Therefore, when New York-based trainer Tom Morley dreamed up the idea of purchasing a filly with the idea of returning home to England to try and win the G2 Queen Mary S. at Royal Ascot, he knew the plan was a daring one. 

But credit to Cynane (Omaha Beach), bought for $250,000 through Oracle Bloodstock at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale, she delivered a suckerpunch of her own when winning impressively on debut at Belmont Park last week. 

That performance put Cynane firmly in the Queen Mary picture, and Morley ever closer to a dream first winner back home in Britain at the royal meeting. 

“You don't often get emotional when you train horses that win maidens, but for the people involved in her ownership, it means an awful lot,” Morley told TDN Europe.

“I have trained for Gregg and Cathy Palesky [VinLaur Racing Stables LLC] for a long time and they haven't had a huge amount of luck. They did claim an Into Mischief filly called Xantique and she won a stakes race for them but they have had some bad horses in the meantime. It is huge for them. 

“West Paces have been wonderful supporters of our yard–are made up by a group of guys from Atlanta who I would describe as great mates–and they go to Royal Ascot every year. To be able to go with a runner is huge for them as well.”

He added, “Rainbow's End are also great supporters, and only have horses in training with me, so it's a really cool group of owners. 

“And then you realise what the horse herself has managed to do. She has put herself in the thick of things for the Queen Mary by being an impeccable student.”

That Belmont Park victory, where Cynane pulled clear of the short-priced Wesley Ward-trained favourite Sam's Treasure (Munnings), was the culmination of the excellent homework the filly had been showing ever since she was broken by Raul Reyes. 

Cynane was identified, like a lot of Morley's stock, by the Oracle Bloodstock team, who signed for the Hinkle Farms-bred and -drafted half-sister to classy middle-distance performer Cat's Claw (Dynaformer). 

Cynane | Chelsea Durand

Recalling what he liked most about Cynane as a yearling, Morley said, “The first time I saw her, I wrote, 'what a walk' and gave her two ticks. I went back through my Keeneland Sale catalogue and she was one of four fillies that I gave two ticks to. I absolutely adored her.

“Conor Foley, Jim Hatchett and Scotty Everett at Oracle Bloodstock do a lot of my short-listing at the yearling and 2-year-old sales. This filly was on their list. 

“Conor and I put her ownership group together and, I was so high on her, I probably would have gone strong on her if I had to. I'm delighted we didn't have to. She's obviously got a very strong female family and looks to have given herself a real shot at competing on a huge stage.”

Morley added, “She was the only one who we bought last year with Ascot in mind. We wanted to give her every opportunity to do this if she could. I said to Raul Reyes when she went down to Florida, train her like a very, very precocious two-year-old until she tells you that she can't do it, and then we'll just build her back to what we normally do. 

“On March 2, he rang me and said, 'Tommy, that filly is leaving tomorrow,' and I said, 'Raul, well done.' That's how it went.”

“She has never missed a day of training and eats like a pig, so it's all credit to her. You can't miss a day if you are going to do this. Then you have to be enough to deal with Wesley [Ward] on debut. It's then, and only then, when you can start to think about trips like this.”

The seeds of this Royal Ascot plan were not set back in September when Morley first set eyes on Cynane but much further back than that. The son of a successful breeder and owner, he is also the nephew of multiple Group 1-winning trainer David Morley, whose Royal Ascot victory in the Gold Cup with Celeric (GB) (Mtoto {GB}) sticks out in the memory for the young handler. 

A graduate of the Godolphin Flying Start programme, Morley could have set up training anywhere in the world, but on the advice of his former boss in Newmarket Jeremy Noseda, took out his licence in America. Fast-forward 13 years and he is still there, building his stable bigger and better, season after season. 

“I started off with Eddie Kenneally in Palm Meadows and Brendan Walsh was an assistant there at the time. We then went to Keeneland, followed by Churchill, and by the time I got to Saratoga, I thought 'this is a wonderful life'. 

“Then I began to think about what it would take to get started up in England compared to America. You don't need an enormous amount of capital over here. I literally started training with one horse, one bridle, one saddle, two water buckets and a feed tub. That's it. 

“I groomed the horse every morning and my girlfriend at the time, who is now my wife [Maggie], rode him out and he won his second race for us. That was it, we were up and running at that point.”

He added, “I just felt that young people get afforded a little bit more of an opportunity out here. It's very hard to break into the upper echelons as a trainer anywhere in the world but we have been lucky this year in that I came back very strong about the bunch of yearlings we purchased and am very strong on our 2-year-olds for this year. You've got to feel good about the horses you are going to war with on a circuit like New York. For me, it's the toughest place in America to be competitive.”

Morley's confidence behind Cynane's ability to handle the demands of the royal meeting stems from his insight into the tried-and-trusted criteria that Noseda followed so successfully during a golden period in the early noughties. 

Tom and Maggie Morley | Walter Wlodarczyk

He explained, “Jeremy used to come to America to buy fillies just like Cynane and we would have runners and winners every year in the Queen Mary. This filly reminds me enormously, physically, of the fillies that Jeremy used to be so successful at buying in America and bringing back to Europe to have a crack at these races. 

“This is the model that Jeremy used to buy so I will have to credit my ex-boss for giving me the idea on what to look for physically on a Queen Mary type. I was very fortunate to be there for Laddies Poker Two (Ire) (Choisir {Aus}), Fleeting Spirit (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), Sixties Icon (GB) (Galileo {Ire}), Strike The Deal (Van Nistlerooy), Simply Perfect (GB) (Danehill), the list goes on and on. They were wonderful, wonderful years and Jeremy was an unbelievably talented trainer. He was the reason I came to America. He told me to go for a year or two to get some experience and I never came back.”

Of course, you can't mention Noseda without bringing up Laddies Poker Two in detail. Morley is all too aware that he bore witness to one of the greatest Royal Ascot training performances of the modern era. Oh, and he also pocketed himself a few quid in the process!

He recalled, “Laddies broke her pelvis and then she got a tendon. She would have won the Wokingham as a 4-year-old but got a tendon getting ready for that race off the back of fracturing her pelvis the previous year. It was an extraordinary training feat to win the Wokingham after 610 days off the track. And it was like dealing with a priceless vase because we knew how good she was but we needed to keep her in one piece. 

