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Justify Stands Out In Debut Keeneland September Book 1 Outing

With the number of horses he had cataloged, and the quality of pages under them, Triple Crown winner Justify was expected to have a big showing with his first crop at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale, and he lived up to that lofty goal in Book 1.

The resident of Ashford Stud was nipped in the final hour of the sale for the title of highest Book 1 gross by a sire, moving 25 horses over the auction's first two days for $12,522,000. He trailed leader Into Mischief by just $278,000.

Justify also finished fifth among Book 1 sires by average sale price among those with more than one horse sold, at $500,880. It was the biggest number by a rookie stallion, with the next closest being Lane's End resident City of Light, whose seven yearlings averaged $360,714.

“We are absolutely delighted with how the first crop of yearlings have been received so far at the Keeneland September sale,” said Robyn Murray of Ashford Stud. “They were a great bunch physically with top pedigrees to match, very indicative of the quality of mares he has bred in each of his three years at stud so far. The best validation of any horses first crop is to see who buys them, there was an international audience for them, befitting his stature and ability.”

The most expensive Justify yearling of Book 1 was Hip 161, a colt out of the stakes-placed Rockport Harbor mare Stayclassysandiego who sold to Japan-based Hideyuki Mori for $950,000. The half-brother to Grade 2 winner Pretty N Cool was consigned by Baccari Bloodstock, agent.

Bloodstock agent Barry Berkelhammer signed for a pair of Justify yearlings during Tuesday's session on behalf of Albaugh Family Stables.

He struck first on Hip 243, a half-sister to Grade 1 winner Lord Nelson, for $500,000. Shortly after that, he went to $600,000 to land Hip 261, a colt whose second dam is Horse of the Year Azeri.

Even though he landed more Justify yearlings than most, Berkelhammer said he missed more times than he connected.

“These were the two that we could get bought,” he said. “We kept finding ourselves falling on them. I don't go to the sale saying I was going to buy some Justifys, but I find the horses I believe in, and let the chips fall where they may. Obviously, you'd be attracted to them. He was a beautiful horse himself and a great racehorse.”

Justify has 90 yearlings cataloged in the Keeneland September sale, which is the second most by a first-crop sire, trailing only fellow Ashford Stud resident Mendelssohn at 93.

With so many in the catalog, Berkelhammer said he has had plenty of opportunities to form an impression of what a typical Justify yearling looks like.

“They're athletic, they're big, and they've got some range to them,” he said. “They look like they're going to have turn of foot, and they're just beautifully balanced, with great toplines and good hips. He was that way, so it's just indicative that he's stamping himself.

“We were fortunate enough to buy two of them, and hopefully, they're the right two,” Berkelhammer continued. “Hopefully next year, we look smart.”

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Return To The Ring: Keeneland September’s RNA Re-Offer Sparks Trade In Different Ways

The catalog order was out of sorts at the end of Tuesday's session at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale in Lexington, Ky.

Hip 399 was followed by Hip 399A and 399C, as one would expect when the main catalog turns into the supplemental catalog. Then, Hip 6 entered the ring, followed by Hips 72, 111 and 179.

The four horses causing the catalog detour were the inaugural class of Keeneland's RNA Re-offer program, which allowed sellers of horses that finished under their reserve during the auction's first session the opportunity to run them the ring a second time at the end of Tuesday's second day of trade.

Though each of the RNA Re-offer horses had a common touching point, each one took a unique path to and from it.

The quartet that went through the ring on Tuesday evening was narrowed down from an original group of seven yearlings that were announced by Keeneland at the end of Monday's session. Consignors had to notify Keeneland Sales officials of their intentions to run their horses through again within 30 minutes of the close of Monday's session. Buyers were then made aware of the horses to be offered through Keeneland's social media channels and advertising.

For a few of the horses, that little extra boost of promotion was all they needed to make a sale happen. Mill Ridge Sales had two horses entered in the RNA Re-offer, but neither made it to the ring.

