sale as there is too much at stake. Accordingly, as announced last week, we feel it is in the best interests of Irish vendors selling in Orby to clearly state that the sale will be held in Newmarket if the current restrictions on travel into Ireland remain in place.

“The caveat to all of these plans is the hope and increasingly strong belief that the introduction of the EU's digital passport in relation to Covid-19 vaccinations will lead to the imminent reopening of Ireland to international visitors meaning that we will hold the Orby Sale in Kildare Paddocks on its scheduled dates.”

Tattersalls Chairman, Edmond Mahony added: “Clarity is key at this stage and we have been working closely with Goffs, in the best interests of the wider industry, to provide them with a suitable alternative in the event that the current restrictions on travel into Ireland continue. Encouragingly, all the signals now point to a relaxation of the prevailing travel restrictions and we hope for all concerned that the Orby Sale will take place at its usual location and on its scheduled dates.”

The Goffs Sportsman's Sale will occur immediately following the conclusion of Orby should the sale in fact take place in Ireland, but if Orby is transferred to Newmarket, the Sportsman's will be held in Ireland Nov. 1 and 2 in conjunction with the Goffs Autumn Yearling and Horses-In-Training sale.

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Midlantic Sale Opens With a Bang

TIMONIUM, MD – The Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale returned to its traditional May spot on the calendar with an ebullient session topped by a $1.5-million son of Quality Road at the Maryland State Fairgrounds Monday. The seven-figure purchase was the co-highest priced colt ever sold at the Timonium auction, tying the price of a Curlin colt sold in 2017.

“It was unbelievable,” Midlantic Sales Director Paget Bennett said at the close of business Monday. “The activity in the barn area over the weekend was strong and all of the people you want to see at a 2-year-old sale were here. So we just hoped that everything would line up. And then this morning, the people just kept coming and coming. The pavilion was full of folks and the infield was full of cars.”

For the session, 170 head sold for $15,826,500. The average was $93,097–ahead of the record figure of $90,104 set in 2019–and the median was $45,000.

During last year's pandemic-delayed sale, 152 head sold during the auction's first session for a total of $12,632,500. The average was $83,109 and the median was $40,000.

“The consignors were here with top horses and people reconized that and they battled for them and it made for a great day,” Bennett said.

Of the 284 catalogued juveniles, 210 went through the ring. With 40 horses reported not sold, the buy-back rate was 19%.

For Bennett, Monday's results were a continuation of the demand for horses at all levels at last month's OBS Spring sale.

“From what I was hearing at OBS, people were just excited to be back for sales and wanting to buy horses,” Bennett said. “I heard so many people didn't get their orders filled in Ocala. We are the next stop and here we are. We are thilled we had a great catalogue to give them and the horses matched up.”

The Midlantic sale continues with a final session beginning at 11 a.m. Tuesday.

“We are certainly going to give it our best,” Bennett said when asked if the hot results would continue Tuesday. “I certainly hope so. From what I am hearing, we have a lot of really nice horses tomorrow, so we will hope for the same result. If we can keep on today's pace, I am thinking it will be another great day.”

A 'Proper Horse' For West Point

West Point Thoroughbreds' Terry Finley knew he'd have to dig deep to secure a handsome colt by Quality Road (hip 211) and, armed with the backing of a new partner, he saw off a determined Amr Zedan to secure the juvenile for $1.5 million Monday in Timonium. The colt, who worked a furlong in a co-bullet :10 flat last week, was consigned by Eddie Woods on behalf of Jon Clay's Alpha Delta Stables. He will be trained by Dallas Stewart.

“I talked to Eddie and he said this was a proper horse,” Finley said after signing the ticket on the youngster. “These Irish guys, when they throw that term out, that's a pretty good indication. They'll say, 'He's a nice horse.' But when they push it to the next level and talk about him being a proper horse, I take notice. And the fact that he's a big strong horse that worked in :10 flat (see below), you take a look at him and he's not supposed to work that fast, but he did it the right way.”

Of West Point's partner on the million-dollar baby, Finley said, “We have a brand new guy who took 50% of him. He's a West Pointer who is a little bit older than I am. He hasn't had a lot of success in the business and he called me a couple of days after the Kentucky Derby and he said, 'I want to compete in the big races.' So I told him I would give him my best effort. That's what we did.”

While Medina Spirit (Protonico)'s high-profile positive test following his GI Kentucky Derby victory two weeks ago tumbled the sport into turmoil, Finley said he believes the newly passed Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act will help to reassure and attract new investors.

“The last week has been turbulent, but up until then, I think people were really starting to look at the Horse Racing Integrity Act as something that in a short period of time is really going to help our business,” Finley said. “I just ask everyone in the horse business to get behind it because I think it will attract people and investors. I think it will present all of us a level playing field. I've always been a big fan of the Horse Racing Integrity Act, but especially now. I think we all need to get behind it and try to push it across the line.”

Finley did his bidding standing at the back of the pavilion. Just a few rows up, Medina Spirit's owner Amr Zedan was sitting with advisors Gary Young and Charlie Boden, as well as lawyer Clark Brewster. Zedan would ultimately bow out of the bidding and Finley said the difference was the bidding power inherent in partnerships.

“This is our 30th year, so we've been doing this a long time and you can't be intimidated when you walk onto a sales ground,” Finley said of the bidding war. “If you do, you're going to get intimidated very quickly. Because there is a lot of money. But I think that's the power of the partnership–the ability to make some calls and tell people, 'Look I have a very good prospect. I think he could be a special horse. And I'd love for you to take a part of him.' And I think this is one of those horses.”

For his part Woods, who also consigned the day's second-highest priced juvenile, was asked to define his 'proper horse' observation.

“A proper horse is a horse who has all the attributes of being a very good horse, both mentally and physically,” Woods said. “The way they move and the way they handle themselves. When you saw this horse up here in the back ring, he'd walk beside you without a shank on him. He's been like that since he came to us. Every time we worked him, we wished they were all like that.”

Clay purchased the juvenile's unraced dam Stormy Welcome (Storm Cat) for $600,000 as a 9-year-old at the 2015 Keeneland November sale. The mare, who is also the dam of stakes-placed Welcoming (Tapit), is a half-sister to Guest House (Ghostzapper), the dam of graded winner Guest Suite (Quality Road). The colt's third dam is Weekend Surprise (Secretariat), dam of A.P. Indy and Summer Squall.