“She did one piece of work with Fleeting Spirit who had been the European champion sprinter the year before. They did a piece of work in the spring and they worked very nicely together so we knew that, if you were going into the Wokingham off 8st 3lbs and had been working with the European champion sprinter, you knew you were going to have a decent shot to say the least. She was incredibly talented and has obviously gone on to be a very good broodmare being the dam of Winter (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}).”

And that famous gamble?

“I might have had a few quid on in the weeks leading up to the race,” comes the reply. “I certainly wasn't one of those people who got involved on the day–there was too much to do at that point. But it was rather remarkable watching a horse open up at 10-1 for the Wokingham, which is normally the starting price of the favourite in that race, and then get absolutely hammered in the betting before the race. It was great to be a part of that.”

As Morley acknowledges, rare is the day where a plan is executed to a nicety in this game. Rarer still when that plan just so happens to involve purchasing a yearling with the distinct aim of travelling halfway around the world to compete on one of the greatest stages on turf. 

Morley has avoided the many and obvious pitfalls that come with negotiating something so daring and, with the royal meeting inching ever closer, is starting to believe that this bold piece of planning could be about to come off. 

“We've got a Queen Mary to go and try to win,” he says. “It's very exciting and it will mean the world to me if we can do it. The day Celeric won the Gold Cup at Ascot sealed my faith in becoming a trainer. He was a horse who meant so much to me and my family. Ascot is a very special place.”

The post ‘We’ve Got A Queen Mary To Win’–US-Based Morley Hoping Bold Plan Pays Off appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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A colt from the first crop of Mendelssohn topped Monday's session, fetching a bid of $230,000 from buyer Oracle Bloodstock, agent (video).

The bay colt was offered as Hip 189 by Dreamtime Stables, agent. Out of the Malibu Moon mare Tasha's Moon, a half-sister to Grade 2 placed stakes winner Esmeraldina, the colt hails from the immediate family of Grade 1 winner Off the Tracks and Grade 2 winner and sire Concord Point. Hip 189 was bred in Kentucky by Classic Thoroughbred.

Earlier in the session, a son of Belmont Stakes winner Union Rags sold for $220,000 to Mac Robertson, agent for Novogratz Racing Stables (video).

Dark Hollow, agent, offered the colt as Hip 113. Out of the winning Flatter mare Safe Journey, the colt is a half-brother to four winners, including O Dionysus (Bodemeister) and Joy (Pure Prize), both multiple stakes winners on the mid-Atlantic racing circuit. Hip 113 was bred in Maryland by Dark Hollow Farm.

Mendelssohn was also responsible for the session's top-priced filly, which sold for $160,000 to Donato Lanni, agent for Caroline & Greg Bentley (video).

Offered as Hip 159 by Northview Stallion Station (David Wade), agent, the filly is a half-sister to a pair of winners out of the winning Curlin mare Split It. Bred in Maryland by Sycamore Hall Thoroughbreds, Hip 159 is from the immediate family of champion filly Epitome and multimillionaire War Story.

Rounding out the top five were a pair of fillies with strong pedigrees:

• Hip 76, a daughter of Tiznow out of a Not For Love half-sister to four-time Grade 1 winner and two-time Maryland Horse of the Year Knicks Go, which sold for $150,000 to SBM. The filly was bred in Maryland by GreenMount Farm & Tiznow Syndicate and consigned by GreenMount Farm, agent.
• Hip 11, a filly from the first crop of Preakness Stakes winner Cloud Computing, who is a three-parts sister to course record-setting stakes winner Dirty (Maclean's Music), which sold for $145,000 to Newtown Anner Stud. The Maryland-bred filly was consigned by Blake-Albina Thoroughbred Services, agent.

Over the course of the session, 149 yearlings sold for a gross of $4,577,300. The average – $30,720 – marked 25.6 percent and 16.9 percent increases over 2020 and 2019's first sessions, respectively. The median rose 33.3 percent to $20,000 from the first-session median of $15,000 achieved in both 2020 and 2019. Eight horses sold for $100,000 during the session, compared to two sold at or above that price point in 2020 and five in 2019. The RNA rate was 16.3 percent.

Results are available online. The sale resumes Tuesday, Oct. 5 at 10 a.m.

The post Mendelssohn Colt Tops Opening Session Of Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Fall Yearlings Sale appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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By the close of business Monday, 149 yearlings grossed $4,577,300. The average was $30,720 and the median was $20,000.

During the sale's first session in 2020, 122 yearlings sold for a total of $2,983,600. The session average was $24,456, the median was $15,000, and the buy-back rate was 24.7%.

“It was a great opening session,” Fasig-Tipton president Boyd Browning said Monday evening. “The gross is up 53%, the average is up 26%, median is up 33%, and the RNA rate is a very low 16.2% today.”

While the 2020 auction was held during the uncertainty of the pre-vaccination pandemic, its figures remained fairly steady with the 2019 opening session when 102 yearlings sold for $2,680,000, an average of $26,275 and a median of $15,000.

“[Monday's results] are really more impressive when you consider this was one of the sales that, when you compare 2020 to 2019, it really didn't have a COVID drop,” Browning said. “So '20 and '19 were very similiar in terms of statistical results for this sale. Some other sales have had a little bit of an anti-COVID bump throughout the United States this year in 2021 compared to 2020. Well, this is a pretty genuine increase in terms of statistical performance. Results in '19 and '20 were basically flat, so this increase in 2021 is even more impressive than it has been for some of the other sales.”

Eight yearlings sold for six figures Monday, up from just two a year ago.

A colt by Mendelssohn (hip 189) brought the day's top price when selling for $230,000 to Oracle Bloodstock. Also topping the $200,000 mark was a colt by Union Rags (hip 113) who sold for $220,000 to trainer Mac Robertson. Both were consigned by locally based sellers, with Dreamtime Stables offering hip 189 and consignor/breeder Dark Hollow offering hip 113.

“One of the nice things we saw today was the support of the local breeders,” Browning said. “It was nice to see the sale topped by Dreamtime, which is Mike Palmer and his wife and their longtime association with Candyland Farm's Herb and Ellen Moelis, who have been long-time supporters of this sale and this region. And the second highest-priced horse was from David Hayden and his Dark Hollow Farm. They were both really legitimate pedigrees with Mendelssohn and Union Rags. It is really rewarding to see regional breeders who have quality product support this marketplace, which helps lure more buyers and more successful buyers to the sale this year and in future years as well.”