“The one that was early, Hip 70, was for a partnership, and we thought we had action, but didn't have enough,” said Price Bell of Mill Ridge. “We RNA'd it for $125,000 and we wanted to support new ideas. Keeneland promoted it last night, and they promoted it today, and it probably let people know we wanted to sell these horses, that they weren't RNAs to race. This morning, we had three people ask us about her, and we got it done.

Hip 70, a First Samurai filly, sold privately to Madras Bloodstock on Tuesday morning for $90,000.

Bell said the other Mill Ridge horse set to go through again, Hip 195, an Uncle Mo filly who was a $140,000 buyback, was offered late on Monday, and was entered for the second chance mostly to hold the spot until the consignor could talk it over with the breeder, who elected to keep the filly to race. Still, Bell said the filly had an inquiry from a potential buyer on Tuesday morning after the initial list was revealed.

“It was effective to get more eyes on them, and positions them to be buyable,” he said. “It's not Plan A, but this late in the yearling season, sometimes you don't have a Plan B. For this to be a Plan B for that draw and that day, is great.”

Ramsey Farm also had a potential re-offer turn into a private sale, with Hip 197, a Nyquist colt, go to Daniel Pita for $70,000 after hammering for $80,000 in the ring.

For the remaining four horses, it was a slightly different pre-sale experience than their first go-around. Book 1 of Keeneland September is often filled with all-shows and extensive vetting, as high-level buyers attempt to leave no stone unturned. By Tuesday, however, most shoppers have moved on with their inspections to the horses in Book 2.

It was largely business as usual for Taylor Made Sales Agency, which had two horses entered in the re-offer: Hip 72 by Justify (RNA at $200,000), and Hip 179 by American Pharoah (RNA at $140,000). The consignment regularly keeps its buybacks from the first session of Book 1 on the property for an extra day in an attempt to woo a private sale before taking them home. Taylor Made's Mark Taylor said the discussion with the sellers to re-offer was not much different than it would be for any other RNA situation.

“It's the same conversation you would have if this re-offer wasn't in existence,” he said. “We always sit back and say, 'Okay, we've got the horse back. Have you reevaluated what you would take for the horse, and if so, where do you think that is?' Then, we go and start calling people that were interested. A lot of times, those people seek you out, too. In this case, I would say there's no downside for putting them in. If someone calls you at noon and gives you the hammer price, and you want to go ahead and sell it, Keeneland's going to allow you to do that.”

For both horses, Taylor said he expected them to bring more the first time around. He theorized that buyers might have thought that as well, which might have made them think the horses were out of their budget and look elsewhere. Multiple potential buyers made private offers in about the same price range, but all of them were slightly lower than the what seller was looking for, prompting the decision to let the hammer sort it out.

Catalog placement came into play for Hip 6, an Into Mischief colt who was bought back on Monday with a final bid of $340,000. It can take a while for a buyer's bench to build up momentum, and the colt was re-entered with the hopes of catching the market once it's warmed up.

“It's been busy enough,” consignor Pat Costello of Paramount Sales said about an hour before the colt's second trip through the ring. “He's been out five or six times today. Hopefully, we'll get something done.”

Though the shoppers had largely moved on to horses later in the sale, Kerry Cauthen of Four Star Sales said he worked on getting the minds of potential customers back to day one for a moment. Cauthen had Hip 111, a More Than Ready colt who was bought back at $145,000 after his first trip through the ring on Monday.

“People have obviously moved on to the next spot,” Cauthen said. “We mentioned it to everyone at Barn 42 (Four Star's Book 2 barn), letting them know the horse was going to be offered again. A lot of people would have seen him, and it gets back in their head, and we had three or four people say, 'I'm gonna watch him.' I don't know if it'll work or won't work, but there's no harm in letting them have a look.”

Cauthen's strategy was successful. Of the four horses that went through the ring for a second time on Tuesday, the More Than Ready colt was the only one to change hands at the fall of the hammer, improving his price from $145,000 on Monday to $150,000 on Tuesday.

The remaining three horses hammered for less the second time around, with Paramount's Hip 6 getting the closest at $335,000 after initially bringing $340,000.

