LEXINGTON, KY–The market remained competitive as Book 3 of the Keeneland November Sale closed its two-day run Friday with a frenzy of activity towards the end of the session. After a slow, but steady beginning to the day, Spritz (Awesome Again) (Hip 1747) commanded everyone's attention deep into the session, topping the day's action at $550,000 from Gary Holland's Kamden Racing. She is carrying her first foal by Quality Road.
The day's co-second-highest priced offering came just six hips later when the Brogdens fended off all comers for a mare from a family very close to their hearts, the $400,000 Stonetonic (Candy Ride {Arg}), who sold in foal to Yaupon.
SF Bloodstock, who sold the topper, was also responsible for the other $400,000 mare Hotshot Anna (Trappe Shot) (Hip 1561), who was also in foal to Quality Road. She was bought by Frederick and May Construction.
They also bred the weanling co-topper, a $175,000 daughter of first-crop sire McKinzie. That filly tied a filly from the first crop of champion Game Winner at $175,000. Coincidentally, both of those first-season stallions were bred by Jane Lyon's Summer Wind Farm, which, of course, produced superstar Flightline.
During Friday's session, a total of 246 head grossed $18,641,500 compared to last year when 282 horses brought $19,590,500. However, average was up from $69,470 to $75,778 and median was up from $57,000 to $60,000. The RNA rate increased from 15.32% for the fifth session last year to 21.41% this term.
Through the first five days of selling, 1,041 horses have sold for $182,437,00, well ahead of last year when 1,120 grossed $166,206,000. Average is up to $175,252 compared to $148,398 last year and median increased from $95,000 to $100,000. The RNA rate was up from 20.90% to 25.38%.
“I think the market is good. It is a careful market,” said Neal Clarke of Bedouin Bloodstock, which sold the mare and weanling toppers Friday and were the session's leading consignor by average. “There is plenty of money there for the right stock. I don't think a high tide raises all boats. I think it raises a lot of them, but others get left by the wayside. I think it is a very good sale. We are enjoying it. Long may it last.”
Carrie Brogden noted that as we reach the midway point of the sale, a stronger middle market is starting to emerge.
“We walk up here looking to spend $100,000 or $200,000 on a mare and they bring $390,000 or $350,000,” the horsewoman said. “I think there is plenty of money for those that tick all the boxes. It is very strong for quality. I will say things are starting to change here and there is more of a middle market for weanlings.”
The Keeneland November Sale continues through Wednesday with sessions starting at 10 a.m. and is followed by a single-session Horses of Racing Age Sale Thursday.
Spritz Tops Strong Day For SF
Mares sold by Gavin Murphy's SF Bloodstock have been extremely popular this week at Keeneland and two of them topped Friday's trade during the Book 3 closer. Spritz (Awesome Again) (Hip 1747) was the session topper, bringing $550,000 from new owner Gary Holland's Kamden Racing, and Hotshot Anna (Trappe Shot) (Hip 1561) shared the second spot at $400,000 from Frederick and May Construction. Both mares were sold by Bedouin Bloodstock carrying foals by Quality Road.
“It's been a great sale for us,” said SF's Caroline Wilson. “They are both in foal to Quality Road and are both great mares, who we thought would suit the sale very well. Obviously, we are invested in Quality Road. We have a lot of faith in him. He really adds value to his mares. We thought they would be great sale prospects and they have not let us down.”
Bred by SF in partnership with Tony Holmes, Spritz raced under SF's colors after they bought out their partner at KEESEP for $140,000. Out of SW Holy Blitz (Holy Bull), the 4-year-old filly is a half-sister to champion female sprinter Judy the Beauty (Ghostzapper). Spritz was stakes-placed during her 11-race career and is carrying her first foal.
“I bought this for a new guy, Gary Holland,” said Darby Dan's Charlie McKinlay, who signed the ticket as Kamden Racing. “He just bought the old Windhaven Farm. This mare will be the top of the heap. He is just getting into the game. He lives in northern Kentucky and owns a bunch of restaurants in the area, like the Merrick Inn.”
McKinlay added, “I think she really stood out today. I think she was the prettiest one by far.”
Hotshot Anna, who is also carrying her first foal, was a dual graded winner who earned just over $975,000. The SF team purchased her for $100,000 at the 2020 renewal of this auction.
“We purchase mares with two ideas in mind,” Wilson said. “We may keep them in our broodmare band and take foals out of them or we may breed them and put them back into the market. We thought this was a good opportunity to put Hotshot Anna back into the market. She was a tremendous racehorse and now in foal to Quality Road, which makes her appealing and an exciting horse to sell.”
She continued, “Spritz we actually co-bred with our good friend Tony Holmes. We purchased her as a yearling and raced her ourselves. She got her stakes placing with our friend Rodolphe Brisset. She was a special horse for us. We bred her to Quality Road and thought it was a good time to put her back in the market. We are delighted with how she has done.”
SF also bred and sold the weanling co-topper, a $175,000 filly (Hip 1594) from the first crop of MGISW McKinzie.
Anna Still a 'Hotshot' at Keeneland
MGSW Hotshot Anna (Trappe Shot) (Hip 1561) was back in the spotlight at Keeneland Friday, summoning $400,000 from Chad and Todd Frederick's Frederick & May Construction while carrying her first foal by Quality Road.