The day's top-priced filly was also a daughter of Mendelssohn with Donato Lanni bidding $160,000 to acquire hip 159.

Cary Frommer, traditionally an active buyer at the Midlantic Fall sale, signed for three yearlings Monday, including a Twirling Candy colt (hip 78) for $115,000. But Frommer agreed it was tough sledding.

“I feel like I am paying more than I thought I would have to,” she said. “For a nice horse, it's still very strong and I've been outbid on a bunch of very nice horses. I think the market is fair, but it's just that it's a trickle down effect from the other sale. People haven't been able to buy what they wanted. So it's strong here.”

Pinhookers, some of whom are not traditional bidders at the auction, were a dominant presence at the sale Monday.

“I knew they were coming,” Frommer said of the pinhooking buying bench. “I knew everybody was having trouble at the previous sale. So I knew they would be here and I was not happy about it.”

One of those pinhookers making an unusual appearance in Timonium was Susan Montayne, who purchased a filly by Tiznow (hip 76) for $150,000.

“We've never actually done this sale before,” Montayne, who is a regular presence as a consignor at the Midlantic May 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale, said. “I have never come up here to buy horses. We usually focus on the Kentucky sales and sales at home in Ocala, but here we are. It was very hard to buy at Keeneland. Luckily, we have clients that send us horses to go to the races, but with the pinhook side, it was a little tough.”

The Midlantic sale continues Tuesday with bidding at the Maryland State Fairgrounds beginning at 10 a.m.

Mendelssohn Colt to Handal

Conor Foley of Oracle Bloodstock struck late in Monday's first day of the Midlantic Fall Yearling Sale to secure a colt by Mendelssohn (hip 189) for a session-topping $230,000 on behalf of a partnership.

“He's going to go to [trainer] Ray Handal,” Foley said. “I bought him for a group of people.”

Of the yearling, Foley said, “He just looks a lot like Mendelssohn. He just looked like an athlete that should run next year; what surface he can run on, I don't know. I think horses like him were few and far between here and he really stood out.”

The colt was bred by Classic Thoroughbred XXIX and was consigned by Dreamtime Stables. He is out of Tasha's Moon (Malibu Moon) and is a half-brother to stakes-placed Juror Number Four (Into Mischief) and from the family of multiple graded winner Tasha's Miracle.

Hip 189 was one of two yearlings from the first crop of Grade I winner Mendelssohn to bring six figures Monday in Timonium. Earlier in the session, bloodstock agent Donato Lanni, bidding on behalf of Caroline and Greg Bentley, acquired the day's top-priced filly when going to $160,000 for a daughter of the Coolmore stallion (hip 159).

Union Rags Colt to Novogratz

Trainer Mac Robertson, bidding on behalf of owner Joe Novogratz, purchased a colt by Union Rags for $220,000 Monday in Timonium. The bay colt was bred and consigned by Dark Hollow Farm and is out of Safe Journey (Flatter), who is also the dam of multiple stakes winners O Dionysus (Bodemeister) and Joy (Pure Prize). The yearling's second dam is Safe at the Plate (Double Zeus), a half-sister to champion sprinter Safely Kept.

“Safe Journey is an awful good mare for this sale,” Robertson said after signing the ticket on hip 113. “She has four or five really good horses that can win where we want to go. And I thought, for a Union Rags, he has enough length to be a really good horse.”

Several times a leading owner at Canterbury Park, Novogratz was a linebacker for the Pitt Panthers and was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers before being traded to the Minnesota Vikings. He is the founder of IDI Distributors Inc., an insulation distribution company.

Robertson trained the multiple stakes winner Amy's Challenge (Artie Schiller) for Novogratz. The mare, second in the GI Madison S. and third in the GI Humana Distaff S. in 2019, was purchased for $20,000 at the Fasig Midlantic Yearling sale in 2016.

“I thought he'd bring between $200,000 and $250,000 when he vetted well and scoped well,” Robertson said of the yearling's final price. “Until you get your guy to vet him, you don't really know.”

Also on behalf of Novogratz Monday, Robertson purchased a filly by Malibu Moon (hip 158) for $95,000.

The competitive market was no surprise to Robertson.

“It's really strong,” he said with a rueful smile. “But I'm not surprised. I was at Keeneland–I've never seen an 80% clearance rate in my life. There are people who didn't get what they wanted at Keeneland, so of course they came here.

Tiznow Filly Likely for 2-Year-Old Sales

A filly by Tiznow (hip 76) is likely destined for a return to the sales ring next spring after selling for $150,000 to the bid of Ocala horsewoman Susan Montanye.

“She looks like a classy, two-turn filly,” Montanye, who signed for the pinhooking partnership in the name of her SBM Training and Sales, said of the yearling's appeal. “She is a little bit of a later foal, but she had all the right angles and parts. She vetted great for me. I watched her and I loved her walk, big overreach on her. What's not to like about her?”

Of the filly's final price, Montanye said, “Listen, if you want them right now, it looks like you're going to have to pay for them. She's a Tiznow filly and she's got some pedigree, so $150,000, I feel comfortable with that.”

The yearling was consigned by Sabrina Moore's GreenMount Farm and was bred by Moore in partnership with Tiznow Syndicate. She is out of Pinkprint (Not For Love), a half-sister to GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile winner and likely GI Breeders' Cup Classic favorite Knicks Go (Paynter).

Filly Adds Up for Newtownanner

Ron Blake liked a filly by Cloud Computing when he purchased her as a short yearling for $40,000 at the Keeneland January sale earlier this year and he still liked the bay yearling (hip 11) when he sent her through the sales ring in Timonium Monday. He  advised his clients, Samantha and Maurice Regan's Newtown Anner Stud, to purchase the bay for $145,000.

“We always loved her,” Blake said. “We bought her as a weanling and from the day we bought her I thought she was gorgeous. She's grown into a very pretty filly. She is a late foal and I think when you take that into account, you can see what she could become. She's by a first-year stallion and she was a late foal so she looked maybe a little small to some people. But because she is a May 20 foal, we thought she'd be a real beautiful filly. We advised our client to buy her.”

The yearling is out of Martini and is a three-quarter sister to stakes winner Dirty (Maclean's Music).

