Tag: spendthrift

Quality And Quantity Together Secure Mischief Fifth Title

By this stage, we can really talk about living in “the Into Mischief era.” Not just because the Spendthrift phenomenon ends 2023 by sealing a fifth consecutive general sires' title, but also because he has become the definitive stallion of our times.

In some respects, New Year's Day is a more literal turning point for our sport than other walks of life. For bureaucratic purposes, the weanlings of today become the short yearlings of tomorrow; and Into Mischief himself takes one step closer to veteran status, as he enters his 19th year. On the other hand, our cycles demand too much patience for anyone simply to wipe the slate clean every year. Every program, on or off the track, enters 2024 with a pretty clear trajectory. That may depend on how many (or few) mares your stallion has covered over the past two or three years; or perhaps on the caliber of those randomly selected by fate for the injuries annually inevitable in the paddocks or in training.

And, actually, it is precisely those two variables that have combined to create the age of Into Mischief, and the industrial system on which he has built his hegemony. Quality still sells, as he has shown, but nowadays it's commercially imperative to have a foundation of quantity.

Into Mischief has not quite matched the new mark he set last year, when his stock exceeded $28.5 million in earnings. At $25,893,748 million this time round, however, he has eclipsed the record he had established the previous year, when narrowly becoming the first sire ever to tip $25 million. (He had already been the first to break $20 million, back in 2020.) His latest haul is the work of 209 winners overall, 26 at stakes and 14 at graded level, six of those in the top tier–figures unmatched in each category other than by Justify, whose half-dozen elite winners either side of the water appear to identify a young stallion with global potential. Into Mischief's overall 54 black-type performers, 31 graded stakes horses, and 13 Grade I placers similarly represent the highest in those indices, as well. (All these figures updated to December 30.)

So, guess what: you breed to Into Mischief at $250,000, or buy one of his 15 seven-figure yearlings in 2023 (another record, overtaking Storm Cat's 13 in 2005), and he will almost certainly get you a racehorse; and very possibly a champion. But we know how the model works, on these high-volume farms, even for much less competent stallions–and the fact remains that Into Mischief also has the highest number of starters, at a staggering 462. That's more than the two on the other steps of the general sires' podium for 2024, Curlin (238 starters) and Gun Runner (201), combined!

In terms of ratios, therefore, both those horses have this year beaten Into Mischief across the board. The simplest measure of all is earnings per starter: Into Mischief is on $56,047, which puts him 10th overall. Gun Runner, with only a third crop of juveniles to add to his first 4-year-olds and sophomores, this year has an average yield per starter of $87,027; and Curlin, $78,126.

Gun Runner's 16 stakes winners in 2024 represent eight percent of starters, against 5.6 percent for Into Mischief; his dozen graded stakes scorers equated to six percent, doubling the champion's clip; and his trio of Grade I winners are among 11 elite performers overall, a remarkable 5.5 percent of starters, again doubling the rate of Into Mischief.

Now it is true that Into Mischief's sophomores this year were his first foals conceived at $150,000; and his juveniles at $175,000. His incoming 2-year-olds, including all those seven-figure yearlings, were conceived at $225,000, and the next lot are the first at his current fee of $250,000. So his current racetrack stock is only just reflecting his emergence as an eligible partner for the very best mares around, their attention having been stimulated by the likes of Practical Joke (foaled 2014) and Audible (2015). Breeders who were finally won over only by Authentic (2017) or Life Is Good (2018) have not yet put their stretchy, Classic stock into play, and it's reasonable to expect Into Mischief to complete his rise from famously humble origins with stronger percentages. Remember both Curlin and Gun Runner were Horses of the Year that started out at $75,000/$70,000.

Nonetheless he must divide the plaudits with both his pursuers. Curlin's haul of $18,594,100 consolidates his claims as one of the best never to have his status formally gilded by a sires' championship. He was runner-up as long ago as 2016, to Tapit, and again in Into Mischief's first year, 2019; and he finished third in 2021 and 2022, in which years he was the only sire to produce five and six Grade I winners respectively. He has mustered another five this year, including the pair who repeated their Breeders' Cup success, besides a landmark 100th stakes winner. Overall, he's going to get you a horse placed at Grade I level from every 25 named foals, essentially the same as Tapit and bettered only by War Front among active sires. And he's priced accordingly nowadays, too–having last year earned a hike from $175,000 to $225,000, he joins Into Mischief at $250,000 in 2024.

As for Gun Runner, up to third place on $17,492,408 after reaching No. 6 with only his second crop last year, he has now confirmed that some of his maturing stock (though having shown unexpected precocity overall) will thrive as he did himself. Interestingly, his third crop of juveniles has made a better start than did his second, and he obviously has time on his side: he turns 11, as Curlin hits 20.

The question now is whether his growing resources might close the gap on Into Mischief, or whether the champion will extend his dominion for two more years, so matching the storied seven-year streak of Bold Ruler himself.

It's a whole different world from the one dominated by Bold Ruler, of course. True, the top three have now reached such inaccessible fees that even Into Mischief's book dwindled to “only” 177 mares last spring, from 202 the previous year; while Gun Runner covered 166 mares, having been busiest of all with 256 in 2022. But the commercial frenzy otherwise remains unabated. Two farms, in particular, appeared to be pointedly unfettered last spring after thwarting an attempt to limit books to 140 mares.