One of the caveats of the re-offered section was that reserves had to be set with 15 percent above or below the initial reserve on Monday, which could have affected the sale status of some of the horses that hammered for less. As horses clearly marked to sell, it is likely they will find buyers privately before the sale is through.

Tony Lacy, Keeneland's vice president of sales, said he was pleased with what he saw with the re-offer program, between the private and public sales.

“I think there was a little bit of uncertainty over what it really was, but now that we're at the stage of the day where you had a few people that felt the market didn't treat them the way they expected, they can come back, and hopefully there will be better reception,” he said.

“There was anxiety amongst a group of sellers about being early in the sale, and as a former consignor, it definitely felt there was a lack of safety net in certain parts if you had a horse that may be perceived as having less marketability, or less appeal,” he continued. “Quite frankly, I think it really helped, and it helped solidify people's confidence that if they didn't get one sold early, that they had options.”

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Modest-Priced Broodmare Pantanal Rewards Haymarket Farm At Keeneland September

Chip Montgomery didn't have visions of the bright lights of Book 1 at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale with his Nyquist colt. In fact, he'd have probably preferred to avoid it altogether.

The colt was out of an unplaced, $70,000 broodmare with a produce record that would have a hard time standing out in one of the most top-heavy and unforgiving marketplaces in the world, and he knew it. But, he also knew this was the best horse on the farm, and that bargain-priced mare has done little else but reward the Haymarket Farm operation, so far.

When Hip 102, out of the Congrats mare Pantanal, sold to AMO Racing USA for $330,000 during Monday's opening session, it brought the mare's total progeny sales from the breeder to $725,000 from four foals sold, making for an incredible return on investment.

Pantanal was a long way from Book 1 when she was offered as a first-time broodmare at the 2015 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale. Montgomery and farm manager Kelly Jackson were on a tightly-budgeted mission at that year's auction, but they'd made it to the end of Book 3 without any success. They finally hit the mark with Pantanal near the end of the sixth session.

“We were looking for a mare in foal to Uncle Mo, thinking he was going to be an emerging sire, and we put our heads together, and Kelly pushed me along to go on and spend that kind of money,” Montgomery said. “Back in those days, that was a couple more shekels than I wanted to spend.”

Pantanal was pregnant for the first time to Uncle Mo, and the ensuing colt sold as a weanling to Preston Madden for $100,000. Later named Borracho, the colt finished third in the Grade 1 Woody Stephens Stakes in 2019, just a few months after Pantanal visited Nyquist for the mating that generated the yearling that sold on Monday.

Haymarket Farm has done well finding modest-priced mares and finding their potential with foals in the sale ring and the racetrack. The operation bred New York stakes winner and $170,000 yearling Miss Brazil out of a $40,000 broodmare purchase. In 2016, Haymarket Farm bought Queen's Wood, the dam of True Timber, for $47,000 while pregnant to Quality Road, and sold the ensuing foal for $250,000. Vinery Sales consigns Haymarket Farm's auction horses.

“We do like to buy a mare that maybe has had a couple foals, in foal to the right stallion,” Montgomery said. “I think the market tends to give up a little early on a mare. Sometimes, that's been good for us, and sometimes it's been bad for us.”

Given Pantanal's relatively modest auction history up to this point, Montgomery admitted that putting the Nyquist colt in Book 1 was against form, and carried a bit of risk, but the colt's physical and Nyquist's rapid ascent in the stallion ranks ultimately steered the yearling's placement.

“We actually feel more comfortable in Book 2 or 3 for a colt like this,” he said. “He does have the looks. Nyquist has done enough, and certainly, that was a factor in Keeneland wanting him in Book 1. We typically try to lobby to get into Book 2. That's just a strategy that Kelly has, and I support him 100 percent.”

Montgomery, a longtime auto dealership owner in Louisville, Ky., is quick to heap the praise for his success on his staff, particularly Jackson. He bought the 150-acre Haymarket Farm in Simpsonville, Ky., in 2008, about a decade after buying his first Thoroughbreds with partners. About 18 mares reside on the property.