“I just think she has so much quality,” Blake said. “We think she'll be a good racehorse. She'll go back to the farm and be able to grow up a little bit. We will give her some time off before we break her and then go forward with her and see what she can do.”

The post Mendelssohn On Top In Competitive Midlantic Opener appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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This installment features Conor Foley, whose Oracle Bloodstock is active in all segments of the yearling market acquiring horses for both domestic and foreign clients. At last year's September sale, Oracle was listed agent on 24 acquisitions totaling $3,673,500. Those purchases ranged from a $1.1-million Medaglia d'Oro filly now named Hodl to a $1,500 daughter of Mizzen Mast purchased in Book 6.

This year's sale will be held from Sept. 13 to Sept. 24. Visit theworldsyearlingsale.com for more information.

TDN: How much pedigree work do you do before the sale?

CF: I don't really look at all through the catalog beforehand. The only part that matters to me as a bloodstock agent is the physical part. I think your brain can play tricks on you. It's very hard to buy good racehorses, so I just try to protect myself from making any assumptions or things like that by looking too closely at the pedigree first. So, I go backwards and look at their pedigrees last after they've passed [physical inspection]. I don't want anything in their pedigree to trigger something in my mind that makes me want to like the horse more than I should.

For a lot of mares, they only ever have one good foal, so to me, if you throw out a pedigree because the mare's never produced anything, you may end up never looking at her best horse.

TDN: Do you do many pre-sale farm visits?

CF: Rarely. I'll do that if I'm out checking on another horse that we manage and the farm would like to show us their yearlings. The horses change so much over the last 60-90 days before the sale. What do you do if you liked a horse on the farm but not so much on the sales grounds? That's tough.

Our team makes sure we look at every horse at the sale, and because we're able to do that, we can work backwards.

TDN: Talk a bit more about your buying team.

CF: I work with Jim Hatchett and [more recently] Scotty Everett. Scotty's worked on the track his whole life–the first horse he ever hotwalked was Danzig. He's a really great guy and everybody who sees him has a smile on their face. He's a super person and a very good horseman who worked for a lot of great trainers. He's retired from the track in the last couple years and he's a super addition to Oracle for the sales. Megan Jones also joined our team this year. She's fantastic and helps with a number of things.

TDN: You usually have a flock of trainers in tow at the sales, including Danny Gargan, Tom Morley, Dan Blacker, Ray Handal and Jordan Blair. What's the dynamic like there?

CF: Among others, I've also helped Rob Falcone and sometimes Doug Watson–we'll buy some of his clients a yearling with the plan of it going to Dubai as a 2-year-old.

I love it. You have all these great horsemen that I'm getting to spend time with looking at horses. We're able to accomplish other things while we're together as far as talking about horses currently in training and stuff like that.

Everybody gets along. This is pro sports, and I treat it like that. There's a level of professionalism.

As far as who ends up on which horses, things tend to work themselves out given what surface we think they'll excel on; what type of horse we think they'll be in terms of when they'll mature; what part of the country or the world we think they might fit in best. So those things whittle it down along with budgets, and I've never really had an issue [with multiple trainers wanting to go for the same horse].

It's also like a workshop for them, because they end up talking about the struggles and the things that are going well or not well in their barns. Plus we just have a lot of fun.

TDN: What's the first thing you look for when inspecting a horse?

CF: Definitely the way it moves. The walk is so important. The conformation is so critical, and our horses, for the most part, make a lot of starts. So I'm kind of looking at a horse and asking myself, “Could you ride this horse from here to Los Angeles?” Because that's how many miles it's going to take to get him fit for a race. What problems are we going to run into based on how the horse is physically made? If the horse grows or changes in this way, what impact will that have given how it's made here or there? I try to ask myself about 100 questions once a horse comes out, and when you start coming up with negative answers, you start moving on to the next horse.

TDN: Any there any mistakes you think other buyers make or things they focus on that you don't find as important?

CF: I've seen a lot of people try to embrace new technologies, and I don't think any of them really work. Somebody would've figured it out by now. This is a sport that many people have been passionate about for hundreds of years.

TDN: How do you stay organized and focused when trying to get through so many horses and make decisions about them?

CF: Luckily, in the first couple books you can pretty much see every horse on your own. As the sale gets into the later books, we have to take the team approach where I'm looking at the horses who made the cut the day before. This is the sale where you get to look at a horse the fewest times [before they sell].

The other thing about Keeneland is that the grounds are physically demanding–it's not flat. It demands the most out of you, and you just have to stick to your good decision making. I try to stay conscious of it and just keep a level mind. If you get tired, it affects the way your brain makes decisions. The September sale tests that.

TDN: You bought horses from $1.1 million to $1500 at last year's September sale. Is it tough to adjust your eyes, so to speak, when going from the top end to the lower end?

CF: I think towards the end, the good ones stand out much easier. If you're buying a horse to go to Saudi Arabia or Russia, you're probably buying a different type of horse than if you're buying a cheaper horse to stay in America. For me, you're just trying to buy the best possible athlete every day. Nothing really changes in the process–it's just as hard to buy a horse for $5,000 as it is $500,000.

TDN: Anything among your purchases last year at September that you're particularly excited about?

CF: Probably the Medaglia d'Oro filly who cost all the money. She was always going to be a 3-year-old type, and we weren't really going to tighten the screws too early on an expensive filly with that kind of pedigree, but she's coming along nicely at her own pace with Dan Blacker and doing well.

TDN: Any past KEESEP successes you're especially proud of?

CF: One horse who puts a big smile on my face is a horse called Tuz (Oxbow). We bought him for $7,000 [on the second-to-last day of the 2018 sale]. He went to Russia and won his first three starts [by a combined 64 lengths]. Then he ran in Dubai and nearly won the prep for the UAE Derby last year [when second in the Al Bastakiya]… He finished third in this year's G3 Burj Nahaar. He provided a lot of excitement for $7,000.

TDN: Any trends you're looking for or market expectations heading into September?

CF: I think this sale will be very sale–they have been for the most part all year. It's always a shock to the system at first when there are horses you think you can buy for $200,000 or $250,000–which is an enormous amount of money–and they go for $700,000, $800,000, $1 million. So, you get outbid a lot, but you have to not get upset about it. It's tough when you barely lose, but you just have to move on to the next thing until it's over. Last year was not a great year, and all the breeders deserve to get rewarded. Things haven't been easy for anybody.