Everyone will have their own views on a rookie turf sprinter covering 293 mares, but the bottom line is that Ashford and Spendthrift between them will be accounting for an astounding percentage of the 2024 foal crop. Their stallions collectively entertained well over 5,000 mares, and the foal crop is projected at 18,000. Don't get me wrong, many other farms would have no qualms about emulating them, as we see from the numbers they accommodate whenever possible. All I'm saying is that this kind of production line brings with it a lot of responsibility, in terms of what the modern Thoroughbred can or should be.

Regardless, few will be quibbling with the way Into Mischief has made the numbers game work. He's obviously become a remarkable influence, serving as both prototype and paragon for an era we can now brand with his name. In his early struggles, remember, he was one of the original prompts for the late B. Wayne Hughes to shake things up with his 'Share The Upside' scheme. That was the “bold” bit, and now Into Mischief is threatening to prove a “ruler” of unprecedented longevity.

Mitole | Sarah Andrew

Freshmen Sires

The same farm that has supervised Into Mischief's ground-breaking career dominated the 2023 first-crop sires' table throughout, in the process vindicating a conspicuous evolution in strategy to upgrade its roster.

Again, the four Spendthrift sires who confined the freshman title race to their own barn were all able to benefit from much volume. Vino Rosso had 155 live foals in his debut crop, for instance, and Mitole 147. It actually remains tight enough at the top that the last couple of days could conceivably make a difference, but as things stand it is Mitole who claims the laurels, whether by prizemoney ($2,356,418 against $2,189,482 for Maximus Mischief, with Vino Rosso breathing down their necks on $2,146,186) or individual winners (33, two more than “Max”).

Mitole's eligibility for the crown is underlined by his status as the only one of the top four to have managed a graded stakes winner, joining just Flameaway and Solomini in what has proved a historically underachieving class overall. Last year's intake accumulated 15 such scorers, and the preceding years managed 13, 11 and 12. The last group to underperform by this measure, in 2018, has duly turned out to contain no real stars, with only four still in the Bluegrass and none standing for more than $15,000.

So the pressure is on this latest group. If you get volume, it's over to you. You have an opportunity denied to other perfectly feasible prospects, and must respond with results. In this day and age, when we know that most stallions will have their biggest and best books in their debut season, the whole commercial prejudice in favor of new sires makes no sense unless they capitalize on all those mares by producing a Grade I winner or two. That could very easily still happen, of course, once this lot are represented by their first sophomores: Vino Rosso had four horses placed at the elite level this year, and his own template suggests that his stock will keep thriving; while Omaha Beach, who will have received the classiest mares, has so far launched barely half his named foals, compared with two-thirds already out for Maximus Mischief. Even as it is, Omaha Beach's nine stakes performers are a joint high for the class at 15 percent of starters.

Credit, regardless, to Flameaway for doing best of those trying to break up the Spendthrift monopoly. He admittedly had pretty good numbers behind him, as well, but stands alone with four stakes winners to date. Only Maximus Mischief and Solomini have three.

And Solomini has 69 named foals in New York. How many of these high-volume sires have genuinely proved themselves to be better conduits of genetic prowess than Solomini or, say, Divisidero? Among the main protagonists, champion elect Mitole has the highest percentage of winners-to-starters at 42 percent. Divisidero has four winners from 10 starters including a Grade II-placed stakes winner (from three starts). But having been so recklessly uncommercial as to win graded stakes five seasons running, he has no more than 23 live foals in his debut crop.

Congratulations, all the same, to those that have worked the system. Every year there are new sires that don't convert opportunity into commensurate results, but three of the Spendthrift four (the exception, curiously, being the champion) and Flameaway have all earned fee increases for 2024.

Second-crop Sires etc.

The freshman class of 2023 will do well to emulate their predecessors, who have had an exceptional campaign. Good Magic got the Derby winner at the first attempt, while Justify has the world at his feet after producing six elite scorers either side of the Atlantic.

The emergence of an outstanding champion juvenile in Europe seals the impression that Justify could become the crossover stallion urgently required to reconcile disastrously segregated gene pools. He too had the inevitable quantity behind him as well, but he's maintained a wholesome tangent between the two with 10 graded/group winners in 2023 representing a class-high 5.7 percent of starters.

It was hard work, even so, to hold off Good Magic for the second-crop laurels at $9,886,177 to $9,433,728, with Bolt d'Oro third on $7,274,729. Good Magic got his dozen stakes winners this year at 8 percent of starters, measuring up to Justify's 15 at 8.5 percent, and he's actually top by earnings-per-starter at $63,314, though Justify ($56,171) has doubtless paid in that respect for having such good horses contesting internationally uncompetitive purses over the water!

Justify has only started 62 percent of his named foals, perhaps partly because he may have a few later developers like himself. Be that as it may, the 70 of his 140 named juveniles to have made the starting gate sufficed to make him the leading sire of 2-year-olds by a handsome margin, banking $4,870,920, miles clear of Constitution on $2,798,468.

Justify had six graded/group scorers among his 2-year-olds, with only Gun Runner getting close on four. Otherwise only Good Magic, Nyquist, Malibu Moon and Ghostzapper had two; Into Mischief was among those with one, but he made it count in the GI Champagne S. Even so, given the frantic demand for precocity, you will find some very expensive sires looking rather tepid in this table.

TDN stats incorporate worldwide earnings but that rather distorts the turf title, where Medaglia d'Oro owed around 70 percent of his $7,987,931 earnings to Hong Kong moneyspinner Golden Sixty! Otherwise, another championship could be posthumously awarded to English Channel on $6,859,169. Let's call him the domestic champion, at any rate, in a division for now dominated by veteran (War Front next on $6,600,220) or departed sires.

