Campion, who grew up on Dundrum Farm near Midway, Kentucky, graduated with a dual degree in Accounting and Spanish from the University of Kentucky in 2020. After University, Campion completed the Irish National Stud course in Co. Kildare, Ireland.

Campion said, “Since graduation, I've held a role where I was able to use my Spanish in a business setting and also had the opportunity to get some skin in the game doing a couple of pinhooks and having a small consignment of my own. So when this opportunity arose. I was thrilled to build on these experiences and go full time into the business.”

Paramount's Pat Costello added, “I've known Paddy all his life and have seen his passion for our business grow greatly over the last while. I believe he will be a great fit for our company.”

The post Paddy Campion Joins Paramount Sales appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Through both sessions of Book 4, Keeneland sold 606 yearlings for $46,078,000. The book average of $76,036 declined 5.0% from last year, while the median dipped 8.3% to $55,000.

During last year's Book 4 section, 609 yearlings sold for $48,726,500. The section's average was $80,011 and the median was $60,000. The book's top price was $600,000, one of seven to sell for $400,000 or over during the two sessions. Just two hit that mark this year.

With just 55 horses reported not sold Tuesday, the session buy-back rate was 15.45%.

Paramount Sales, which sold the session topper, was the session's leading consignor with 26 head sold for $2,529,000.

“We had a fantastic day,” said Paramount's Pat Costello. “I think we only had three or four RNA's, you can't beat that. It's a great sale, all in all, really. And it's still coming on. I didn't think it would be this strong, but it is.”

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

Candy Grab for Pin Oak

A colt by Twirling Candy (hip 2555) was a clear standout Tuesday at Keeneland, attracting a host of admirers from around the grounds before selling for $925,000 to Jim and Dana Bernhard's Pin Oak Stud. The operation has already enjoyed top-level success with a son of Twirling Candy's sire, Candy Ride (Arg).

“He's a big two-turn looking Twirling Candy with a standout physical,” the Bernhards' advisor Matt Weinmann said of th yearling's appeal. “We've had good luck with the Candy Ride line so far in Geaux Rocket Ride and we want to find 10 more just like him. This colt fits that bill and we're thrilled to have him.”

Geaux Rocket Ride (Candy Ride {Arg}) was one of the Bernhards' first Thoroughbred purchases when they acquired the colt for $350,000 at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton July Sale. He won this year's GI Haskell S. and was second in the GI Pacific Classic.

Bred by Alice Bramford and Highfield Investment Group, hip 2555 is out of Hiking (First Defence) and he was consigned by Paramount Sales.

“Our expectations were high for him,” said Paramount's Pat Costello. “He was a nice individual. He passed everybody and most of the grounds were on him. We were delighted for the breeders and delighted Pin Oak got him.”

Of the colt's final price tag, Costello said with a laugh, “That was on the upper side of our expectations, being honest.”

Also Tuesday, Pin Oak purchased a colt by Oscar Performance (hip 2481) for $105,000. Through eight sessions, the operation has acquired 19 yearlings for $8,835,000.

Belladonna Stays Busy at Keeneland

Trainer Cherie DeVaux continued to add yearlings to the Belladonna Racing partnership into Book 4 at Keeneland, purchasing the top-priced filly of Tuesday's session when going to $275,000 to acquire a daughter of Not This Time (hip 2631)  from the Paramount Sales consignment.

“David [Ingordo] goes out and scouts at the farms,” DeVaux said. “And he had seen this filly out prior to the sale last month and marked her down as a horse to keep an eye on. He waited for her today.”

Also Tuesday, the partnership purchased a colt by Twirling Candy (hip 2159) from Warrendale Sales for $240,000 and a son of Collected (hip 2593) for $80,000.

“You hope it gets more reasonable,” DeVaux said of the market as the Keeneland sale moved into its second week. “But these days, the way the sales have been throughout the last two years, it's been really strong throughout and you have to buy when there is a horse that you like that fits whatever your parameters are. If you try to wait to get more in the later books, it doesn't necessarily translate.”

Through eight sessions, Belladonna has now purchased 18 yearlings for $4,917,000. Leading the way was a Quality Road half-brother to GI Pacific Classic winner Arabian Lion (Uncle Mo) (hip 41) acquired for $500,000 during last Monday's opening session of the auction.

“We are just trying to get the best athlete with some pedigree for what we pay,” said DeVaux. “Some we knew we would have to stretch on, we know, but we were really just trying to stay where we evaluated them.”