The post The Process: Conor Foley appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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The two-day sale concluded with across-the-board increases over the sale's most recent renewal in 2019, and top-three historical marks in number sold, gross, average, median, and RNA rate.

The session's top seller came in the form of Hip 419, a filly by Munnings, which sold for $350,000 to GMP Stables, Vekoma Racing, West Paces, Oracle Bloodstock, agent (video).

The chestnut filly was consigned by Hunter Valley Farm, agent. Hip 419 is the second foal out of multiple New York stakes winner Freudie Anne, who made 16 of her 25 starts on the NYRA circuit and earned nearly $400,000.

The top-priced filly over the two-day sale came during the Sunday session, when Hip 341, a filly by Uncle Mo, sold for $495,000 (read more).

“We hit the sales superfecta,” said Fasig-Tipton president Boyd Browning. “Average was up, median was up, gross was up, and RNA rate was down. “We're obviously very, very pleased.”

A pair tied for the session's top-priced colt. First through the ring was Hip 528, a son of successful young sire Constitution, sold for $300,000 to DJ Stable (video).

Offered by Taylor Made Sales Agency, agent, the dark bay or brown colt was bred in New York by Fred W. Hertrich III and John D. Fielding. Hip 528 is the second foal out of the winning Medaglia d'Oro mare Rare Medal, and hails from the immediate family of two-time Sovereign Award winner Northernette and international champions Storm Bird and Green Tune.

Also sold for $300,000 was Hip 591, a colt from the first crop of Eclipse Champion Accelerate, who was purchased by David Stack (video).

Paramount Sales consigned the chestnut colt, which was bred in New York by SF Bloodstock. Hip 591 is out of the stakes placed winning Marquetry mare Ten Halos, making him a half-brother to graded stakes winner and multiple stakes winner Cinco Charlie (Indian Charlie), who earned more than $600,000. In addition, Ten Halos is a half-sister to Grade 2 winners My Pal Charlie and Bwana Charlie, and graded stakes winner Bwana Bull.

Three shared the top price for a colt over the course of the two-day sale, which includes the above two colts and Hip 330, a son of leading sire Into Mischief which sold for $300,000 during Sunday's session (read more).

“We're fortunate enough that the consignors once again gave us really outstanding horses,” said Browning, adding that there was also “significant bidding from a diverse buying group.”

Rounding out the session's top five were:

• Hip 425, a filly from the first crop of Mendelssohn out of the Smart Strike mare Good Omen, sold for $250,000 to Bay Hill Stables from the consignment of Paramount Sales, agent. The filly hails from the immediate family of two-time Horse of the Year and successful sire Curlin.
• Hip 508, a filly from the second crop of Practical Joke out of the winning Malibu Moon mare Orient Moon, sold for $250,000 to Klaravich Stable from the consignment of Indian Creek, agent. The filly was bred in New York by John Lauriello out of a daughter of Grade 2 placed multiple stakes winner Career Oriented.

“We've always been committed to this sale and this marketplace,” Browning concluded. “There was no segment of the marketplace more adversely affected by the COVID (pandemic) than the New York-bred yearling marketplace… It's nice to restore the marketplace for (the breeders), so they can have confidence going forward.”

Overall, 203 yearlings changed hands for a total of $18,566,500, a New York Bred Yearlings sale record, just beating the previous highwater mark set in 2018 when 172 yearlings sold for $18,492,00. The gross rose 14.6 percent from $16.2 million paid for 186 yearlings in 2019. This year also marks the first time more than 200 horses sold at New York Bred Yearlings.

The sale average was $91,461, a 5 percent increase from the 2019 average of $87,097, and ranked second all-time to the $107,512 record set in 2018. The median rose 16.7 percent to $70,000 from $60,000 during the 2019 renewal, and also ranks second historically only to the record of $76,000 set in 2018.

The RNA rate fell to 21.3 percent, the lowest at this sale – which RNA rate generally reflects the strength of the New York bred program and the added value of retaining a New York Bred yearling – since 1995. The RNA rated was the third-lowest in sale history.

Full results are available online.

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SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY–The Fasig-Tipton New York-Bred Yearlings Sale completed a successful return Monday at the Humphrey S. Finney Sales Pavilion in Saratoga, as a lively day of trading built on a strong Sunday opener to conclude the auction with average, gross and median numbers up and the RNA rate down compared to 2019 numbers.

“We got the sales superfecta: average was up, median was up, gross was up and the RNA rate's down. So we hit the super today and we're obviously very pleased,” said Fasig-Tipton President & CEO Boyd Browning. “We had significant bidding from a diverse buying group. We're fortunate enough that the consignors once again gave us outstanding horses and presented them in a very, very positive manner. The buyers continue to have more and more confidence coming to the sale.”

Fasig-Tipton was forced to cancel its 2020 renewal of the New York-bred sale as well as its Saratoga sale due to the COVID-19 pandemic, an interruption that Browning said affected New York-bred interests particularly harshly.

“I've said before, there was no segment of the marketplace more adversely affected by the COVID situation last year than the New York-bred yearling marketplace,” he said. “So it's nice to restore the marketplace for them; they can have confidence going forward. We've always been committed to this sale and marketplace, but any time you have a disruption, it's difficult. And there was a significant disruption for the breeders and folks who sell New York-breds last year. It's reassuring to be able to look at them and say, 'You can continue what you're doing with confidence.' I think the sale's going to continue to grow and grow, and people are going to be encouraged to both buy and breed New York-breds.”

A total of 141 horses changed hands Monday, grossing $12,069,000, compared to 120 horses selling in 2019 for a sum of $10,227,550. The average for the session was $85,596, roughly on par with the $85,229 from two years ago, while the median edged up from $55,000 in 2019's second session to $60,000. Only 35 horses went unsold Monday, a rate of 19.9%, compared to 49 in 2019, which accounted for 29% of horses offered.

Overall for the two-day sale, 203 horses sold for a gross of $18,566,500. In 2019, 186 sold for $16,200,000. The average for this year's sale was $91,461, an increase of 5% from 2019, while the median was $70,000 compared to $60,000 in 2019. In total, 55 horses were bought back from 258 offered, a 21.3% rate this year, compared to 80 out of 266 in2 019, a 30.1% rate.