“I'm not a hands-on guy, so as I've done my whole life, I've relied on people,” Montgomery said. “I've delegated to get something done. The successes we've had, we'll give it to them, and the failures, I guess I've got to pick up myself.”

Book 1 is all about the fantasy of splashy prices at the top of the market, but the transactions below that upper crust help sustain the day-to-day reality for smaller breeders.

When Pantanal's Nyquist colt brought $330,000 on Monday, Montgomery knew it was a high point for his mare, and for the Haymarket Farm's 2020 crop of foals, but it was still just a piece of the overall puzzle to keep the operation going.

“My view here today is, we might have eight or 10 to sell,” he said. “We sold a couple of weanlings, and we might race one or two, or vet issues are keeping them out and we'll have to go to the 2-year-old sale. We've got to get to that magic overhead number, so this fills up the pitcher only so far, but you would expect the Book 1 horse to fill that pitcher up pretty darn far, because the rest of them are just kind of filling a few drops here and a couple glasses of water there.

“If you look at the numbers, for that particular horse, it is very successful, but when you've got a dozen and a half of them, this is the best horse on the farm, so he's got to carry the load, and the mare's got to carry the load,” he continued. “Maybe next year, it's another mare and yearling that's carrying the load.”

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Million-Dollar Yearlings Pace KEESEP Book 1 Opener

by Jessica Martini, Brian DiDonato & Christie DeBernardis

LEXINGTON, KY – The Keeneland September Yearling Sale, led by a trio of million-dollar yearlings, opened with a day of steady trade in Lexington Monday.

A total of 95 yearlings sold during the session for $38,172,000, at an average of $401,811 and a median of $325,000.

“I think the trade was really strong,” Keeneland's new vice president of sales Tony Lacy said at the close of business Monday. “The numbers may have stacked very comparably to last year, but I think there was a lot more confidence and the money was spread out over more horses. I think it's a healthier market in many ways. The energy on the grounds was very strong.”

During last year's first session, 109 head sold for $40,680,000. The session average was $373,211 and the median was $330,000.

From a catalogue of 201 head, 45 horses were withdrawn and 61 failed to meet their reserves for a buy-back rate of 39.10%.

“I think a lot of people got shut out today,” Lacy said. “I know there was one group of buyers, we actually sent them a bottle of bourbon because they were underbidders on 15 or 16 horses. That in itself is a very strong sign. When you have some higher RNA's that OK because these are people who want to race, they like their horses and that's not a sign of weakness, that's actually a sign of strength. So from a trading environment, I think it was excellent.”

A filly by American Pharoah (hip 43) was first to hit seven figures during the session when bloodstock agent Alan Quartucci bid a session-topping $1.4 million to acquire the yearling on behalf of Joe Allen. The youngster, a half-sister to recent GI Spinaway S. winner Echo Zulu (Gun Runner), was consigned by Betz Thoroughbreds. Also bringing seven figures Monday was a colt by Into Mischief (hip 177) who sold for $1.35 million to Winchell Thoroughbreds and a filly by Uncle Mo (hip 89) who brought a final bid of $1.1 million from Courtlandt Farm.

A standout among the buy-backs was a colt by Quality Road out of Justwhistledixie (Dixie Union) consigned by Clearsky Farms who RNA'd for $1.9 million. While connections plan to retain the yearling to race, there were seven horses who failed to sell Monday who have been added to Keeneland's new RNA Reoffer program which takes place at the end of Tuesday's second session of the auction.

“That might change,” Lacy said of the number of yearlings entered into the initiative. “We had two that were entered earlier and they got sold privately. And that's exactly the way it's supposed to work. And some of these may be sold privately before the end of the session tomorrow. That is a mechanism to allow free trade. And if something is not done by tomorrow evening, it allows them to run back through. It's been well received by the people who are using it. I think there was a little bit of uncertainty about what it really was, but now we are at the stage of the day where you may have had one or two people who thought the market didn't treat them the way they thought it would. It allows them to come back and hopefully have a better reception tomorrow.”