Belladonna was represented last season by graded-stakes performers Coastana (Kitten's Joy), third in the GIII Fasig-Tipton Waya S. and the GII Flower Bowl S., and Bout Time (Not This Time), who won the Goldwood S.

“We started out with only getting fillies for the first four years just because that was less risk with having some residual value,” DeVaux said of the evolution of the partnership. “We introduced colts in the last couple of years buying predominately from the yearling sales instead of the 2-year-old sales. And it's gotten a lot bigger. The first group had six and it had four the third year, it continues to evolve in the numbers and the budget.”

The sixth edition of the partnership will continue its shopping next spring.

“We still have some [of the budget] left for the 2-year-old sales,” DeVaux said. “The budget really isn't that much different from last year, it's just our average per horse is less this year than it was last year.”

The post $925k Twirling Candy Colt Stands Out at Keeneland’s Book 4 Finale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

On behalf of our board, and the Dilger Family, we would like to extend a warm thank you to everyone who helped to make this first fundraiser happen. It was great to see so many people come out. We had wonderful support from the equine community.

A very special thank you to Ashford Stud, Eddie Woods, Fasig Tipton, Garrett O'Rourke, Hagyards Equine Medical Institute, Hunter Valley Farm, Ingordo Bloodstock, Keeneland, Kildare Stud, Mark Taylor, Spendthrift Farm, Sterling Thompson, Stonereath, Winchester Feed, and WinStar Farm, who all generously supported us as title sponsors. Thanks to all our other supporters, including our hole sponsors, food and beverage sponsors, signage sponsor, prize sponsors, and all who gave a donation on-site. We would also like to express our gratitude to everyone who donated items for our live auction; Adrian Regan, Archie St, George, the Arvin Family, Aveen Campion, Barry Clohessy, Boyd Browning, Dr.Luke Fallon, Dr. Michael Hore, Dr. Mike Spirito, Eddie Woods, Gabriel Duignan, Jeff Pumphrey, Justin Fister, Ken Donworth, Noel Murphy, Peter Kiely, Zach Phillips. Thank you for your generous donations!

Our live auction was fun and lively. We would also like to thank all the people who purchased items for your generous contribution.

Finally, our organizing committee, Padraig Campion, Ted Campion, Pat Costello, Stuart Fitzgibbon, Dermot Joyce, and Adrian Regan worked tirelessly on planning this event. It would never have happened without all their help and commitment.

Pat Costello, president, commented, “Everyone came out and had fun. It was a beautiful day. We are so happy with the results of this first tournament, and excited about being able to offer even more opportunities to help young people learn about this industry.”

– Erin, Claire, Joseph and Grace Dilger

The post Letter to the Editor: The Dilger Family appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Paramount Sales will serve as agent for the consignment, which this year will catalog 31 broodmares and broodmare prospects with broodmares in foal to Hard Spun, Union Rags and The Factor, as well as to the Wests' champions Game Winner, Maximum Security and West Coast and Grade 3 winner and Grade 1-placed American Freedom.

As the Wests' colts and their Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner New Year's Day were retired to stud, the couple acquired a large number of mares specifically to breed to them.

“We just can't keep them all,” Ben Glass, the Wests' Racing Manager, said about the mares. “It's amazing how quickly we accumulated broodmares. We're up to 100, and we only try to have 50-60. You just have to move those mares down the line. It's a tough decision. For all we know, we're selling the dam of another Grade 1 winner.”

The mares cataloged as part of the Wests' annual reduction represent a diversity of bloodlines, providing breeders with a variety of options for future matings. Included among the sires of their mares are prominent stallions and/or top broodmare sires Candy Ride (ARG), Curlin, Distorted Humor, Giant's Causeway, Into Mischief, Macho Uno, Medaglia d'Oro, Mineshaft, Quality Road, Smart Strike, Speightstown, Storm Cat, Street Cry (IRE) and Uncle Mo.

The Wests have been longtime patrons of Keeneland sales.

They purchased Maximum Security's sire, New Year's Day, at Keeneland's 2012 September Yearling Sale. They purchased the champion's dam, Lil Indy, in foal to Pioneerof the Nile at the 2014 January Horses of All Ages Sale and resold her carrying a full sister to Maximum Security at the 2018 November Sale.

The Wests also acquired American Freedom, Game Winner and West Coast at the September Sale, along with Dream Lady, who produced their G1 Central Bank Ashland dead-heat winner Room Service.

Glass said the choice of the November Sale as the venue for the Wests' annual reduction of broodmares stemmed from their working relationship with Keeneland and the sales company's broad international buying base.