Much the youngest player here is American Pharoah, who confirms his aptitude for the discipline in finishing just cents off fifth-placed… Into Mischief! A lot of perceived dirt sires would prove barely less effective on turf, judging from the results achieved by lesser stock that will typically only even try it because they're not working out on the main track. Insular European stables take note!

The post Quality And Quantity Together Secure Mischief Fifth Title appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Value Sires For 2024, Part 4: Into The Teens

Today we'll consider some of the sires standing between $10,001 and $19,999. For a long time, I called this the Lookin At Lucky zone. But don't worry, we won't be deploring his neglect yet again: he's staying in Chile, where they evidently appreciate him rather more.

Plenty of horses in this bracket have recently relinquished their brief window of commercial opportunity, and are now hanging around to discover whether they might join the very small group whose first runners generate a fresh vogue. Even with the newcomers out of the equation–we gave them a separate assessment, to open the series–we're left with three groups still untested on the track: those expecting their first foals; those who have just sold their first weanlings; and those actually about to dip a toe in the water with their first runners.

Pending that crossroads, many find themselves somewhat adrift against a bunch of older sires who have survived that test. These fit this tier either because they are losing stature or, more cheerfully, because they have carved out a viable niche as an affordable source of winners.

First the young guns. Of those who sent their first yearlings to auction this year, the ones who really nailed it, unsurprisingly, vaunted the kind of speed that pinhookers crave.

VOLATILE burned brightly in a light career, not seen again after confirming his Grade I caliber against a small but select field in the Vanderbilt. His 112 Beyer in the Aristides S. (1:07.57) was the highest of 2020 and duly secured 181 mares the following spring. Himself an $850,000 yearling, with a GI Test/GI Ballerina winner as granddam, his $125,431 average was boosted by a spectacular $1.15 million docket for a Book 1 filly at Keeneland in September. Nudged back up to $15,000 (from $12,500), Volatile has three hefty books behind him and will be the horse to beat for the freshman title next year.

But not even his median yield of 4.3 on his opening fee ($75,000/ $17,500) could match that of COMPLEXITY, whose $65,000 median (never mind his average $90,400!) multiplied his $12,500 fee by 5.2. Complexity started with some serious volume by the restrained standards of his farm, and then followed through with another three-figure book in his second season. He was clearly in the same vicinity as Volatile as a mature horse (110 Beyer in the GII Kelso) but was the more accomplished juvenile, wiring a Saratoga maiden (90 Beyer) before a decisive success in the GI Champagne S. on his second start. His half-sister ran second in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies, so their unraced dam is obviously channelling the good stuff.

VEKOMA is meanwhile working the Spendthrift system with remarkable efficiency, having started out (at $20,000) with staggering volume, entertaining at least 200 mares in each of his first three seasons. This year he processed 102 of his first yearlings at $98,432, albeit was unsurprisingly stretched somewhat thinner by a median of $60,000. Though confined to eight starts across three seasons, he was class from beginning to end, posting big numbers for his Grade I double in the Carter and Met Mile. From a stallion-producing family, he's a horse I've liked all the way through and everything is in place for him to look after many (albeit probably not all!) of his (very many!) clients at $15,000.

Knicks Go | Sarah Andrew

Among those in this intake offering rather more stretch, one or two suffered horrible yearling medians relative to conception fee. But one who made a solid start off $12,500 was Bolt d'Oro's half-brother GLOBAL CAMPAIGN: 74 yearlings sold at $63,195 (median $43,500). This was a more talented animal than generally appreciated and I can see him proving himself a bargain gateway to Curlin. A closer look at his family shows that it tends to produce faster types than are associated with the seeding sires, and Global Campaign's first crop of 126 live foals may surprise a few people with their dash.

Of those who sold their first weanlings this fall, meanwhile, the one that will sort out the sheep and the goats is KNICKS GO. No questioning his talent, it was just never quite obvious where it all came from–albeit his dam maintained stakes speed through four seasons. Those who didn't require a more familiar pedigree were delighted to see a Horse of the Year introduced at just $30,000. Well, now they can get him for half that, even though he's still nearly 18 months away from the opportunity to demonstrate whether or not he can replicate his brilliance! At this money, some people will surely want to roll the dice.

Even as it is, his weanlings sold a little better than those of SILVER STATE. But it's very early days for the latter, whose pedigree in contrast elucidates all the class he manifested as a runner. A friendly clip to $15,000 should hopefully keep him in the game because this horse equipped to prove a really wholesome influence.

The subsequent intake features some truly frightening books, but I will resist dwelling on that here. Suffice to say that those playing a longer game might quite like a filly by either SPEAKER'S CORNER or MYSTIC GUIDE. Both have taken an early trim at Darley, respectively to $17,500 and $12,500, and their pedigrees shout distaff influence.

We'll have to see how many of the youngsters will endure even in this relatively modest tier, a few years from now. Nor does a flying start bring any guarantees, as UNION RAGS could caution them. The halving of his fee to $15,000 acknowledges the way he has faltered, having stood at $60,000 between 2018 and 2020. Trade for his latest yearlings made this further cut imperative, but he's still the same horse that so quickly came up with five Grade I winners. Hopefully he will find a little oxygen now that he has descended to more accessible altitudes.