The Fasig-Tipton sales calendar resumes with the one-day Pin Oak Stud Sale, in which Josephine Abercrombie's Pin Oak Stud, one of the country's most successful Thoroughbred breeding and racing operations over the past six decades, will be offering its remaining broodmares, weanlings, and some racing fillies, Sept. 12 in Lexington.

Brand-New Partnership Strikes for Munnings Filly

Forming a partnership of GMP Stables, Vekoma Racing and West Paces Racing the morning of Monday's second Fasig-Tipton New York-Bred Yearlings session, Oracle Bloodstock's Conor Foley came out on top for the group when the hammer dropped for a session-topping $350,000 for Hip 419, a filly by Munnings out of MSW Freudie Anne (Freud).

“She was one of the top fillies of the sale,” Foley said. “We were tickled to get her. A few partners got put together a few hours ago to get her and we're really excited. I thought she was one of the best athletes of the sale.”

Bought for $130,000 by Cherry Knoll Farm at Fasig-Tipton February earlier this year, the chestnut sold under the Hunter Valley Farm banner. She is the second foal out of Freudie Anne, a two-time stakes winner in her racing career and half-sister to MSW Frostie Anne (Frost Giant), following a thus-far unraced juvenile full-brother who sold to Pick View for $100,000 at last year's umbrella Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearlings auction.

Foley and the partners already were looking forward to bringing hip 419 back upstate next year, saying, “She's going to go to the races. She'll come back up here and be trained by Danny Gargan. Hopefully in about a year we'll be walking out of the winner's circle at Saratoga.”

D J Stable Pounces for Constitution Colt

Len and Jon Green's D J Stable was in the market for a potential Classic colt at Monday's Fasig-Tipton New York-Bred Yearlings Sale and came home with a popular prospect Monday in Hip 528, with Jon Green signing the winning ticket for $300,000 for a son of star third-crop sire Constitution.

“He reminded us of a lot the great colts that we've seen running on Saturdays,” Green said. “He's a big, scopey, two-turn type of horse. We came here looking to get a real top colt and he fit the bill and checked all the boxes for us. The plan is to ultimately have him at Mark Casse's barn. He'll head back to Kentucky and get a little R and R because [the sale] takes so much out of these horses. Let him eat a little green grass, give him six to eight weeks and then he'll head down for to Ocala and start getting into the program.”

Consigned by Taylor Made Sales Agency, the dark bay is the third foal out of five-time winner Rare Medal (Medaglia d'Oro), whose 2-year-old Unified colt named Combat Medal sold for $150,000 earlier this year at Fasig-Tipton Midlantic. His fourth dam is two-time champion Northernette (Northern Dancer), a full-sister to champion Storm Bird.

On the final number for the colt, Green said, “It surprised me a little that we had to go to the upper level of what we wanted to for a horse like this, but the sale has been so strong that if you want to come away with a good horse, you have to spend a little bit of money. The nice thing about it is that even though he's a New York-bred, that wasn't even part of the calculus. He's such a grand-looking colt that hopefully if he's running here in New York, it'll be in races like the Travers and the Belmont and not in a New York-bred other than. We felt that [regardless of] if he was a New York-bred, Kentucky-bred, Florida-bred, Peruvian-bred, he's just that kind of a horse. We came here specifically to buy a horse like this. We do have a couple more on the list, but he was our number one choice.”

Accelerate Speeds Ahead With $300K Colt

Lane's End's champion Accelerate, who made a splash Sunday night at the Fasig-Tipton New York-Bred sale, kept the forward momentum going when his Hip 591, a colt consigned by Paramount Sales, sold for $300,000 in the waning moments of the auction Monday afternoon. Barclay Tagg signed the winning ticket along with longtime assistant Robin Smullen and owners Chris and Dave Stack.

“We liked everything about him,” Smullen said of the colt, who was led out unsold on a bid of $100,000 at Keeneland November last fall. “He was intelligent. We weren't happy with how he was acting in the back ring, but when he got in the ring he was fine. He's a nice colt. [The price] was a little higher than we wanted to go, but we bid on a filly earlier that we couldn't get.”

Bred by SF Bloodstock, hip 591 is out of the thrice stakes-placed Marquetry mare Ten Halos, who also produced GSW juvenile Cinco Charlie (Indian Charlie). Bought for $150,000 in foal to Candy Ride (Arg) at Keeneland November in 2016, Ten Halos is a half-sister to MGSW Bwana Charlie (Indian Charlie) and GSWs My Pal Charlie (Indian Charlie) and Bwana Bull (Holy Bull).

“We are very good friends with Barclay and Robin and admire and respect them and their opinions,” said Chris Stack. “When we saw him, we just thought he was the one. He looked me right in the eye though, I will tell you.”

Tagg and Smullen stayed in for a small piece of the horse, their first owning partnership with the Stacks.

“We trained for Chris and Dave a long time ago, but now we have one together,” Smullen said. “We just own one ear, Chris and Dave own the rest of her.”

Tagg and Smullen also bought another Accelerate progeny earlier in the day for Sackatoga Stable, going to $130,000 to secure Hip 460, a chestnut colt out of MSP Late 'n Left (Lucky Pulpit).

Asked to compare Hip 591 to that colt, Smullen offered, “The other Accelerate that we bought tonight for Sackatoga Stable looked a little more refined, a little smaller. But I don't know what to expect them to look like yet. We liked his dam side. When you're a half to a multiple stakes winner, you've got to be alright.”

Brown, Klaravich Pick Up Practical Joke Filly

The connections of hot-starting freshman sire Practical Joke showed their faith in his success continuing at Monday's Fasig-Tipton New York-Bred Yearlings Sale, as Chad Brown signed the ticket for Klaravich Stables for a bay filly by the Coolmore resident for $250,000. Consigned by Indian Creek, Hip 508 is the second foal out of Orient Moon (Malibu Moon) to sell for that figure this year after her 2-year-old Street Boss colt commanded the same number at OBS April.

“I trained the sire for Seth [Klarman] and she was definitely the best-looking dirt filly I saw here,” Brown said. “It was definitely our last bid. She will go down to Ocala and we'll see how she takes to training. She just happened to be a New York-bred, but she was as good-looking as any Practical Joke filly I've seen.”