“We have a good working relationship with Keeneland,” Glass said. “They have always done a good job for us. There is a buyer there for every mare.”

While each mare cataloged to this year's November Sale has a lot to offer, Paramount's Pat Costello said several have attributes that will attract enhanced attention from buyers:

• Sweet Sweet Annie (Hip 684), a 6-year-old mare by Curlin produced from multiple stakes winner Song for Annie and in foal to West Coast, is a half-sister to multiple stakes winner Successful Song.
• Applaud (Hip 751), a 3-year-old daughter of Medaglia d'Oro also is in foal to West Coast.
• Media Circus (Hip 948), a 3-year-old by Mineshaft, descends from the female family of Grade 1 winner and sire Tapizar.

“Sweet Sweet Annie is a fine mare with good size and is from a hell of a family,” Costello said. “Applaud is a lovely individual from a real deep family that goes back to Hold That Tiger and Editor's Note. Media Circus is also another nice mare, and she is from the family of Tapizar.”

Costello reiterated that the Wests are trying to trim their numbers with the reduction.

“They can't keep them all.” Costello said. “They have a tremendous broodmare band and have fillies they race coming off the track and adding to it.”

“The Wests are passionate Thoroughbred owners and breeders, who have been very loyal patrons of Keeneland and have realized some of their greatest triumphs in racing thanks to horses they acquired here,” Keeneland Vice President of Sales Tony Lacy said. “We are grateful for the opportunity to annually offer mares from such a successful operation as an added attraction of the November Sale.”

The post Keeneland November Sale To Feature Draft Of Mares From Gary And Mary West appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

The Wests had acquired a significant number of mares in past years to support their colts who were going off to stud.

“We just can't keep them all,” said racing and bloodstock advisor Ben Glass. “It's amazing how quickly we accumulated broodmares. We're up to 100, and we only try to have 50-60. You just have to move those mares down the line. It's a tough decision. For all we know, we're selling the dam of another Grade I winner.”

The Wests have been longtime patrons of Keeneland, acquiring many of their stand-out runners at the September yearling sale, including American Freedom, Game Winner and West Coast. They purchased Maximum Security's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile-winning sire New Year's Day for $425,000 at KEESEP '12, and his dam Lil Indy (Anasheed) for $80,000 at the 2014 Keeneland January sale while in foal to Pioneerof the Nile.

“We have a good working relationship with Keeneland,” Glass said. “They have always done a good job for us. There is a buyer there for every mare.”

Among the Paramount-consigned West offerings at Keeneland November will be Sweet Sweet Annie (Curlin, hip 684), a daughter of MSW Song for Annie (Sultry Song) and half to MSW/MGSP Successful Song (Successful Appeal) offered in foal to West Coast; 3-year-old Applaud (Medaglia d'Oro, hip 751), also in foal to West Coast; and Media Circus (Mineshaft, hip 948), another 3-year-old who hails from the deep female family of Olympio, Tapizar, etc.

“Sweet Sweet Annie is a fine mare with good size and is from a hell of a family,” Paramount's Pat Costello said. “Applaud is a lovely individual from a real deep family that goes back to Hold That Tiger and Editor's Note. Media Circus is also another nice mare, and she is from the family of Tapizar.”

Keeneland Vice President of Sales Tony Lacy said, “The Wests are passionate Thoroughbred owners and breeders, who have been very loyal patrons of Keeneland and have realized some of their greatest triumphs in racing thanks to horses they acquired here. We are grateful for the opportunity to annually offer mares from such a successful operation as an added attraction of the November Sale.”

The post Gary & Mary West to Reduce Broodmare Band at Keeneland November appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

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.”

The post Return To The Ring: Keeneland September’s RNA Re-Offer Sparks Trade In Different Ways appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

The Breeding Stock Sale was introduced by Fasig-Tipton on June 15, less than a month before the auction was to take place on July 12. The initial announcement centered around the Far From Over/Fountain of Youth Dispersal, but it invited other sellers to enter the catalog with their mares and foals to take advantage of the tentpole liquidation.

Summer broodmare sales are uncommon on the U.S. landscape, save for an urgent dispersal here and there, meaning the July Breeding Stock Sale would be an untested marketplace in a business that clings harder to the sure things each passing year. Entering the sale would be a leap of faith, with the hopes that buyers would be there to catch the horses on the other side.

How successful that leap was depended on who one asked around the sales grounds on Monday afternoon, but the general ethos in the new offering didn't change from what one might see in any other sale.