Studmate DAREDEVIL has taken his second cut since returning to the U.S., now down to $15,000, but of course it's only in 2024 that we'll get to assess the first juveniles conceived after Swiss Skydiver prompted his urgent repatriation. Their sales performance demanded a mild trim in fee, but he could easily be poised for fresh momentum.

MENDELSSOHN has also taken consecutive cuts, similarly now available at $15,000. He has so far been more about quantity than quality but his supporters will hope that he can still emulate four others, standing at the same fee, who have all done admirably to create a lasting foothold in this most slippery of markets.

The first of these, DIALED IN, is something of a blue-collar hero. He maintains such high volume–corralled 175 mares last spring, his 10th at stud–that it will always be hard, with the raw materials available at this level, to make his ratios “sing”. But Defunded has once again shown the caliber within his competence as his third elite scorer. Dialed In gets his work done at a fair tariff, and will keep plugging away to leave behind many of those now starting at multiples of his fee.

Cairo Prince | Sarah Andrew

CAIRO PRINCE has also created a sustainable brand for himself through six crops, as attested by a solid book of 129 mares last spring. A set-your-clock black-type producer throughout, he's now entering the territory where he can legitimately prove a mare–and of course he gets such a nice type, the average ($54,194) and median ($40,000) of his latest yearlings duly best among this proven quartet.

MIDSHIPMAN is a true yeoman and it's typical of this business that he should have had a quieter year (by his very special standards) both on the track and in the sales ring after finally doubling his fee to $20,000 last year–due recognition for having punched above weight for so long. His lifetime stats remain ridiculous for a stallion who has largely been a four-figure cover: 47 stakes winners at 6.4 percent of named foals, nine at graded stakes level; and 101 black-type performers overall, at 13.7 percent. The trim back to $15,000 brings him back towards the reach of breeders who most appreciate just what he can do for their mares.

KANTHAROS, who has really pulled himself up by his bootstraps, had another very solid year on the track. He has made the same slip in fee, reflecting a tepid book of mares last spring and a challenging yield on yearlings conceived at $30,000. But that was an experience shared by many sires exposed to a porous middle market, and the fact is that Kantharos lurks only just outside the top 10 in the 2023 general sires' list with a dozen stakes winners, including a couple at graded level. His lifetime ratio of stakes runners–11 percent of named foals–remains outstanding for a horse whose first five books were compiled in Florida at just $5,000.

He sired two Grade I winners at that fee, and now has another millionaire in Grade II winner Bay Storm. The first of his two $30,000 books were juveniles this year, and we know how they will keep thriving. That guarantees Kantharos imminently entry into the top 20 active sires on lifetime earnings. All he needs to do is supplant… Lookin At Lucky!

VALUE PODIUM

Bronze Medal: CONNECT
Curlin–Bullville Belle (Holy Bull)
Lane's End $15,000

Connect | Sarah Andrew

Amid all this talk about stud fees being too high, credit is overdue to Lane's End for anticipating the mood in the room. From Flightline down, the farm made 11 cuts across their 2024 roster. All were meaningful, and some nearly brutal, effectively conceding that one or two stallions were drifting into trouble and needed some decisive help. Bravo! The very opposite of burying your head in the sand, and in the present environment I hope it works out both for the farm and its clients.

One stallion who can certainly benefit is Connect, restored from $25,000 to his 2021 fee of $15,000 after the crop conceived that year returned a tepid median (albeit a perfectly acceptable $45,774 average) at the yearling sales. He'd also suffered a real slump in his book last spring, down to 45 from 172 in 2022! But we're accustomed to seeing horses treated like this, once they have served their commercial purpose, and should sooner marvel at the impression he must have made with his first crop to get such a big book (up from 93 in 2021) in his fifth year at stud.

Sure enough, only Gun Runner and Practical Joke banked more prizemoney as freshmen in 2021, and only Gun Runner had more winners. Unfortunately Connect did not then consolidate especially well, but he has made a timely return to form this year with eight stakes winners, three at graded level, plus a GI Kentucky Oaks third in The Alys Look. Moreover, his first-crop flagship, the juvenile Grade I winner Rattle N Roll, failed by just half a length to add another elite score in the GI Stephen Foster S. That horse was a $55,000 weanling but has now banked $1.7 million across three seasons.

Connect's pedigree is not without its challenges but he's another to bring Curlin within range and had real prowess as a racehorse, a blip in the Travers his only defeat in seven starts (four triple-digit Beyers) up the grades after debut. He outkicked none other than Gun Runner in the GII Pennsylvania Derby and, while he won't be doing that again any time soon, he's actually siring winners at a higher percentage of named foals.

With that bumper crop of weanlings in the pipeline, and now a lenient fee, this looks a good time to re-Connect.

Silver Medal: KARAKONTIE (Jpn)
Bernstein–Sun Is Up (Jpn) (Sunday Silence)
Gainesway $15,000

Karakontie | Sarah Andrew

How pleasing to see this undervalued stallion moving his book back up last year, up to 86 from 48. Perhaps his hour has come at last, now that the minority prepared to breed to a quality turf sire in the Bluegrass have been deprived of English Channel and Kitten's Joy.

If you're enlightened enough to see the growing need for turf quality in the U.S., then you might also recognize that you don't always have to fly first class to Tattersalls. With a fifth crop on the track, Karakontie has still only had 174 starters, but seven have won graded stakes. For the second year running, moreover, he had an elite scorer in She Feels Pretty, winner of the GI Natalma S. before failing by barely half a length to overcome a wide trip in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf. Karakontie's premier earner Princess Grace meanwhile continued to thrive in Australia, missing Group 1 scores by a neck and half a length.