Alpha Delta traditionally offers most of his foal crop at the yearling sales, but the decision was made to give this colt more time to mature last fall.

“This horse was very backward as a yearling and they weren't happy with the way he was coming into the sale, so they scratched him,” Woods said. “Then when they were giving him time, they said give him a lot of time. We discussed it and decided we'd go to the Timonium sale. He was always pointed for Timonium and it was a great plan because it came together.”

Of the colt's monster bullet work, Woods added, “I was nervous because I expected him to work really, really good. And it doesn't always happen, as you well know. But he nailed it and he galloped out fantastic. When I came back and watched the video, I couldn't believe it. He's the best video I've had on a horse in five or six years. I couldn't stop watching it. He just nailed it. And that's why he brought what he brought.”

Malibu Moon Colt Heads West

A colt by Malibu Moon (hip 164), who worked the furlong in a co-bullet :10 flat during last week's under-tack preview, will be joining the Southern California barn of trainer Simon Callaghan after selling for $700,000 to bloodstock agents Alex Elliott and Ben McElroy. The two agents were bidding on behalf of a partnership.

“He was the horse we really honed in on,” Elliott said. “It's an old line, but when they tick all the boxes and jump through all the hoops, you know they are good horses. He looks like he can take us all the way.”

Hip 164 is a son of the unraced Seeking Atlantis (Seeking the Gold) and is a half-brother to graded placed Seeking Her Glory (Giant's Causeway). His second dam is multiple graded winner Atlantic Ocean (Stormy Atlantic).

“For a big horse on a tight track like this, he was so smooth and he had a great gallop out,” Elliott said. “He's a very hard horse to fault. He was an absolute king in the back ring. We are both delighted to get him. Ben and I work together here and in Europe, so it's good to hook up with him and get a horse that we wanted.”

Bred by Castleton Lyons and Kilboy Estate, the colt was consigned by Eddie Woods on behalf of Bill Harrigan's Miacomet Farm, which purchased him privately after he RNA'd for $135,000 at Keeneland last year.

“He was a beautiful colt,” Harrigan said of the colt's appeal last year. “I liked everything about him then. I was surprised that he RNA'd and the next day I bought him. But that horse has an exceptional demeanor. He has a tremendous stride and he's very athletic and smooth.”

Asked if he was surprised by the big colt's bullet work, Harrigan said, “Not really. We don't ask them to go that fast at Payson Park, but he had shown us that he was very talented.”

Classic Empire Filly Draws a Crowd

Bloodstock agent Jacob West got the best of a bidding war to acquire a New York-bred filly from the first crop of champion Classic Empire (hip 72) for $550,000 on behalf of Robert and Lawana Low Monday in Timonium. The bay filly, who worked an eighth of a mile last week in :10 1/5, was consigned by Sequel Bloodstock on behalf of breeders Chester and Mary Broman. Out of Newbie (Bernardini), she is a half-sister to multiple stakes winner Newly Minted (Central Banker).

“She's a nice filly who breezed well on this track here,” West said. “This filly breezed incredibly quick here and she galloped out big. She did it on the racetrack that's not the easiest to do that on. The New York-bred status was just an added bonus. She could have been foaled on the moon and we would have bought her. She is a beautiful filly. She'll go to Todd [Pletcher] and we'll keep our fingers crossed.”

The Lows have been among the many owners who have had success with Bernardini as a broodmare sire. The couple campaign GI Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational S. winner Colonel Liam (Liam's Map) and Friday's GIII Allaire DuPont Distaff winner Spice is Nice (Curlin).

“We have had luck buying out of Bernardini mares,” West said. “We have two graded stakes winners this year.”

Hip 72 is the highest-priced juvenile so far for Classic Empire, who won the 2016 GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile and returned in 2017 to win the GI Arkansas Derby and finish second in the GI Preakness S. The Coolmore stallion was represented by a $450,000 colt at OBS April and a pair of $410,000 juveniles.

“He was an incredible racehorse himself, so it should be no surprise that he is getting good-looking stock,” West said. “And now we see them on the track at the 2-year-old sales. It's not a surprise that they are fitting the bill of what we are looking for. It's not very often you are champion 2-year-old and come back and win a big graded stakes at three like that. [Trainer] Mark Casse was always very high on him. You have a lot of confidence when you can buy one like that.”

Sequel Bloodstock's Becky Thomas has plenty of experience with the filly's family.

“We're incredibly happy with that result,” Thomas said. “We are happy with the trainer and the buyers. I have trained for Mr. Broman for a long time and been part of his program. I trained the mother and I have the family. This filly was beautiful and fast and smart.”

Broman, a major player in the New York breeding industry for decades, began aggressively selling three years ago as part of what he called, “estate planning.” The planning included the $2-million OBS March topper Chestertown (Tapit) in 2019.

“Mr. Broman started doing his estate planning very aggressively a couple of years ago,” Thomas said. “He's kind of relaxed a bit. He is enjoying participating in the New York program and participating in breeding. Even though he may race a horse or two, he's trying to keep the numbers to where it makes a little better sense for him. We will have some horses to sell for him as yearlings and some as 2-year-olds. I think he is enjoying a different kind of action. And he will continue to race, too.”

Rosenblum Secures Munnings Colt

Sheila Rosenblum, bidding alongside bloodstock agent Kerri Radcliffe, secured a colt by Munnings (hip 260) for $460,000 late in Monday's first session of the Midlantic sale. Out of Tweet (Medaglia d'Oro), the dark bay worked a co-bullet furlong in :10 flat. He was consigned by Ciaran Dunne's Wavertree Stables. Dunne purchased the colt for $55,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale.

“We had our eye on him from the day he breezed,” Radcliffe said. “After he breezed, they couldn't pull him up. And Munnings is flying right now.”

Rosenblum said the colt would be trained by Steve Asmussen.

“He was at the top of our list,” Rosenblum said before adding with a laugh, “There was a Quality Road that was quite nice, too, but my financial brains took over.”

Asked if she was done shopping, Rosenblum said, “We don't know yet.”