The seven yearlings currently scheduled to be reoffered Tuesday evening are: hip 6, hip 70, hip 72, hip 111, hip 179, hip 195, and hip 197.

Donato Lanni, bidding on behalf of the partnership of SF Bloodstock, Starlight Racing and Madaket Stables which was such a powerhouse buying group at last year's September sale, purchased four yearlings Monday for a total of $2,225,000.

“We bought two horses in the first 50 lots,” said SF Bloodstock's Tom Ryan. “The market seems to be strong. There is plenty of depth here and a lot of international participation. I feel like the rest of the sale will be strong.”

With a further 200 Book 1 yearlings to be offered Tuesday, consignor Chris Baccari admitted he has concerns about the number of yearlings who meet the session's elite standards.

“There only need to be 100 to 150 horses, that's all there is of Book 1 horses,” Baccari said. “Great sires, great female pedigrees, that vet, there are only 100 horses, maybe 150 horses, on the planet that meet all those requirements. It's like diamonds. If diamonds where as common as gravel, they wouldn't be worth anything.”

The Keeneland September sale continues Tuesday at 1 p.m. Book 2 sessions Wednesday and Thursday begin at 11 a.m. and, following a dark day Friday, the auction continues through Sept. 24 with sessions beginning daily at 10 a.m.

Allen Comes Out on Top for Echo Zulu Sis

Northshore Bloodstock's Alan Quartucci, acting on behalf of owner Joe Allen, was the first to sign a seven-figure ticket at Keeneland September Monday as he went to $1.4 million to secure hip 43, an American Pharoah half-sister to leading juvenile filly Echo Zulu (Gun Runner). The May 8 foal was consigned to the sale by Bill Betz's Betz Thoroughbreds and bred on an apparent foal share by Betz, J. Betz, Burns, CHNNHK, CoCo Equine, Ramsby and Ashford Stud.

“She looks like a real runner,” Quartucci said. “She has a fantastic pedigree that's still going forward every day. The filly who won in Saratoga was amazing. She was the whole package, I think.”

Quartucci said the filly would likely end up in the barn of Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey.

A $300,000 purchase here 12 months ago, Echo Zulu was turned over to Steve Asmussen by L and N Racing and Winchell Thoroughbreds and romped on debut at Saratoga July 15, good for 'TDN Rising Star' status and a gaudy 92 Beyer Speed Figure. She doubled up with similar flash in the GI Spinaway S. Sept. 5, and looms the likely favorite for the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies at this stage.

Hip 43's dam Letgomyecho (Menifee) annexed the 2005 GII Forward Gal S. and later sold to Betz and partners for $135,000 in foal to Congrats at the 2011 Keeneland November sale. Since then she has also produced the likes of GSP Unbridled Outlaw (Unbridled's Song, $300,000 KEESEP '14); Grade III winner and 'Rising Star' J Boys Echo (Mineshaft, $485,000 KEESEP '15); and Echo Town (Speightstown, $100,000 KEESEP '18), winner of last year's GI H. Allen Jerkens Memorial S. and now a member of Coolmore's stallion roster.

“She is a lovely filly,” Betz said of hip 43 last week. “She has strength, balance, good movement and temperament. She also has pedigree. Obviously the mother was a graded stakes winner and produced graded stakes horses, including Echo Town, who won the Jerkens last year at Saratoga. So, now with Echo Zulu, it's a pretty nice package.”

He added, “Anytime you get something current happening in the pedigree it is a pretty big plus. In her case, it is icing on the cake because you already had all that to begin with. To have a half-sister as exciting as Echo Zulu just solidifies her place as an elite filly.”

Allen and Quartucci struck again later in the day for an $850,000 Candy Ride (Arg) colt (hip 181) from the super deep female family of top-level winnners Verrazano, Chic Shirine, Queena, Keen Ice, Preservationist, Librisa Breeze, Harmonize, et al. —@BDiDonatoTDN

Winchell Wins Battle for Into Mischief Colt

Winchell Thoroughbreds's Ron Winchell went toe-to-toe with the Courtlandt Farm team late in Monday's KEESEP session to land hip 177, a son of leading sire Into Mischief, for $1.35 million. The bay was consigned by his breeder, Greg Goodman's Mt. Brilliant Farm.