Even after a hike from $10,000, Karakontie is an awful lot of horse for this fee. He converted some of the most regal blood in the book–his third dam is Miesque herself–into a turn of foot that won him a Group 1 at two and then a mile Classic, before doing all he could to endear the American market in the GI Breeders' Cup Mile. Don't forget that he restores Sunday Silence to the Bluegrass through his dam, herself out of a half-sister to Kingmambo. His international pedigree and participation alike are a measure of our debt to the program that produced him.

The American market has not really grasped its privilege, with this horse, but the elevation in his fee tells you everything you need to know: he's being used by people who want to breed a runner, whether in their own silks or to boost a mare. Actually, Karakontie is perfectly capable of a home run at the sales, including the $525,000 filly at Keeneland in September whose buyers will have been delighted to see her full-sister (who herself made $280,000 the previous year) win the Tepin S. last month. His lesser specimens may struggle commercially, until the environment improves, but that won't trouble those eccentrics who calculate value according to the odds of ending up with a runner.

Gold Medal: MITOLE
Eskendereya–Indian Miss (Indian Charlie)
Spendthrift $15,000

How naïve of me to imagine that all those commercial breeders who flocked to the new sires in 2020 wanted nothing more than to land on the champion freshman of 2023. Because Mitole, as he closes in on those laurels, finds himself the only one of the four Spendthrift sires dominating this table to remain on the same fee in 2024.

Mitole | Louise Reinagel

Now, clearly this farm needs no help in how to make their remarkable machine run smoothly. The Spendthrift team know that Mitole was the one who took the biggest slide of the quartet, in the inevitable slackening of demand for their second crop of yearlings. But they had already ensured that these were conceived more affordably, trimming him from $25,000 in his debut season to $15,000. That was partly a concession to the Covid market, but it also offered such obvious value about a champion sprinter that he maintained the enthusiastic support of 184 mares even last spring, after topping 200 in each of his three previous seasons.

In other words, the system is functioning smoothly and Mitole has played his part so well that he approaches the winning post with a narrow advantage over Maximus Mischief (my serial “gold” pick, I might add, after starting at $7,500!) by prizemoney and also a wafer-thin one by individual winners (32 from 79 starters).

Whether or not he holds out, Mitole is the only one of the four to have a graded stakes scorer–and so joins Flameaway and Solomini in what has been a weirdly unproductive group, by that measure-in GIII Pocahontas S. winner/GI Alcibiades runner-up V V's Dream.

The precocious Maximus Mischief has shown a lot more of his hand (77 starters from 122 named foals) and remember that Mitole (79 from 145) himself only squeezed in a single start at two, in late November. It was as a 4-year-old that he racked up his four Grade Is–including that resonant Met Mile/Breeders' Cup Sprint double, and a stakes record at the intermediate distance in the Forego. So it seems fair to suggest that he has only just got started.

By now Mitole has surely stifled misgivings about his sire, himself after all a brilliant performer and a conduit of corresponding genes. Eskendereya's fifth dam is Cosmah, and doubles up her half-sister's son Northern Dancer top and bottom. It was presumably his unfashionable sire that confined Mitole to $20,000 as a yearling–but then along came kid brother Hot Rod Charlie (Oxbow), himself a $17,000 short yearling, to reiterate the merit of a family cultivated by the late Edward A. Cox Jr.

Hot Rod Charlie has now followed Eskendereya to Japan, where they have made a habit of exposing crass commercial trends in Kentucky. But here's a horse making the family assets work even in this less imaginative environment, and his debut at the 2-year-old sales–behind only Omaha Beach in the key freshman medians–suggest that Mitole will be taking out a long lease on the attention of pinhookers.

 

Sires In The Teens: Breeder Selections

Aidan O'Meara, Stonehaven Steadings

Aidan O'Meara | Keeneland

Gold Medal: Volatile
One of the best angles for success in the commercial breeding field is identifying a future leading stallion in the early stages and this sometimes requires taking a leap of faith breeding when their first runners are about to run. Volatile has been the breakout star at the yearling sales this year, mirroring his sire's first crop results a few years back. He's a beautifully built horse himself and passed his physique on with remarkable consistency. He's been very well supported by breeders and will have plenty of ammo in his first few crops to give him every opportunity. If his offspring have legitimate ability, he will skyrocket up the stallion ranks and $15,000 will look like the deal of the decade.

Silver Medal: Connect
The crop of 2021 has all been overshadowed by Gun Runner's incredible achievements, but Connect has been quietly developing a very solid career for himself. He has shown consistency with three graded stakes winners again this year and a strong supporting cast of stakes horses. He has also shown the ability to get the all-important high-class horse with Rattle N Roll. He measures well in all statistical categories and looks to be a stallion that can establish himself long term in the mold of a Midshipman/First Samurai/Blame type.

Bronze Medal: Audible
The Spendthrift quartet has garnered most of the attention from this year's freshmen and rightly so but one horse is simmering just below these and that horse is Audible. His 14% stakes horses with his first 2-year-olds cannot be ignored and his own racing career suggests there is more improvement to be had as they mature. He's a beautiful horse that can throw the right kind as witnessed by his first crop of yearlings. $15,000 is very intriguing for a horse with some potential future upswing and worst-case scenario has shown plenty of ability for longer term success at this price point.