“We have been wanting to pick up a mare,” said Chad Frederick. “We have lost out on several, so we decided this was one we were going after. A racemare in foal to Quality Road meant a lot.”
As for the price, he said, “It was a little more [than we thought], but it was our limit. The market is very strong.”
The Frederick brothers bought a pair of weanlings post sale, a $100,000 Bolt d'Oro colt (Hip 1031) and a $90,000 Audible filly (Hip 1007). Todd Frederick also signed the ticket on A Bit of Both (Paynter) (Hip 1412), who brought $110,000 in foal to McKinzie.
Hotshot Anna was a six-time black-type winner, with two of those being graded events. She had 12 wins in total from 27 starts and earnings over $975,000. SF Bloodstock purchased her for just $100,000 at the 20202 KEENOV sale.
“We were hoping for this,” said Neal Clarke of Bedouin Bloodstock, which consigned the 8-year-old mare. “Everybody really, really liked her. It is very hard to find a mare that had that graded stakes-winning streak that she had. Twelve wins, seven seconds, a real racemare and in foal to Quality Road. It was the perfect package.”
Bedouin and SF have been having a very good November Sale, including selling the day three topper, the $1-million Proud Emma (Include), who is in foal to Charlatan.
Stonetonic a Sentimental Purchase For Brogden
It is no secret just how special the aptly named Special Me (Unbridled's Song) is to Carrie Brogden. Purchased for just $6,000, the now-17-year-old mare has produced four graded winners, two at the Grade I level, and the Brogdens have sold her offspring for a combined $3.081 million over the past decade.
Brogden and her husband Craig, who operate Machmer Hall Farm with her mother Sandra Fubini, have not retained any of Special Me's daughters, so they were hell bent on acquiring her grandaughter Stonetonic (Candy Ride {Arg}) Friday and were successful at $400,000. The 4-year-old sold in foal to new sire Yaupon.
“Special Me has paid for everything,” said Brogden as she choked back tears after Craig Brogden signed the ticket out back. “She has paid for our kids' education, our house. Special Me is getting old now and we don't know how many more foals we will get out of her. She had a Curlin filly that got kicked and killed in a freak paddock accident, which just broke my heart. She has a Twirling Candy filly in her belly and people ask if we are going to keep her. She will be a half to four graded winners. They get to be so valuable.”
The Brogdens and Fubini bred Stonetonic's fleet-footed dam Stonetastic (Mizzen Mast), who was Special Me's second foal and brought $77,000 as a KEESEP yearling from Stoneway Farm. She went on to win four black-type events, two at the graded level, and was Grade I-placed for earnings over $856,000.
Stonetastic was Special Me's first black-type winner and was followed by Grade I winners Gift Box (Twirling Candy) and Gina Romantica (Into Mischief)–a seven-figure yearling and recent winner of the GI QEII Challenge Cup here at Keeneland–as well as MGSW Special Forces (Candy Ride {Arg}).
The first foal out of Stonetastic, Stonetonic (Hip 1753) was retained by Stoneway Farm and never made the races. She is carrying her first foal by new Spendthrift stallion Yaupon (Uncle Mo).
“This filly was so much like Stonetastic, who was a beautiful, beautiful yearling,” said Carrie Brogden. “We were going to buy her no matter what she cost! I was kind of hoping no one else felt about her the way we did. I was told Mandy Pope did. We love the mating with Yaupon, too.”
She continued, “When you make millions of dollars out of a mare and then all those horses run and win and have heart and beauty and they vet, we are just very blessed. David Ingordo, who bought Gift Box off of us, bought Stonetastic's Gun Runner [filly for $925,000] in September [at Keeneland], so we have a lot of faith in that program.”
McKinzie's First Crop Proves Popular at KEENOV
The first foals by MGISW McKinzie (Street Sense) were in high demand at Keeneland this week with one of his daughters co-topping all weanlings during Friday's session. Hip 1594 summoned $175,000 from Creek Bloodstock, tying a colt from the first crop of champion Game Winner (Hip 1735) for top-priced weanling. Another filly by the Gainesway stallion (Hip 1551) sold for $170,000 to Teddy Town Racing.
“We are proud to be shareholders in McKinzie,” said Caroline Wilson of SF Bloodstock, which bred Hip 1594. “We had a lovely weanling out of Lady Rapper. We are very pleased with how that filly sold. Bedouin has done a great job for us. We got a lot of action today. The price was great for her.”
Hailing from the same farm that produced Flightline and Game Winner, Jane Lyon's Summer Wind Farm, McKinzie won five Grade Is at varying distances throughout his career and was a solid second to champion Vino Rosso in the GI Breeders' Cup Classic. The 'TDN Rising Star' has had 22 weanlings sell so far at Keeneland for a total of $3.13 million and an average of $142,273.
“We are really thrilled with the way the marketplace has accepted the McKinzies,” said Gainesway's Brian Graves, who consigned Hip 1551. “When we first started looking at the offspring of the stallion, it was obvious he was really stamping and that's what we've put out there. They are all these big, leggy, bay horses with big, long, beautiful necks just like him. They are correct and we are thrilled. It is just as optimistic a start for a stud as we could hope for.”
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