Besecker Stays Busy at Fasig Midlantic

Prolific owner Joe Besecker, who was busy on both sides of the ledger early during Monday's first session of the Midlantic sale, capped a blitzkrieg buying spree with the $425,000 purchase of a son of Gormley (hip 56).

“When I saw this horse yesterday, I was there for about 45 minutes, and it's a very bad thing to fall in a horse, but I fell in love with this horse,” Besecker said. “Luckily, I will have some partners on him. This is way above my pay grade. I usually stay in the middle range. But I have a couple of partners and we decided we wanted to get one–ONE–expensive horse.”

The chestnut colt, from the first crop of GI Santa Anita Derby winner Gormley, is out of Mott N Hester (Super Saver) and is a half-brother to stakes placed Nicky Scissors (Mission Impazible). He breezed a furlong last week in :10 1/5 for consignor Robert Brewer. Ronnie Edmondson purchased the chestnut for $140,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale. He had sold for $77,000 at the Keeneland January sale.

“We vetted him twice, we had two or three vets on him,” Besecker said. “He's a late foal and he looks like a 3-year-old. I thought personally–I don't care what any of these other horses sell for–I will tell you in the last three years going to Kentucky, going to Florida, to my eye and I'm not really good at it, but to my eye that was the best looking horse I've seen in three years.”

Asked who would train the youngster, Besecker said, “I just had four of my trainers come up to me. We have to talk about it.”

Hip 56 was the ninth purchase of the young sale for Besecker. He paid $67,000 for a colt by Not This Time (hip 2) and $60,000 for a filly by Holy Boss (hip 55). He also sold a filly by Goldencents (hip 7)–purchased for $15,000 at last year's Fasig Midlantic October Sale–for $110,000 to bloodstock agent Larry Zap.

“I'm done for a little bit,” Besecker said. “We had that run and I sold one earlier today for a lot more than I thought I would. So I have to add it all up. I've blown my budget, so I need to see if I want to partner on one or two of these others.”

“A little bit,” didn't last all that long, as Besecker returned later in the session to secure an additional four juveniles. He ultimately signed for 13 head for a total of $859,000 and an average of $66,077.

Keen Purchase for Venosa

Steve Venosa may be buying more yearlings in the name of his young son Dylan in the future after scoring a second big pinhooking score of the spring with a colt purchased last fall in the name of Big D Stables. Venosa purchased a colt from the first crop of GI Travers S. winner Keen Ice (hip 171) for $57,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton October sale and sold the juvenile Monday in Timonium for $225,000 to the bid of Gervais Racing and West Point Thoroughbreds.

“I bought him out of the October sale,” Venosa said of the colt. “He was selling up at the tents, and I wasn't specifically looking for that sire, but I saw him in a group of horses and he really stood out.”

The chestnut colt is out of Sheisinitttowinit (Student Council) and Venosa admitted the pedigree had him momentarily hesitating last fall.

“I opened my catalogue and cocked my head a little bit and turned the page a couple times,” Venosa said. “And then I closed the book and said, 'You know what, I like the horse.' We had left the sale and we were in the car coming back from the airport and I said, one more bid.”

Of the colt's progress as a 2-year-old, Venosa said, “He's a big horse, but he's very light on his feet and very athletic for a horse that size. He is still kind of filling out in the right way. That's why we held him back for the later sale.”

Dylan Venosa's 2021 pinhooking successes also include a colt by Valiant Minister who sold for $350,000 following a bullet :20 3/5 work at the OBS Spring Sale. The colt had been a $40,000 purchase at last year's OBS October sale.

“He's had a great year,” Venosa said of his son's success. “I think when I go back, I'm going to have to hit him up for a loan.”

Asked if the profits would be going into a college fund, Venosa quipped, “College fund? He might be able to buy a college after the year he's had.”

Gun Runner Colt a Score for Pike

Champion Gun Runner is off to a flyer with his first crop to hit the racetrack, already represented by a pair of winners, and consignor Al Pike capitalized on the stallion's quick start when selling a colt (hip 160) for $225,000 to Kim Valerio, agent for DJ Stables, Monday in Timonium. Pike had purchased the youngster for $45,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton October sale.

“He was a Gun Runner with a lot of family,” Pike said of the colt's appeal last fall. “Tom Hamm from Three Chimneys contacted me when I was in the back ring and explained to me he was a foal share, which piqued my interest. So I went up there to see what he would sell for and I was fortunate enough to buy him.”

The Midlantic sale wasn't originally in the cards for the colt, who is out of Secret Jewel (Bernardini), a half-sister to GI Breeders' Cup F/M Turf winner Shared Account, the dam of GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies winner and 'TDN Rising Star' Sharing (Speightstown).

“I bought him with the intention of taking him to Texas,” Pike said. “I thought he'd be a really nice horse to take to Texas and maybe top the sale there. But then we got to training him and we liked him enough to think we could bring him up here to be competitive here. And he showed up and did his job, so we were very happy.”

The colt worked a furlong in :10 2/5 during last week's under-tack preview. Since his purchase last year, his half-sister Twenty Carat (Into Mischief) won the Apr. 2 GIII Beaumont S.

“On the racetrack, he thinks he is Godzilla,” Pike said. “The farther he goes, the better he gets. And I think that's what attracted a lot of people to him. He just looked like he could keep going and going. I think he has a bright future.”

Of Gun Runner's early success, Pike added, “I think we all didn't know what to think about them, but they've come out running and everyone seems to be very excited about them. And he had a timely update, so that helped a lot, too.”

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Goffs Looks To “Rebuild” In 2021

One year on from the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, each and every individual in the racing and bloodstock realms has been faced with decisions they never wanted to, or dreamed they would have to, make. Those sentiments certainly ring true for the board and management team at Goffs. Faced with enduring national lockdowns and quarantine measures far more strict than those experienced by its competitors and clientele across borders, the Irish auction house found itself constantly returning to the drawing board throughout 2020 and into 2021. A measure of the immense challenges Goffs faced is borne out in the reality that, since the pandemic hit on the heels of its 2020 February Sale, the company has held just one sale as planned, on its original date at its Co. Kildare headquarters.