Peter O'Callaghan, Woods Edge Farm

Peter O'Callaghan | Fasig-Tipton

Gold Medal: Midshipman
This stallion has been very good to us both on the track and in the sales ring. We recently bred first-time-out 2-year-old winner Midshipman's Dance; pinhooked Grade II winner Special Reserve; bred Leucothea and co-bred Amidst Waves, both of whom are multiple stakes winning 2-year-olds. He is a very consistent and well-respected sire, standing for an affordable $15,000. You can sell one well at the sales and he produces winners every weekend at the track.

Silver Medal: Mitole
Obviously a brilliant racehorse and looks to be turning out some good 2-year-old winners this second half of the year. Must be a horse worth a punt at $15,000. We are breeding to him again this year.

Bronze Medal: Vekoma
A brilliant racehorse, a high class 2-year-old who trained on, winning some high-profile races in the GII Bluegrass S. going two turns at three. Then winning the GI Carter H. and GI Met Mile at four in impressive fashion. Furthermore, he is a very well-bred son of Candy Ride (Arg), out of the GISW Speightstown mare Mona De Momma from the family of Mr. Greeley.

He is a good-looking horse who seems to sire plenty of good-looking stock. We have bred to him each year and have bought foals by him in each crop, he has not let us down so far.

I think he is a horse with a legitimate shot to be a sire standing at an affordable fee of $15,000.

 

The post Value Sires For 2024, Part 4: Into The Teens appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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What Was Your Favorite Moment of 2023: Mark Taylor

As 2023 draws to a close, the TDN is asking industry members to name their favorite moment of the year. Send yours to suefinley@thetdn.com. 

There are so many great moments from 2023. It really is hard to choose. I would say that from a “Taylor Made” perspective it has to be selling the highest-priced yearling in North America. The Curlin colt out of the legendary Beholder was raised and prepped beautifully by the team at Spendthrift. Having the opportunity to represent Spendthrift on a horse of that quality was a blessing for our whole Team!

The post What Was Your Favorite Moment of 2023: Mark Taylor appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Diverse Buying Bench Powers Electric Keeneland November Opener

by Jessica Martini & Christina Bossinakis

LEXINGTON, KY – The Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale gained momentum throughout its opening session and concluded a day of competitive bidding Wednesday evening with 11 seven-figure mares and a median up 30% from its 2022 counterpart.

“It was a good day. It was a really good day,” said Keeneland President Shannon Arvin. “We were really pleased with the session overall. The theme of the century seems to be that the quality sells and there was really high demand for the quality. There was great international participation, but plenty of domestic participation as well. There was a real diversity among the buyers. It was a very, very strong market.”

During Wednesday's session, 120 horses grossed $54,340,000. The average of $452,833 was down 8% from the corresponding 2022 session, which included a $4.6-million fractional interest in champion Flightline. The median of $375,000 was up 29.31% from a year ago.

White Hot (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) was the day's top seller in the ring, when BBA Ireland's Michael Donohoe bid $2.1 million for the dam of Pizza Bianca (Fastnet Rock {Aus}), but the session had a post-sale topper when Puca (Big Brown), carrying a full-sibling to GI Kentucky Derby winner Mage (Good Magic), was purchased by John Stewart for $2.9 million after initially being led out of the ring unsold. The mare capped a busy couple of days for Stewart, who also purchased a colt by Curlin for $600,000 Wednesday, as well as seven horses Tuesday at Fasig-Tipton for $13,350,000.

“There is a lot of confidence in the breeding industry right now,” said Keeneland Vice President of Sales Tony Lacy. “I think the median jumping just over 30% when you include Puca, is a significant increase.”

Shadwell Racing, which purchased the co-topping weanling at Fasig-Tipton Tuesday, purchased Wednesday's highest-priced foal when going to $750,000 for a colt by Gun Runner (hip 154) from the Taylor Made Sales Agency consignment. The colt was the top of a particularly vibrant weanling market Wednesday.

Last year's November Book 1 section had six weanlings sell for $400,000 or more. Twelve hit that mark Wednesday.

“The foal market was especially strong, we thought today,” said Arvin. “We had double the number of foals this year sell for $400,000 or more than last.”

With 65 horses reported not sold, Wednesday's buy-back rate was 35.14%. It was 26.49% a year ago.

“There was some protectionism in the market,” said Lacy. “A lot of people were setting reserves that were not letting horses go. They were not going to sell them short. There were quality mares not being sold off cheap which I think is great for the industry. When you speak to the sellers, they were comfortable that they were not going to sell this one below a certain value. And that's ok.”

The Keeneland November sale continues through Nov. 16 with sessions beginning daily at 10 a.m.

Mage's Dam Puca Brings $2.9M

Plenty of the pre-sale hype revolved around Case Clay Thoroughbred Management's initial sales offering, including the big mare–Puca (Big Brown) (Hip 191)–dam of this season's GI Kentucky Derby winner Mage (Good Magic). Initially led out of the ring unsold at $2.8 million, the 11-year-old mare later found a home with Lexington financier John Stewart, who snapped the mare up for $2.9 million.

Clay sold the mare on behalf of Robert Clay's Grandview Equine, who purchased her in foal to Gun Runner for $475,000 at the Fasig-Tipton November Sale in 2018.

Puca | Keeneland

“What we were fine with, RNAing her, was that Good Magic Baby in her belly,” Clay explained. “We were confident in her value, and fortunately, John Stewart recognized that.”