The Feb. 14 foal is the first out of Superioritycomplex (Ire) (Hard Spun), a 400,000gns Tattersalls December purchase as part of the Ballymacoll Stud dispersal in 2017 who would go on to take a pair of allowances for Mt. Brilliant and Orrin Ingram the following season. His third dam is G1 Yorkshire Oaks heroine Hellenic (Darshaan), who in turn produced the great Islington (Ire) (Sadler's Wells).

“Into Mischief is great,” said Goodman. “We bought the mare in Europe, in England, at Tattersalls a few years ago. We just love the family–we also bought her sister [1,050,000gns MGSP Abingdon (Street Cry {Ire})] at the same time because it was a dispersal.”

As for hip 177, Goodman said, “He has always been outstanding. He's always done everything right. A calm horse, smart, we're really happy with him and we're really happy Mr. Winchell got him and that he's going to a good home.”

Winchell, who enjoyed a banner Saratoga meet thanks in large part to his Grade I-winning juveniles Gunite (Gun Runner) and Echo Zulu (Gun Runner), also picked up a $700,000 Into Mischief colt (hip 116) earlier in the session and a $150,000 son of American Pharoah (hip 183) a few hips after signing for 177.

“[Hip 177's] probably an Into Mischief who doesn't look like an Into Mischief, and I've had Into Mischiefs that look like Into Mischiefs and I can't seem to find the winner's circle with them, so I figured I would go a different direction,” Winchell quipped. “I knew he may be expensive, but you always hope for a little less.”

As for his leading freshman sire Gun Runner, whose four offerings Monday averaged $288,750, Winchell said, “To me, he is the perfect mix of speed and stamina and obviously that's proven now. His offspring are hitting the racetrack and obviously we have had a lot of success with them lately and we hope to continue to do that.” —@BDiDonatoTDN

Quality Road Colt to Coolmore

A colt by Quality Road attracted a final bid of $950,000 from Coolmore's M.V. Magnier during Monday's first session of the Keeneland September sale. The bay yearling (hip 64) is out of multiple graded-placed Milam (Street Sense), a half-sister to champion Rushing Fall (More Than Ready).

“We liked the horse, he's very athletic,” said Magnier. “Quality Road is doing very well. And this is a very nice horse. We plan to leave him in the U.S.”

The yearling was consigned by Taylor Made Sales Agency on behalf of his breeder, WinStar Farm. WinStar purchased Milam for $175,000 at the 2016 Keeneland November sale.

“He's done well his whole life and we are very proud of him and that Coolmore got him,” said WinStar's Elliott Walden. “We wish them nothing but the best with him.”

Walden said he saw a lot to be optimistic about heading into the two-week September sale.

“I feel really good. I have a lot of confidence,” Walden said. “There are six racetracks running with maiden races over $100,000. It's crazy. I trained 15 years ago now and we were running for $30,000, so it's just amazing. I think the purses have caught up with the expenses. It gives a person a chance to make money on the racetrack instead of just building equity in the horse.”

Walden continued, “I think it should translate all the way through the sale. Looking around here on day one, I've never seen so many people in there sitting down. So I feel very encouraged about it.”

Milam's filly by Curlin sold for $250,000 to BSW/Crow Bloodstock at last year's Keeneland September Sale and Liz Crow, bidding alongside trainer Brad Cox, was an underbidder on the mare's yearling Monday.

Also Monday, Magnier signed for a colt by War Front (hip 29) for $400,000. @JessMartiniTDN

Mori Justifies the Trip

Hideyuki Mori struck for three colts by Justify during Monday's first session of the Keeneland September sale. The Japanese trainer warmed up by purchasing a son of the Triple Crown winner who is a half-brother to champion Classic Empire (Pioneerof the Nile) (hip 133) for $625,000 from the Bluewater Sales consignment and he came back to acquire a half-brother to multiple graded stakes winner Pretty N Cool (Scat Daddy) (hip 161) for $950,000 from Baccari Bloodstock. Mori wrapped up his day one by buying with a son of Justify out of Grade I winner Streaming (Smart Strike) (hip 170) who was consigned by Hill 'n' Dale Sales Agency.