Victor of the GI Hopeful S. GI Champagne S. as a juvenile in 2016, Practical Joke followed up with a score in the GI H. Allen Jerkens S. at Saratoga the next summer and won or placed in six other graded stakes before retiring with nearly $1.8 million in earnings. He ranks third among North American-based freshman sires with 10 winners and was represented by blowout GIII Sanford S. hero and 'TDN Rising Star' Wit earlier in the Saratoga meet.

“You can see the Into Mischief in [Practical Joke's progeny], so it's exciting.” Brown said. “We are very big supporters of the stallion. We have some 2-year-olds that we like and it's exciting that he's off to such a promising start.”

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The Classic Empire colt topped the session when sold for $310,000 to Mike Ryan, agent from the consignment of St George Sales, agent (video).

Offered as Hip 1398, the bay colt is out of the winning Bernardini mare Delay of Game, whose first foal, Spa Ready (Street Sense), was a 3 1/4-length winner on debut last month at Belmont Park. The immediate family includes U.S. and European champion 2-year-old colt Johannesburg. The session-topper was bred in New York by EKQ Stables Corp.

Four other yearlings sold for $200,000 or more during the final session, including:

• Hip 1173, a colt by Empire Maker out of Bagatelle Park (Speightstown), sold for $200,000 to Tonja Terranova, agent from the consignment of Gainesway, agent. From the immediate family of Grade 1 winner Seattle Slew, the colt was bred in Kentucky by D. H. Steve Conboy & Empire Maker Syndicate.
• Hip 1372, a filly by Empire Maker out of Curlin's Mistress (Curlin), sold for $200,000 to X-Men Racing LLC from the consignment of Gainesway, agent. Out of a full sister to multiple Grade 2 winner Curlin's Approval, the filly was bred in Florida by Happy Alter and Empire Maker Syndicate.
• Hip 1422, a filly by Constitution out of Distinct Sparkle (With Distinction), sold for $200,000 to Shepherd Equine Advisors, agent for Sanders and Hirsch from the consignment of Bluewater Sales, agent. From the immediate family of Breeders' Cup winner Very Subtle, the filly was bred in Pennsylvania by Roberta L. Schneider MD.
• Hip 1534, a filly by Nyquist out of Four Sugars (Lookin At Lucky), sold for $200,000 to Oracle Bloodstock, agent from the consignment of Eaton Sales, agent. A half-sister to multiple Grade/Group 1 placed stakes winner Gronkowski, the filly was bred in Kentucky by Diamond Creek Farm.

During the final session, 235 yearlings sold for a $7,290,900, good for an average of $31,025. The session median was $15,000. Over the course of four days of selling, 961 yearlings changed hands for $32,743,000. The average was $34,073. The four-day median was $15,000, a 15 percent increase over the median posted during the 2019 sale.

Results are available online.

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For the two-day Book 4 section, 492 yearlings sold for an aggregate of $23,349,000. The average was $47,457 and the median was $32,000. The book’s $320,000 top price was one of 11 to sell for $200,000 or over for the two days.

During last year’s two-session Book 4 section, 562 yearlings sold for $28,329,200 for an average of $50,408 and a median of $37,000. The top Book 4 price in 2019 was $310,000 and 10 horses sold for $200,000 or over.

“The good ones are tough to buy, they are really tough,” Lanni said. “You just have to bid extra and push a little bit more and hopefully you get them.”

Hip 2739 was one of two yearlings to bring over $300,000 Monday. The chestnut colt, bred by Stelly Stables and consigned by Stuart Morris, is out of Ready at Nine (More Than Ready) and is a half-brother to stakes-placed Drummer Boy (Parading).

“He is a neat horse, a cool dude,” Lanni said of the yearling, who will be trained by Bob Baffert. “He was one of the standouts today. Every day there are good horses coming through, you just have to find them. He was easy to find. He’s a nice horse. And the sire helped. The sire has been on a roll and people believe in the sire. They are willing to pay extra for them. Not This Time is a horse that came under the radar. You never know who is going to make it, but it looks like he’s going to do well.”

Also topping the $300,000 mark Monday was a filly by Nyquist (hip 2419), who sold for $305,000 to Nicoma Bloodstock. Consigned by Candy Meadows Sales, the yearling was one of five by the GI Kentucky Derby-winning freshman sire to bring six figures during the session.

“I think yesterday was a little light, but the quality of horses is a bit better today in day two of Book 4 and there certainly seems to be a little more high-end trade today,” said Nicoma’s Ben Gowans.

Oracle Bloodstock, bidding on behalf of Zilla Racing Stables, struck late in the day to acquire one of three fillies by Nyquist to sell for $200,000 Monday. Hip 2772 is out of Soarwiththebirds (Giant’s Causeway), a half-sister to Canadian champion Up With the Birds (Stormy Atlantic), who was consigned by Taylor Made Sales Agency.

“I loved her,” said Oracle’s Conor Foley. “She had a coltish body, but a feminine way about her. I don’t think she’s done improving. I thought she fit the mold of the nice Nyquists. I’m excited that Zilla Racing was able to get her. This was their first time to Keeneland and they were the underbidder several times over the last several days and we just decided this filly ticked all the boxes. We were lucky to get her.”

Of Nyquist, who was represented by his second Grade I winner when Gretzky the Great won the GI Summer S. at Woodine Sunday, Foley said, “I’m really impressed with them. Obviously they are showing themselves to be the real deal on the track. The Grade I win maybe cost my client a little bit more money than I would have liked, but I am happy for Darley that they stand the horse. I used to work there and I’m a big fan of the stallion.”

Oracle Bloodstock has been active at all levels of the market during the first week of the Keeneland September sale, purchasing horses from $1.1 million to $15,000. In all, the operation has signed for 19 yearlings for $3,534,000.

“I am shocked at how strong the market is with everything that is going on in the world,” Foley admitted. “It’s been punishing because I’ve been outbid a lot. There is still a strong desire for people to get really nice horses to compete all over the world. I still have barely even bought for my foreign clients. I am nervous–I would be shocked if I was going to be able to fill all their needs at this sale. But that’s great for everybody in the business. It’s been a weird year, but I’m relieved for the breeders. They need to do well, they are the synergy and the strength of our industry.”

The Keeneland September sale continues through Friday with sessions beginning daily at 10 a.m.