Puca, a half-sister to Grade I winner and $1.5-million earner Finnegans Wake (Powerscourt {GB}), is also responsible for multiple stakes placed Gunning (Gun Runner) and Dornoch, a full-brother to Mage. Runner up in the Sapling S. at Monmouth this past summer, he came back to graduate impressively going a mile and a sixteenth at Keeneland Oct. 14. To further bolster her resume, Puca's yearling colt by McKinzie also realized $1.2 million at the Keeneland September Sale.

“He's buying a queen,” Clay said of Puca. “She is the dam of Derby winner and black-type for the first three foals. If Dornoch wins the [Dec. 2] GII Remsen S. [at Aqueduct], she's 'Broodmare of the Year'.”

The daughter of SP Boat's Ghost (Silver Ghost) sold carrying a full-sibling to the Derby hero.

Clay underscored, “I really think that's her fair market value. Dams of Kentucky Derby winners don't come along in the same year. It's been a long time since that has happened.”

Later in the sale, Clay also sold the second half of his maiden consignment–Dalika (Ger) (Pastorius {Ger})–to Bryant Prentice's Pursuit of Success for $1.65 million.

“I am really grateful to both Paul Varga [owner of Dalika] and Grandview for giving me the opportunity to sell them. And for Bryant Prentice who purchased Dalika and John Stewart for buying Puca. I am excited for them too. I think they bought beautiful mares.”–@CbossTDN

White Hot in Demand at Keeneland

After bloodstock agent Michael Donohoe of BBA Ireland, bidding on behalf of an undisclosed client, got outbid on GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf winner Pizza Bianca (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) at Fasig-Tipton Tuesday night, he went to $2.1 million to acquire that filly's dam, White Hot (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) (hip 170) Wednesday at Keeneland.

“She is a Galileo mare and she's the dam of a Group 1-winning juvenile,” Donohoe said of the 10-year-old mare who sold in foal to Into Mischief. “She is in foal to a champion stallion. So she made a lot of sense. It's a great family and those Galileo mares, you can see what they can do around the world as broodmare sires. We are happy to get her.”

 

White Hot was consigned by Stone Farm on behalf of Bobby Flay, who purchased the mare as a yearling for 1,250,000gns at the 2014 Tattersalls October sale. While the bay never made it to the races, her first foal was Pizza Bianca, who sold for $3 million Tuesday night.

“Pizza Bianca made all of that money last night at Fasig-Tipton,” Donohoe said. “We had a good go at her last night.”

Out of Gwynn (Ire) (Darshaan {GB}), White Hot is a half-sister to G1 Epsom Derby winner Pour Moi (Montjeu {Ire}).

“I bought her for an existing client and she will probably stay in the States and foal here,” Donohoe said.

Of a potential mating in 2024, Donohoe said, “We will see what kind of baby comes out of her. But those Galileo mares, you can cover them to most of the stallions based here in the States.”

While Donohoe declined to name his client, the Irishman has previously bought several high-profile fillies and mares for Yuesheng Zhang's Yulong.

Lynn Hancock of Stone Farm said it was a good result from both sides of the transaction.

“Obviously, great sale, but she's a lovely mare,” Hancock said. “She's beautiful, looks the part. Her first foal is a Breeders' Cup champion. So, you can't ask any more of a mare than that. We're happy with that.”

Of the price, Hancock added, “I think she's worth every penny of it. She's a lovely mare, she's beautiful. She acted like a queen in the back ring and she is in foal to a hot sire.” @JessMartiniTDN

Juddmonte Strikes Late for Ack Naughty

After getting shut out on a number of high-profile mares at Fasig-Tipton Tuesday and earlier in the first session of the Keeneland November session, Juddmonte Farm's Garrett O'Rourke finally got his mare when acquiring Ack Naughty (Afleet Alex) (hip 246) for $1.8 million. The 11-year-old mare, who sold in foal to Into Mischief, was consigned by Sequel New York as agent for Chester and Mary Broman. She is the dam of ill-fated Grade I winner Practical Move (Practical Joke).

 

“We were at the sales yesterday and we were here again today for Puca,” said O'Rourke. “This felt like the last legitimate big, good-looking mare. Obviously, she is the dam of a Grade I winner and she's in foal to Into Mischief, who is a stallion we have had a lot of success with and we breed to every year. There is the opportunity to keep on doing the same mating if the family would want to do that. We are happy with her. She's my type of mare–a nice, big, strong mare with great bone, a good race mare and a good producer already. So I'm glad we got something.”

O'Rourke admitted it's been tough bidding, both at Newtown Paddocks Tuesday and Wednesday at Keeneland.

“It's been hard in there,” he said. “The top end, as everyone says, is just killer strong. It's just like people are buying art in a hot market. It's hard to put a value on them at this level. If you want them, you've got to pay for them. And we weren't able to get there earlier today. This was our last chance and I'm delighted to have something to bring home to add to the Juddmonte broodmare band.”

The Bromans purchased Ack Naughty, in foal to Upstart, for $500,000 at this year's Keeneland January sale. That was just a month after her first foal to race, Practical Move, won the GII Los Alamitos Futurity. The colt added wins in the GII San Felipe S. and GI Santa Anita Derby this past spring.

“We just bought this mare in January,” said Sequel's Becky Thomas. “But it was before Practical Move really became Practical Move. So he won a Grade II and then a Grade I after we bought her. Mr. Broman still races quite a bit, but he is breeding to sell in a commercial market. This will be a chance to put cash back into the program and that's what we did.”