“Exactly this time last year, the pandemic was just starting but the Cheltenham Festival hadn't happened yet and there was no restriction on moving,” recalled Henry Beeby, chief executive of Goffs Group, which also encompasses Goffs UK headquartered in Doncaster. “We understood it was serious, but I don't think any of us understood how serious it was and how far-reaching its effects would be.”

Beeby said the first revision the company was forced to make was with regards to its annual budget.

“Our financial year is April to March,” he said. “So around this time of year we're signing off on budgets for the next financial year. We had prepared a budget for Goffs for the next year and when the pandemic really hit–so about two or three weeks from now [a year ago]–we said, 'forget that, this is going to be a very different year.' None of us, though, believed it would be as challenging, as difficult, as long-lasting, as far-reaching and as deep as it has proved to be. And it's obviously still not over.

“When we realized that it was serious I essentially took the view, and the Goffs board took the view, that this was a year for surviving, and our primary goal was to survive the 12 months without recourse to outside assistance from shareholders or banks. We set about a rationalization program and a cost-cutting exercise to protect the business as much as we could.”

“The keyword there was survival. The second keyword was adaptability,” Beeby continued. “It was to never say never to anything. To rule nothing in and nothing out. And the usual rules of engagement, whereby we knew we were having a sale on a certain date, it quickly became obvious that wasn't the case for the time being. The Irish government took a very conservative and cautious approach and I've said to many people I don't think it's for any of us in any country to criticize their approach. You elect your leaders and your leaders make their decisions hopefully by having more information than we have. And being a small island, it was imperative that the Irish government protected the population of Ireland as much as they could.”

Survival and Adaptability

One of the first steps of adaptability for survival for Goffs was putting competition to the side and working for the greater benefit of vendors and purchasers with its key rivals, Arqana and Tattersalls.

“The first sales we had were the breeze-up sales,” Beeby said. “We worked with Arqana and we identified quickly that with most of the breeze-up vendors being based in Ireland, we thought we might have to move the Doncaster breeze-up to Ireland. That wasn't then necessary, but we realized it was going to be virtually impossible for Arqana to hold their breeze-up. So I made contact with Eric Hoyeau and we offered to host their sale in Doncaster, which we did. That suited them and it definitely helped us as well because it meant people could come to one place for two very different sales in the same category but two very good sales with strong selling points. I think we both benefitted from that.

“At the same time we were coordinating everything with Tattersalls and I was in contact with Edmond Mahony as my opposite number on a very regular basis. In a normal year we would liaise properly two or three times a year on things like sales dates and veterinary matters or anything that might pop up. But in the last 12 months I've spoken with Edmond far more than I normally would. We're very competitive and we think that's good for the market, but we decided very quickly that our usual rivalries should be put to one side. We obviously wanted to do the best for our own organizations, but we recognized that a collaborative approach to a very difficult situation was absolutely in the best interest of not just Goffs and Tattersalls but of the entire British and Irish bloodstock industry.”

In August, Goffs was at last able to hold a live sale at Kill Paddocks when it staged its Land Rover sale, delayed from June. Beeby paid credit to Horse Racing Ireland's Brian Kavanagh for his role is making that happen.

“We got enormous help from Horse Racing Ireland, and Brian Kavanagh in particular who had a direct link into the department of health and agriculture,” he explained. “HRI have enormous credibility with government, and that's why we work so closely with HRI. We sought to mirror the protocols that are in place at Irish racecourses at our sales. We took a lot of guidance from HRI and Brian and his team on that and they were very helpful.”

“We were able to hold the [Land Rover] sale in a safe and compliant way and it actually exceeded expectations,” Beeby continued. “It was very disappointing that we couldn't have any UK buyers in for that sale but still they engaged online and that's been one of the positives out of the last year, the advent of Goffs Online, which has become an excellent platform. The most credit in the Goffs team goes to Michael Orton, because he did all the technical work on it and was assisted by the likes of Nick Nugent and Joey Cullen. But Michael did a great job and produced a platform that has been universally praised for its ease of use. We've sold over €8-million worth of horses on the platform either via specific timed or live online sales or online where people haven't been able to attend live sales. That's business that otherwise wouldn't have been attainable.”

“It Didn't Work. It Was Disappointing”

The Goffs team, unfortunately, wasn't able to bask in the relief of a successful sale for long before it was faced with some difficult decisions regarding its flagship Orby Yearling Sale. Strict quarantine protocols for visitors to Ireland threatened to throw a wrench into the jam-packed international yearling sale calendar, and when speaking with Beeby about the company's choice to move the Orby-and the Sportsman's Yearling Sale–to Doncaster, one is left with no doubt that it wasn't only a complicated business decision, but an excruciating personal one. “The Orby Sale's traditional title is the Irish National Yearling Sale,” Beeby said. “It's a huge event in the bloodstock world, a major European yearling sale, but to the country of Ireland and Irish bloodstock it's our flagship event. For Goffs, it's our most high-profile and highest-earning sale, and it was a very difficult decision to move it. There were suggestions from some that we should move it to Newmarket and Tattersalls, and Edmond [Mahony] very kindly said he would accommodate the two-day Orby sale-he wouldn't be able to accommodate the Sportsman's Sale in Newmarket, and there were some people who thought we should have taken that option. I think, with the benefit of hindsight, there is no doubt there were some people who thought we made a mistake by not going to Newmarket when we couldn't hold it in Ireland. We'll never know. I know some people felt that was an error, and I'm sorry people felt let down.”

After seven consecutive years with an average of €100,000-plus and a seven-figure top lot, the 2021 Orby Sale at Doncaster-which also suffered the blow of a few high-profile withdrawals-returned an average of £67,981 (down 35% from 2019) and a median of £47,000 (-18%) from 311 yearlings sold, with a top price of £450,000. The aggregate, at £21,142,000, was down 44%.

“History tells us the Orby Sale was not a success,” Beeby said. “Irrelative to previous very vibrant renewals of the Orby Sale, it didn't return the trade that we're used to. Some vendors were very disappointed and upset and I completely understand that. It was a very hard time for everybody and it was very upsetting primarily for the vendors but also for us. On a personal basis, it broke my heart. In our world, we take it very seriously–when someone gives us a quality horse they're placing a lot of trust in us and they're relying on us to do a good job. And there was no doubt that the results were not up to par. I think as well the Orby catalogue suffered from Covid because some people took the decision when they were entering and the sale was still going to be in Ireland, to sell in England instead. So maybe our catalogue wasn't quite what it normally was, and some buyers told us that.