Nicoma Strikes Early for Nyquist Filly

A day after earning his second Grade I winner from his first crop to race, Nyquist was responsible for the top-priced filly of Monday’s eighth session of the Keeneland September sale when Nicoma Bloodstock’s Ben Gowans made a final bid of $305,000 to secure a daughter of the GI Kentucky Derby winner (hip 2419) on behalf of an undisclosed client. Out of multiple stakes winner and multiple graded stakes placed Unforgotten (Northern Afleet), the bay filly is a half-sister to Grade I placed Silverpocketsfull (Indian Charlie).

“We thought coming in to today that this filly would be around $200,000 to $250,000 range, but Nyquist had a big weekend,” Gowans said.

Nyquist’s son Gretzky the Great captured Sunday’s GI Summer S. at Woodbine, adding to Vequist’s win in the GI Spinaway S. earlier this month.

“Seeing what Nyquist has done so far obviously gave us the confidence in the filly, but we loved her physically,” Gowans said. “She is a beautiful filly with good size, plenty of leg, really well balanced, and she moves really well.”

Of his client, Gowans said, “He is in it to race. We’ve really enjoyed working for him and he was delighted even though we went a little over [budget on the filly]. So that’s always a good thing.”

The yearling was consigned by Candy Meadows Sales and was bred by Matt Lyons’s Three Lyons Racing and Dennis Farkas. Farkas purchased Unforgotten, with this filly in utero, for $75,000 at the 2018 Keeneland November sale.

“Matt [Lyons] was the one who got me going on the mare a couple of years ago,” Farkas said from his home in Indiana. “I really liked her, but she was out of my price range and when she RNA’d in November, Matt asked me if I wanted to go partners on her. I said, ‘Sure.’ After that, it’s been all Matt.”

Of Monday’s results in the sales ring, Farkas said, “Matt was really happy with the way the filly had grown and thought we would do ok with her. He had high expectations, I don’t know if he thought we’d be the sale topper today, but he was very happy and I am, too.”

Unforgotten, who produced a filly by West Coast this year, is Farkas’s only Kentucky-based mare, but he has a band of some 10 mares in Indiana.

“Ian Wilkes trained [2012 GII Indiana Derby winner] Neck ‘n Neck and we ended up getting him back and we brought him up here to Indiana to stand stud,” Farkas said. “I bought five or six mares to breed to him, but toward the end of the breeding season, he got off a mare and kicked the wall and shattered his leg. So my dream of standing a stallion in Indiana ended. It’s pretty costly to take as many mares as I have right now, which is 10, to take them all to Kentucky and get them in foal and bring them back. So I have four I am going to sell in November. But we have some really nice Indiana-bred foals born this year. I have a Maclean’s Music, a Good Magic and a Practical Joke and I ended up getting five Neck ‘n Neck babies, all fillies. And they are good looking, so we’re really happy with that.

He continued, “They have the Indiana-sired program here. They can run against only Indiana-sired horses, which is a big advantage. It’s a great program and I’m leaning towards just staying with that for a little bit.”

Filly a First for Hernon Bloodstock

Michael Hernon, longtime director of sales at Gainesway, made the first purchase for his new bloodstock agency Monday at Keeneland, going to $42,000 to acquire a filly by Speightster (hip 2541) on behalf of Steve and Cynthia Sansone.

“This filly jumped out at me with her motion and she had a very good stride to her,” said Hernon, who partnered with trainer Mark Casse to purchase unbeaten stakes winner Spanish Loveaffair (Karakontie {Jpn}) for $35,000 out of last year’s September sale. “I looked at her three times and she’s a very positive type who moves forward willingly.”

The yearling is out of Diamondsandcaviar (Street Cry {Ire}), a half-sister to Grade I winner Haynesfield (Speightstown).

Hernon made his first purchase under the Michael Hernon Bloodstock banner on a single bid.

“I could have seen her bringing $50,000 and change,” Hernon said. “But we are happy with the price and we’re happy with the horse. She was the first one on our list to come up, I have a couple of other fillies to go through today and we have a short list for tomorrow, so we’ll see how it plays out.”

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The dark bay or brown colt, who breezed an eighth in :10 flat at Sunday's under tack session, is out of Tizacity, by Tizway, a daughter of stakes winner Vindy City.

• Hip No. 724, a son of Malibu Moon consigned by Eddie Woods, Agent, was sold to Carolyn Wilson for $260,000. The bay colt, who worked an under tack quarter in :21 1/5 on Friday, is a half-brother to graded stakes winner Keen Pauline out of Grand Pauline, by Two Punch.
• Hip No. 983, a son of Laoban consigned by Coastal Equine LLC (Jesse Hoppel), Agent, who sped the Sunday under tack session's fastest eighth in :9 4/5, went to Steven W. Young, Agent, for $255,000. The bay colt is out of One Look, by Henny Hughes, a half-sister to graded stakes placed Before You Know It.

• Oracle Bloodstock, Agent for Amanda Butler went to $230,000 for Hip No. 783, Faithful Soldier, a son of Not This Time who turned in an under tack quarter in :21 2/5 on Friday. Consigned by Eddie Woods, Agent, the dark bay or brown colt is out of Impetuous Youth, by Candy Ride (ARG), a daughter of Grade 1 winner I Believe in You.
• Hip No. 859, a daughter of Anchor Down consigned by Julie Davies LLC, Agent, was sold to Down Neck Stables LLC for $200,000. The gray or roan filly, who breezed an eighth on Friday in :10 flat, is a half-sister to graded stakes placed current 3-year-old OBS graduate Dream Marie, second in the recent Delaware Oaks (G3), out of Lin Marie, by Curlin, a daughter of stakes winner Coy Cat.

For the session, 179 2-year-olds sold for a total of $6,396,700, compared with 186 grossing $7,510,100 at last year's third session. The average was $35,736, compared with $40,377 a year ago, while the median price was $15,000, compared to $17,000 in 2019. The buyback percentage was 18.3 percent; it was 15.8 percent last year.

Four older horses sold for $42,000 compared to nine bringing $69,200 in 2019.

For the entire sale, 517 2-year-olds sold for $15,830,800 compared with 615 horses grossing $21,349,300 a year ago. The average was $30,621, compared to $34,714 a year while the median price was $13,000 compared with $17,000 in 2019. The buyback percentage was 20.5 percent; it was 18.7 percent last year.

Next on the OBS agenda is the October Sale, set for Oct. 13 through Oct. 15, featuring Yearlings, 2-Year-Olds in Training and Horses of Racing Age.

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