“I have seen a lot of the Justifys and I really like them,” Mori said through an interpreter. “They have a beautiful line and they move very well. Based on their action and physical form, I think they will probably perform quite well on the Japanese turf.”

Consignor Chris Baccari is another fan of Justify. Baccari purchased hip 161 for $435,000 at last year's Keeneland November sale.

“I went out in search of the very best Justify I could possibly find, privately or at public auction,” Baccari said. “And I felt he was it. He is a great strong physical and I am a believer in the horse and I took a swing.”

While the gray colt, out of stakes-placed Stayclassysandiego (Rockport Harbor), was the first horse Baccari sent through the ring at the September sale, the horseman is looking forward to more success with Justify later in the fall.

“We had several Justifys that we've raised that are very nice–a couple that I raised were born later, they aren't as big as him because he is a January foal,” Baccari said. “But we have several others that are very nice. We have a couple others that are going to October that were born in May. I like how buoyant Justify was and how strong he was. I am trying to sell commercially, but the most important thing is for me to sell horses who run. And that is why I wanted to get tied to a horse like him.”

Baccari admitted he had hoped the gray colt would have attracted more bids.

“The air gets thin when you get past $800,000,” Baccari said. “A few years ago, we used to have buyers who were concerned about buying racehorses. The price didn't matter. I think people lose sight of one thing. Whether you give $300,000 or $3 million, if they are brilliant it doesn't matter. The price doesn't matter anymore. Being brilliant is what counts. And I think buyers sometimes lose sight of that, in my opinion. Because if you don't have brilliance it doesn't matter. If you have brilliance, it doesn't matter what they cost.” @JessMartiniTDN

Courtlandt Win Out on Uncle Mo Filly

Courtlandt Farm's Don Adam and his farm manager Ernie Retamoza were determined to take a home hip 89, a filly by Uncle Mo, and they fought off an equally resolute Donato Lanni to take the dark bay home for $1.1 million.

“She's an April foal, but you can see that she's still a little high behind and see she's gonna develop still,” said Retamoza. “A real athletic, typey filly, young mare, fits our program to a T. Not sure where we'll send her, but we'll get her home and break her. She acts like she's gonna be the right type of filly that we're looking for. Had to stretch, obviously, to get her, but Mr. Adam looked at her this morning and loved her, we all loved her, and we felt like she was a filly worth stretching for.”

Consigned by Paramount Sales, hip 89 was bred by Dr. Aaron Sones and hails from the family of Canadian champion Charlie Barley (Affirmed).

“She was a beauty,” said Paramount's Pat Costello. “She didn't put a foot wrong from the day she was here and we could see with the way the vetting was going, everybody was on her. She deserved to bring the kind of money she brought because she's just stunning. She came from a client of ours and she was always nice, very much so. We were delighted with the price. It was a little bit more than we thought she would bring.”

Courtlandt also struck earlier in the session for a $575,000 son of Speightstown (Hip 17).

“We loved him, but we had to stretch on him a little too,” Retamoza said. “We had Strike Power (Speightstown), who was pretty successful for us and he reminded me a lot of Strike Power. Speightstown is a great sire. We are really happy to get him.”

Courtlandt Farm was also back in action later in the day, purchasing a $400,000 City of Light colt (Hip 166); a $325,000 Flatter colt (Hip 158); and a $200,000 Union Rags filly (Hip 191).

—@CDeBernardisTDN

Sones Scores With Uncle Mo Filly

Dr. Aaron Sones experienced the biggest success of his breeding career at Keeneland Monday when an Uncle Mo filly out of Nikki's Choice (Forestry) brought $1.1 million from Don and Donna Adam's Courtlandt Farm.