“It was an imperfect storm and the Orby sale was the one major catastrophic disappointment for us. I've rarely been as distraught at a sale as I was at that one and I think I was only bearing the feelings of a lot of our vendors.”

As always, Beeby wore his love for Goffs and the bloodstock industry on his sleeve.

“I am passionate about it,” he said. “This is my entire life. I always laugh when I tell people I'm the most boring man in the world. I do two things: I spend time with my family and I work. And I'm very lucky that I have a job that isn't a job, it's a way of life and I adore it and I care about it deeply. Normally there are far more good days than bad days. Of course I like to sell a horse that makes a top price and of course I like to attract a Galileo yearling that makes €3-million. But there's a huge sense of pride in getting €100,000 for a horse that the vendor thought might get €60,000 or €70,000. And there's equal pride in getting €10,000 for a horse that somebody thinks might have made €5,000. I still get a buzz from it, I still care about it. I'd be lying if I said I take everything and just roll and nothing gets to me. It does get to me. I think about it all the time.

“Where I'm very lucky is that I work with very good people. I'm supported by a very good board chaired by Eimear Mulhern, and senior colleagues like Nick Nugent and Rae Lawless and across in the UK Tim Kent and the team there. They're good people and we're all working towards a common goal.”

Lessons Learned

So, with the benefit of hindsight, what would Beeby change about the way decisions were made around the 2020 Orby Sale, or the way it was conducted?

“Probably I would have liaised more closely with more people,” he said. “I think there was a feeling that we ploughed on regardless of what some people thought and that's unfortunate. It saddens me; that wasn't the case. We did what we did because we thought it was the right thing to do. There are polarized opinions; some people say, 'you did the best you could, that was just the way it was and it wouldn't have made a difference.' Some people are of the view that we should have taken different decisions. And they could be right, but they might not be. We'll never know. I hope we're not ever placed in the same position. But I think some people felt we didn't listen and I hate that people think that. I don't think that is the case, but the fact that people think that demonstrates that we were giving that vibe and it therefore behooves me and us going forward to ensure that people feel better engaged.

“Goffs has 600 shareholders, and when the modern-day Goffs moved from Dublin to Kildare in 1975 a lot of Irish breeders bought shares in the company, and there is still that sense that Goffs is there entirely to serve the Irish breeder, which it is. So I think if there was any feeling that we hadn't listened, that was very unfortunate and it's something we are addressing. Would it have changed anything? I don't know. But it might have brought more people with us and helped them understand better.”

Beeby continued, “We are everybody's servant and nobody's master. Auction houses exist to serve the industry. We work for both vendor and purchaser and we have to deliver for both of them. When they're happy, we're happy. When they're upset, which was the case with a number of people at the Orby Sale, there is nothing good in it for me. We don't look back and think, 'well, we're alright, we hit a turnover target.' It doesn't work like that. If there is a vendor that's unhappy, I'm unhappy, because I work for them.”

A top priority for team Goffs in 2021 is to restore the lustre of the Orby, and that will include zeroing in on the quality that buyers at such a sale deserve and demand.

“I think we're looking to tighten the numbers and take a very strong view on selection with vendors,” Beeby said. “If I come to Kentucky and talk to a trainer and say, 'you really need to come to the Orby Sale,' we need to be able to make it worth their while and say there will be two days of real quality there. It isn't about us telling the vendors what to do, it's about us persuading breeders, vendors, pinhookers and consignors to let us have a share of their quality. I think we'll tighten numbers, and it'll be about selecting each horse on its merits.”

Fortunately for Goffs, vendors and purchasers alike, there was some good news following the Orby: the Goffs Autumn Yearling and Horses-In-Training Sales both returned vibrant trade despite being forced to a strictly online format due to lockdown measures. The December National Hunt Sale was staged live and on its original date and saw figures consolidated from the year prior. The November Foal and Breeding Stock Sales-moved to mid-December to accommodate those needing to serve quarantine-saw minor declines in trade but returned results in line with expectations in an unprecedented year.

The challenges for Goffs and Irish vendors continue into 2021. Goffs just last week conducted the foal (short yearling) session of its February Sale; it was delayed in hopes of staging it live, but ultimately it was forced online. Owners of 84 foals opted to offer them online rather than prevail until the yearling sales-to which Goffs offered to re-direct them free of charge–and the virtual format facilitated sales for 35 of them.

Rebuilding

Now, with the most tumultuous year in its history behind it, Goffs is back in the position of planning for its next fiscal year. If the plans for 2020 became survival and adaptability, what are the goals for 2021?

“I'm hoping it's to rebuild,” Beeby said. “It might not happen in a hurry; we're still feeling quite cautious. We have to see this go the right way and we have to get to May and June and see things really start to open up again, not just in Ireland but in Britain and the United States and across the world.

“The watch words would of course be survival with a bit of caution, but we are looking to grow and adapt and try to rebuild, particularly with the Orby Sale. We accept last year didn't go well. I'm not shying away from that. My modus operandi is normally to spin everything as positive as possible. I'm not going to do that with last year's Orby sale. It didn't work, it was disappointing, and I'd be certainly naive and probably a bit stupid to try to say it was fine. It wasn't good, but there were reasons for that, largely because of Covid. But if you look back at Orby, every year since 2012 or 2013 we'd had a six-figure average and a seven-figure top price and clearance rates of a minimum 84% and up to 89%. That's what the Orby is all about: consigning a concise, two-day catalogue of quality, well-bred, good-looking potential racehorses of note. That's what our goal is for this year alongside all our other sales. That's the sale we have to rebuild the most, because it was the one that was most disappointing. We have to get the faith and trust back of the breeders that felt let down last year that didn't have a successful sale, and we have to persuade as lightly and gently but as eloquently as we can that there were reasons for last year. Give us a chance, put your trust in us and we will deliver for you.

“So the watchwords for 2021 would be a bit of survival and certainly some adaptability again, and then adding a third word, which is rebuilding.”

With level five lockdown restrictions in Ireland recently extended through Easter it would be understandable should the bloodstock community be feeling anxious. Beeby said he can assure his team is doing everything in their power to get the sales back to Kill Paddocks.