“It seems like if you have something of quality, in foal to a quality horse, they're going to buy them, and I don't think it matters if it's now or November,” said Gainesway's Brian Graves.

Gainesway handled the breeding stock session's highest-priced offering, Jeweled Princess, a Cairo Prince mare who sold in foal to Horse of the Year Gun Runner to Stoneriggs Farm for $225,000.

Graves said the mare's owner contacted him about her potential chances in the new sale when it was announced, and they agreed she could do well in the venue, which was a common refrain among several consignors when it came to recruiting prospects for the auction, even on relatively short notice.

“When Fasig announced that they were going to have that dispersal, and they were opening up, the phone really started ringing for us,” said Mark Taylor of Taylor Made Sales Agency. “It wasn't a lot of arm-twisting, it was really more people calling and saying, 'I really hadn't thought about it, but I've got this mare I'd like to turn into some cash; I'm going into the yearling market, or whatever, and I just would rather get the money now, as opposed to pay bills and wait until November.'”

Consignors said the opportunity for mid-season liquidity on the open market was one of the sale's biggest selling points their clients discussed when considering a mare for the sale.

“Generally speaking, we did reach out, but didn't get a great reception,” said Derek MacKenzie of Vinery Sales. “Most of the ones we got, the people called us – partnership dispersal type stuff. Most people thought it was better to wait until fall.”

MacKenzie said the market showed up for his mare in foal to Omaha Beach, who is likely to be an early leader among commercial sires when his first foals hit the sales ring later this year. However, there was not as much depth as he'd hoped for horses below that level, and having a foal on the ground next to the mare was not necessarily the selling point one might assume it would be.

The buyer ranks made it clear that young mares were a priority on Monday. Of the six horses to sell for six-figure prices, only one had more than two foals on her produce record.

“I probably would have missed the market a little bit,” said Fasig-Tipton president Boyd Browning. “I was really surprised with how well some of the in-foal mares and broodmare prospects sold that weren't part of the dispersal. I was a little surprised that some of the mares with foals at their side didn't bring a little more money, but it's making a significant commitment to buy a mare that might have five or six foals on the ground. We've seen that be an area of weakness in the marketplace, whether it's in November, January, or February, and it's still there.”

However, that's not to say having a mare with a foal at her side made her an instant disqualifier in the July marketplace. Taylor said that the sale's placement on the calendar, before the foals are weaned from their mothers, has the potential to open up a more diverse group of buyers in time.

“We're pretty new into this, but I definitely thinks it was a plus,” he said. “It gets weanling pinhookers basically bidding on mares. Then, it gets mare buyers bidding also, so it just opens it up. A mare we sold for $40,000, the baby by her side was a Big Brown, but it was a New York-bred, and a really good foal. She's in foal to Maclean's Music, and I think a lot of people said, 'Man, if she can have a Maclean's Music that looks like that Big Brown, I'm rolling.'”

So much of selling a Thoroughbred comes down to getting the horse to look their best when they arrive at the sales grounds, and for those who might be looking to sell a young horse as a weanling in the fall, Taylor said moving ahead in the calendar to July might help a few horses be at their most marketable.

“When you're selling foals in the fall that have been weaned, it eliminates at least half of the foals from being good candidates, because the weaning process makes them go into a crash,” he said. “They get a weaning crash, where they lose weight, they lose their topline, they don't look as good as they did before, so this allows you to sell a foal that looks in good shape – still got that milk fat, looks good – but when you pull them off the mare, a lot of them just go really downhill, and you can't get them back to where they should be by November. This is just a whole new way to do commerce surrounding foals.

“A lot of times, you go look at all these babies before they're weaned, and I'll be giving a lot of high grades,” Taylor continued, “but then you go back and look at them in October when they've all just been weaned for a few months, all my grades go down, because they're pot-bellied, they've got no top line, they look like little guppies.”

From the group of six horses that sold for $100,000 or more on Monday from the breeding stock session, five of them came from outside the tentpole dispersal, proving there was buyer interest beyond the headline act.

There likely won't be a dispersal to serve as the foundation of future July Breeding Stock Sale catalogs, should it become an annual part of Fasig-Tipton's calendar, but solid returns among the sellers who took the chance in the new market could help fill catalogs in the future.

“The people that brought them thought there was an opportunity, and I agree with them,” said Pat Costello of consignor Paramount Sales. “I think it was a success.”

The post Selling Around The Dispersal: Sellers Navigated Uncharted Waters In Fasig-Tipton July Breeding Stock Sale appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post