“We always knew she was special, but you can never expect that,” said Sones, who founded and sold Physicians Management Group and currently serves as Director of Jackson Hole Trust. “I love Uncle Mo and knew this cross would be successful as it is the same cross as [champion] Nyquist. I'm thrilled.”

Sones became interested in hip 89's female family on a tip from Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas. Bloodstock agent Mersad Metanovic helped Sones acquire Nikki's Choice's half-sister GSP Moyo Honey (Mizzen Mast), who he raced in partnership with Lorill Harlingten.

“My good friend D. Wayne Lukas turned me on to this family,” Sones said. “Moyo Honey had one of the quickest turns of foot I had ever seen. I went out and bought her mother [Charming Lauren (Meadowlake)] and then began acquiring more of the family.”

Sones breeds between 15 and 25 mares a year and keeps his broodmare band at Dr. Naoya and Marie Yoshida's Winchester Farm.

“We race quite a few colts, but we can't keep them all,” Sones said. “So we usually sell 50% and keep 50%. Our goal is to win the [GI] Kentucky Derby.” —@CDeBernardisTDN

Grace Adler Partners Go for Gold

Willow Grace Farm and Michael Lund Petersen, who campaign recent GI TVG Del Mar Debutante S. romper Grace Adler (Curlin), added another fancy filly to their roster Monday when acquiring hip 86, a daughter of Medaglia d'Oro from the Claiborne Farm draft, for $950,000. Agent Donato Lanni advised on the purchase, and three hips later was the underbidder on the $1.1-million hip 87.

“She's a really nice filly from a hot family,” said Claiborne's Walker Hancock. “She's a great filly–she's going to be a star, so I'm glad for the new buyers.”

Hip 86 was bred by The Estate of Edward A. Cox, Jr., who passed away in 2019. She hails from a deep female family that includes dual Grade II winner Live Lively (Medaglia d'Oro), last year's champion sprinter Mitole (Eskendereya) and this year's standout sophomore Hot Rod Charlie (Oxbow).

“She wasn't a hard one to find–she had everything,” Lanni said of hip 86. “She was bred by a very good man who passed away. I really liked her and was just happy to buy her… [Medaglia d'Oro is] just a proven sire over and over. He's got good fillies, colts. [Hip 86 has] a great female family. She's an athlete, she's classy, and she's got pedigree. I hate to say it, she just checked all the boxes.”

The filly was the third high-dollar purchase Lanni had been credited with by nearly midway through the opening session.

“[The market's] really been strong all year,” he said. “There's a big appetite for really good horses out there and it's nice to see us get back to some kind of normalcy.”

Willow Grace Farm is the nom de course of Jim Burrows, who directed the hit TV show Will & Grace. Grace Adler is the sitcom's co-main character. —@BDiDonatoTDN

Avengers Strike at KEESEP

The ownership group nicknamed The Avengers was quite active as expected at the KEESEP opener, acquiring four colts to be trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert. One of their first big purchases of the day was an $850,000 son of Into Mischief, a stallion who has already been quite good to the group headed by SF Bloodstock, Starlight Racing and Madaket Stables with champion Authentic. Hip 53 was consigned by Taylor Made Sales on behalf of breeder Town & Country Farms.

“He will go to Bob Baffert,” said SF's Tom Ryan. “We are excited about him and I can't say enough about the horse. He looks like a nice two-turn colt. We will put him into the program and hopefully we will be talking about him this time next year.”

Town & Country Farms acquired hip 53's GSP dam Majestic Presence (Majestic Warrior) for $360,000 carrying her first foal by Runhappy at the 2017 KEENOV sale. The resulting foal, a now-3-year-old gelding named Gruntled, brought $230,000 from DJ Stable and her 2019 Candy Ride (Arg) colt sold to Brandon Parlante for $250,000 at KEESEP last year.

Donato Lanni also struck on the Avengers' behalf for hip 8, a $650,000 Quality Road colt out of MSW Inspired (Unbridled's Song); a $400,000 Into Mischief colt (hip 114); and a $325,000 son of Spendthrift's super sire (hip 155).

—@CDeBernardisTDN

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