“We'll be working hand-in-glove with Brian Kavanagh and all the people at HRI and ITM and everybody in Goffs and everybody we can to ensure sales will be held in Kildare this year,” he said. “We have protocols that are ready to be enhanced, evolved and developed to ensure that we can bring in overseas buyers in a safe and compliant way. We were able for our November Foal and Breeding Stock Sales [held in December] and our December National Hunt Sale to bring in some buyers from overseas-primarily the UK in a strictly controlled way; they had to stay in one place, they had to use certain transport. And I think it went well. There were no issues with it. As long as the vaccination program continues to [progress] and this current lockdown has the desired effect, we are strongly of the belief that we can evolve those protocols and improve them so that we can invite people from overseas to come to the sales-primarily the Land Rover sale in June, so we can have British buyers in, and then looking forward to the Orby Sale, buyers from places like the U.S., Australasia and across Europe and Britain. That's why it's been important to work with Brian and HRI. We're not going to take any risks on that. Brian has been an enormous help and I cannot stress enough how much it's helped to have HRI working with us and the contacts and credibility they have with government. We've found government completely understand; they have to balance risk with economic factors and we've found them to be helpful, understanding, and proactive.”

“If I had to give a message to people in the business, I'd just say I'm grateful that people continue to support us,” Beeby said. “We're grateful for the fact that people have accepted we're doing our best. We had a lot of decisions to make last year and we got most of them right. I accept we probably got some of them wrong. I'm sorry for the mistakes we made but I'm grateful for the support and for the fact that people continue to believe in us. I hope we can continue to rely on their support and their belief. My line is always, 'we're nothing without the horses.' So we'd just say to Irish breeders, 'give us your horses, we'll give you everything we've got.' We have a good track record and normally we prove your trust was well-placed and we hope we can rely on it going forward.”

When at last live sales do return to Kildare with international participants in place, there will be possibly no one happier than Beeby.

“There was a journalist about 25 years ago, I think her name was Judith Oliver, and she said she had a nickname for me once,” he recalled. “I asked, 'what is it?' She said, 'it's “Thrilled”, because Henry Beeby is always “thrilled.”' We were going through a good run and every time I said I was thrilled with the sale. That's what I want to get back to, is being thrilled, because if we're happy it means all our clients are happy.

“I want to be back in the ring and looking people in the eye and seeing them thinking about it and listening to the horse walking around and people craning to see who is bidding. I can't wait to get back to that. That's what I live for.”

The post Goffs Looks To “Rebuild” In 2021 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Pompa Dispersal Provides More Fireworks As KEEJAN Concludes

by Jessica Martini & Christie DeBernardis

The Keeneland January Horses of All Ages Sale, propelled by a pair of power-packed dispersals and held in the shadow of the ongoing global pandemic, concluded its four-day run Thursday in Lexington. The dispersal of the Estate of the late Paul Pompa, Jr., which, along with the Sam-Son broodmare dispersal dominated much of Tuesday’s action, provided the auction with one last round of fireworks late in the day Thursday with a bevy of high-priced racehorse prospects. Leading the way was Carillo (Union Rags) (hip 1566) who sold for $875,000 to bloodstock agent Lauren Carlisle, bidding on behalf of an undisclosed client. Tabbed a ‘TDN Rising Star’ just a week ago in his winning debut for trainer Chad Brown, the sophomore will be joining the barn of trainer Tom Amoss. West Point Thoroughbreds and D J Stable teamed up to purchase graded stakes winner Turned Aside (American Pharoah) (hip 1563) for $725,000. That 4-year-old colt is expected to join the barn of trainer Mark Casse.

“The January sale of 2021 went off very, very well,” said Keeneland’s Director of Sales Operations Geoffrey Russell. “We appreciate the trust given to us by the people who had dispersals. Mr. Pompa’s racehorses today sold very well, which we expected. They were well-received in the marketplace. Overall, I thought the sale went very well.”

Over the course of four days, Keeneland sold 963 horses for a total of $45,522,100. The average was $47,271 and the median was $15,000. Forty-four horses sold for $200,000 or over.

During the five-day 2020 January sale, 1,050 horses sold for $40,453,300. The average was $38,527 and the median was $13,000. Forty-two horses sold for $200,000 or over a year ago, led by the $640,000 broodmare prospect Enaya Alrabb (Uncle Mo).

“The continued stability of the market is a testament to the hard work of all our sales participants, who have adjusted their operations and their expectations to meet the challenges of this unprecedented time,” Keeneland President, CEO and Interim Head of Sales Shannon Arvin said.

Held as it was in the midst of a pandemic and the ensuing travel restrictions and economic uncertainties, consignors seemed content just to be holding an auction.

“Whether we like it or not, we are still in the middle of a pandemic,” said Hunter Valley Farm’s Adrian Regan. “And to be having a horse sale, one, is fantastic and then to have a market is even better. We wouldn’t be complaining about the state of the market considering what is going on in the world.”

Hunter Valley sold the top-priced yearling of the auction and enjoyed strong Book 1 results, but Regan acknowledged demand fell off in Book 2.

“We would be slightly biased about how it all went in Book 1 for us because it was probably our best January sale ever really,” Regan said. “We felt going over there, we had good stock for Book 1. We were surprised by the amount of people that were there and the amount of views we had at the barn on Saturday and Sunday. In saying that, the market is very polarized still. Everybody seems to be landing on the same horse. When we got to Book 2, it was tough enough going. The middle to lower market is tough.”

As consignors adjusted expectations to account for the new realities of the market, the results seemed to follow.

“All things considered, I think it was a very fair market,” said Denali Stud’s Conrad Bandoroff. “We had a near 100% clearance rate. I think if you had realistic expectations going up there, you were able to get horses moved at all levels. There seemed like there were willing buyers at every segment of the market. That is comforting and encouraging to see. If you went up there with a horse, who is maybe a lower-tier horse, you were able to get them moved. If you had a horse with veterinary issues or by an off-flavor sire, you were hoping you were going to get a bid and in most cases you did. The market for mares continued to have some strength and resiliency and surprise me. We had a few mares that either had a little age on them or had a few foals and I was pleasantly surprised that there was appetite for those kind of mares. I think about two years ago, you were struggling to recoup your stud fee with those mares, so to see people willing to buy them and to do so at the upper end of our appraisal value, was encouraging.”

Bloodstock agent Michael Slezak, buying on behalf of various New York clients, purchased seven horses for prices from $13,000 to $55,000. He said he was happy with the horses he was able to get bought at reasonable prices.

“My mindset is to always find bargain at any price range,” Slezak said after concluding his bidding at the auction Thursday afternoon. “After I buy a horse, I want to feel like there is a chance someone is going to call 9-1-1 and report a robbery. That’s my buying philosophy. And I feel like I did that repeatedly at this sale. I did not do that in November. I had a hard time in November. I shopped exclusively for mares and in November I found that the mares that I liked were all going a little bit higher than I wanted them to, based on what I was expecting going in. I thought it was going to be a down market in November. I don’t know if a lot of people would have called it a strong market, but I didn’t want to pay that much for some of these mares.”

Slezak said that he found buyers more forgiving with less commercial covering sires than he had experienced at past sales.

“There were some mares in this sale who were in foal to sires I did not consider fashionable–maybe useful sires–and they were going to $30,000 or $40,000, sometimes higher than that,” Slezak said. “I’ve always found that people are shopping for the covering sire first and foremost. The prevailing philosophy is ‘be in foal to something sexy or you’re doomed.’ But at this particular sale, January 2021, it seemed like if you had a beautiful page or a couple of interesting things in the pipeline, people were willing to overlook an unsexy covering stallion. Which surprised me a little bit.”

Internet Bidding Continues to Grow

The January sale was the third auction at which Keeneland offered buyers the chance to bid online. The innovation, originally necessitated by the pandemic, continues to gain in popularity. A total of 1,258 bids were received over the internet during the four days, with 109 horses sold online for gross receipts of $3,106,900.

“It did prove popular once again,” Arvin said of the internet bidding. “That technology is important in 2021 and beyond.”

Russell added he was looking forward to welcoming crowds back to the normally bustling Keeneland sales pavilion.

“While we appreciate the ability to offer internet bidding for people who can’t be here, we are looking forward to the day when we can welcome everybody back to Keeneland,” he said. “We prefer them to be here. We enjoy their company and the hustle and the bustle it provides.”

Dispersals Draw a Crowd

Tuesday’s second session of the auction was dominated by the dispersals of Sam-Son Farm and the estate of the late Paul Pompa, Jr. The two dispersals shared the co-top price of the auction, with Sam-Son Farm’s Danceforthecause (Giant’s Causeway) (hip 587) selling for $925,000 to Gainesway Farm and Peter Brant’s White Birch Farm paying that same amount for Regal Glory (Animal Kingdom) (hip 587) from the Pompa dispersal. Eleven horses sold for $500,000 or over at the January sale and all were from the two dispersals.

A total of 21 Sam-Son broodmares sold for $6,733,000 and an average of $320,619.

“Mr. Samuel started Sam-Son Farm over 50 years ago and a lot of time and effort has been made by the operation in developing these strong families,” Russell said. “They very rarely get put on the public marketplace, so it was an opportunity for major breeders to get into those families. It’s a great testament to them and to the longevity of the operation.”

The Pompa dispersal, handled by Lane’s End Farm, was responsible for the top six offerings during Thursday’s final session of the sale. Overall, 38 horses from the late owner’s dispersal grossed $6,790,200 for an average of $178,689.

“The Sam-Son and Pompa dispersals are the legacies of two wonderful operations, and they infused a lot of positive energy into the January sale,” Arvin said. “Dispersals are always bittersweet, but we are honored that their families and connections entrusted Keeneland to present these dispersals and showcase their excellence.”

Lane’s End Farm was the auction’s leading consignor by gross, with 78 head sold for $8,741,200. Sam-Son Farm led consignors by average.

Quality Yearlings Remain In Demand

The demand for quality short yearlings remained strong, with a colt by Munnings bringing top price of $475,000 from Larry Best’s OXO Equine LLC during the Monday’s first session of the auction. The yearling was consigned by Hunter Valley Farm.

“We were surprised to see him get the amount he made in the end,” admitted Hunter Valley’s Adrian Regan. “It was the perfect storm. Two of the biggest players in town ended up battling for him. He was a very, very good horse.”

Ocala horseman Nick de Meric was active in the yearling market, purchasing eight horses on behalf of an undisclosed client.

“I would say there was a little bit less competition than we had in November,” de Meric said of the bidding on yearlings. “It is still never easy to buy the ones you want, but we did land a few of our top picks, which was difficult to do in November because it seemed like people were lining up for those horses.”

During the four-day January sale, 404 short yearlings sold for $14,565,600. The average was $36,053 and the median was $14,500.

In 2020, 462 short yearlings sold prior to the inclusion of post-sale transactions for $17,677,200. The average was $38,262 and the median was $13,000. A colt by Uncle Mo was the auction’s top-priced yearling at $400,000. That colt resold for $550,000 at last year’s Keeneland September sale.

Carillo a Star in the Sales Ring As Well

It was just a week ago that Carillo (Union Rags) was tabbed a ‘TDN Rising Star’ following a gritty debut victory at Aqueduct for trainer Chad Brown. He followed that effort with a star turn in the sales ring at Keeneland Thursday, selling for a session-topping $875,000 to the bid of bloodstock agent Lauren Carlisle. Carlisle declined to name the client for whom she was buying, but said the Paul Pompa homebred will now head south to the New Orleans winter base of trainer Tom Amoss.

The agent agreed Carillo’s debut (video) was a big draw.

“He didn’t break great, got pinched at the start and took a ton of dirt during the race and made a middle move pretty impressively,” she said. “Obviously, when he got in the clear, he won pretty easily. At the beginning of the race, it didn’t look like he had a shot and he definitely surprised, I’m sure, everyone being a first-time starter. To me that showed his raw talent that he was able to overcome that.”

Pompa purchased Carillo’s unraced dam Proper Mad (Bernardini), with the future Rising Star in utero, for $185,000 at the 2017 Keeneland November sale. The yearling’s third dam is Private Status (Alydar), dam of GI Kentucky Oaks winner Secret Status.

“For just running last week and then coming on a van from New York for 12 hours, I thought he looked pretty good,” Carlisle said of her impressions of the colt at the sales barn. “He is a good-sized colt and fit. I would expect nothing less coming from Chad. He does a great job.”

Of Carillo’s session-topping price, Carlisle said, “When you are shopping for a 3-year-old colt before the Derby who broke his maiden like that, they are not going to be cheap. We knew that. You always want to buy them for less when you are at a live auction, but I wasn’t entirely surprised by the price.”

Peter Brant’s White Birch Farm purchased Proper Mad for $260,000 during Tuesday’s session of the Keeneland January sale.

Turned Aside A Hot Commodity at KEEJAN

Talented turf sprinter Turned Aside (American Pharoah) proved quite popular (as expected) at Keeneland Thursday, hammering for $725,000 after a spirited round of bidding. David Ingordo signed the ticket on Hip 1563 on behalf of a partnership between West Point Thoroughbreds and D J Stable.

“What a lovely horse,” West Point’s Terry Finley said. “We are partners with D J Stable. This is the second horse that we’ve bought together. We bought a newly turned 3-year-old right before the turn of the year. They are wonderful people.”

Finley continued, “He will go to Mark Casse. When I said to Mark that he was a beautiful horse, he said, ‘I know. I know. He beat me several times in the last year.’ We are very excited.”

Consigned by Lane’s End as part of the complete dispersal of the Estate of the late Paul Pompa, Jr., Turned Aside captured two of his five starts during his 2019 juvenile campaign and kicked off 2020 with a second in the Sir Cat S. at Belmont in June. A decisive winner of the GIII Quick Call S. next out in July, the Linda Rice trainee did not seem to take to the unconventional course at Kentucky Downs, finishing fifth in the GIII Franklin-Simpson S. in September. The Pompa homebred rebounded with another good-looking score in the Aqueduct Turf Sprint Championship S. Nov. 28. His record currently stands at 9-4-2-1 with earnings of $241,967.

“I was always a huge fan of Paul Pompa’s,” Finley said. “He was such a great guy and, year after year, he came up with runners. Like everybody else, I was heartbroken when he passed way too soon. I figured there would be a dispersal and it was in the back of my mind, the last couple of months, to try to get something to continue his legacy. So, it all just fell into place.”

He added, “It is very exciting. These are the types of horses we try to buy at the yearling and 2-year-old sales. You have to pay up. If they vet and carry themselves the right way. You aren’t going to get them at a discount.”

Turned Aside’s GSP dam Sustained (War Front) (Hip 463) sold during Tuesday’s session, bringing $320,000 from Phil Schoenthal, acting as agent for Determined Stud. She sold in foal to Pompa’s Grade I winner Connect and her 2020 Connect colt followed her into the ring, selling for $32,000 to bloodstock agent Steve Young (Hip 464).

A longtime friend of Pompa’s who purchased several horses on his behalf, Young, bought a total of four horses from the Pompa dispersal, topped by the newly minted sophomore colt Untreated (Nyquist) (Hip 1564), who hammered for $300,000. The bloodstock agent purchased the horse on behalf of an undisclosed client, but did say the colt would be trained by Todd Pletcher. A son of GSP Fully Living (Unbridled’s Song), the $550,000 KEESEP acquisition was hammered down to 4-5 favoritism for his Gulfstream unveiling Jan. 9, but failed to fire, finishing sixth.

“He was a horse that was always well liked, starting from the time he was in training with Eddie Woods,” Young said. “He trained very well for Eddie and went to Chad [Brown] and trained even better there. We are going to look past his first race and know that he is a good horse who just did not fire in his first start. American Pharoah and Secretariat didn’t either.”

Reflecting on the dispersal and loss of his friend, Young said, “It is sad on many levels, for the business and personally, for myself. He was a special friend, who the more you knew about him, the more you liked him.”

The Pompa dispersal consisted of 39 horses, a mix of racehorses, broodmares and yearlings, who sold with no reserves. One horse did not receive any bids, but the other 38 sold for a gross of $6,790,200 for an average of $178,689. Pompa horses accounted for six of the top 11 sellers in the Keeneland January Sale, including $925,000 co-topper Regal Glory (Animal Kingdom) (Hip 403) and Thursday’s $875,000 session topper Carillo (Union Rags) (Hip 1566). The other five horses in the top 11 came from the Sam-Son dispersal.

“Mr. Pompa’s program has been meticulously managed and it shows,” Lane’s End Sales Director Allaire Ryan said. “It is nice to see the top agents and buyers giving these horses the respect they deserve. Mr. Pompa would be pleased.” —@CDeBernardisTDN

De Meric Stays Busy at Keeneland

Nick de Meric was quite busy at Keeneland this week, securing a total of eight short yearlings for $905,000 total, an average of $113,125. The horseman was acting on behalf of an undisclosed client, signing for the yearlings under the name Sand Hill Stables.

“Those are largely on behalf of a client who races, but some will be pinhooked and we haven’t quite decided which is which yet,” de Meric said. “Sometimes if you buy them in the name of someone who races, people assume the ones who end up back in the sale are culls, which is not the case.”

De Meric’s purchases include a $200,000 colt by Maclean’s Music (Hip 275); a $155,000 son of Ghostzapper (Hip 186); a $130,000 filly by top freshman sire Nyquist (Hip 357); a $130,000 daughter of Horse of the Year Gun Runner (Hip 800F); a $110,000 More Than Ready filly (Hip 3); a $90,000 Mastery colt (Hip 256); a $50,000 daughter of Lord Nelson (Hip 159); and a $40,000 filly by Mastery (Hip 775).

“We are looking for yearlings that are good athletes,” de Meric said. “No matter what you are doing, that is what you’ve got to start with. We have to see what pedigrees we can afford and there are certain sires we are fond of, but, at the end of the day, we are looking for athletes.”

He continued, “You probably saw I bought a couple of Masterys, a Gun Runner. Those kind of sires don’t scare me if I am liking enough of them. In other words, second-crop sires that are consistently producing good individuals, I will take a shot with those. Very often, those are the ones who do jump up when there 2- or 3-year-olds get to the track. But the market, as we know, is not always kind to those sires, at least not initially, so that presents an opportunity in my view.” —@CDeBernardisTDN

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