Of the mare's price tag Wednesday, Thomas added, “Way above the reserve, but she's a beautiful mare and she had Practical Move. We are just really happy that we were able to do it and happy that Mr. Broman gives us the ability to play at a high level.”

Frankel Filly for Lyon

Graded stakes winner Skims (GB) (Frankel {GB}) (hip 125) became the first seven-figure mare of the Keeneland November sale when selling for $1.8 million to Jane Lyon's Summer Wind Farm.

“I am very excited about getting this mare,” Lyon said. “I am a Frankel lover. I had one filly [by him] that unfortunately isn't going to be a race filly that I bred. But when I saw this filly, with her race record, I was so excited to have her in my broodmare band.”

 

Bred and raced by Andrew Rosen and trained by Shug McGaughey, Skims won last year's GII Sands Point S. and was second in this year's GII Canadian S. On the board in eight of 14 starts, she won four times and earned $426,685.

The 4-year-old racing or broodmare prospect, who was consigned by Bluegrass Thoroughbred Services, is out of Royal Decree (Street Cry {Ire}) and is a half-sister to group winner War Decree (War Front). Her second dam is multiple Grade I winner Ticker Tape (GB) (Royal Applause {GB}).

“That was right in line with what we thought she would bring,” said Bluegrass Thoroughbred Services' John Stuart. “She is by Frankel and from a nice family. I am really happy that she is staying right here in the Bluegrass.”

'Pursuit' Lands Dalika for $1.65M

Bryant Prentice's Pursuit of Success may not have made the leader board with raw numbers, but it certainly did when it came to quality. With Archie St. George handling the bidding duties, Prentice extended to $1.65 million for Grade I winner Dalika (Ger) (Pastorius {Ger}) (Hip 223) during Keeneland's Book 1 session.

“I was thinking she might not bring that much, but the market is strong and she is a Grade I winner,” said St. George. “It was definitely more than we were hoping to have to give.”

 

Consigned by Case Clay Thoroughbred Management, the gray mare sold in foal to Flightline.

Clay said, “I thought it was great and was well sold and well bought. She's sound, a Grade I winner and in foal to Flightline, so I think it's a fair value for her.”

The mare is a member of the first group of mares to be bred to the 2022 Horse of the Year.

“She is a beautiful mare. We were keen to get her,” said St. George. “Obviously, in foal to a beautiful stallion. She was just a top-quality mare.”

Clay added, “[She was] the whole package. She won in 5 1/2 furlongs up to 11 furlongs–very versatile and carried her speed. It was every little thing and then when she arrived here she showed well the whole time. People really liked her, so there was a lot of attention.”

Out of the Hurricane Run (Ire) mare Drawn To Run, the 7-year-old is a half-sister to Group 3 placed Drawn To Dream (Ire) (Iquitos {Ger}). Her extended family includes Group 1 winners Corre Caminos and Recital.

“She is a top race filly,” said St. George. “She has the quality and looks and, hopefully, she can throw something that looks like her. The sky is the limit.”

While at the forefront of Wednesday's purchase for Prentice, St. George was quick to credit the late bloodstock James Delahooke for much of the team's success.

“Mr. James Delahooke used to do a lot of work for [the Prentices] and I am carrying on his legacy,” he said. “It's really a team effort. The mare is on the farm.”

“Taking on James's legacy, it takes an army to do it. God rest his soul.” —@CbossTDN

Dalika Departure Bittersweet for Varga

Paul Varga of Bal Mar Equine found himself in the unprecedented position of experiencing the joy of reeling in seven figures for his prized mare Dalika, but also facing the sad reality of her departure.

“She definitely gave us a great day,” he said. “But it really is hard obviously to let go of a mare like that.”

 

Bred by Gestut Ammerland, Dalika made three starts in Europe, including a win at Dresden in 2018, before selling privately to Varga late in her 2-year-old season.

For Varga and trainer Al Stall, the German bred annexed four wins at the graded level in the U.S., headed by a score in the 2022 GI Beverly D. S. before retiring with earnings in excess of $1.4 million

In regard to the final price, he added, “Given the results of her accomplishments, that's sort of where we thought she might be.”

While bittersweet, Varga explained the bright side was that he retains Drawn to Race (Ger), a full-sister to the Grade I winner.

“One great thing is I have her full-sister. She's in foal, so I can still keep the family. A huge amount of congratulations to not only Case [Clay] for selling her, but also to Albert Stall, who trained her all along. She required a ton of patience to run that much over that long a time. And he and his group did a super job. Honestly, this was great, but it's so much more fun to watch them win on the racetrack.” —@CbossTDN

Repole Back in Action at Keeneland

Mike Repole, who spent $6 million to buy out his partners on champion Nest (Curlin) at the Fasig-Tipton November sale Tuesday, was back in action at Keeneland Wednesday, purchasing five mares for $4.4 million. Leading the way was the racing/broodmare prospect Interstatedaydream (Classic Empire) (hip 201), who sold for $1.4 million.

“Nice, nice, nice horse,” Repole said of the 4-year-old Ontario-bred who was consigned by Four Star Sales. “I thought she was worth that as a broodmare. We are going to race her next year. I am trying to save racing one horse at a time. Thought about keeping her with Brad Cox.”

 

Interstatedaydream, who was purchased by Staton Flurry's Flurry Racing Stable for $175,000 at the 2021 OBS April sale, won last year's GII Black-Eyed Susan S. and GIII Indiana Oaks and was third in the GI Ashland S. She came into the Keeneland sale off wins in the Sept. 30 Twixt S. and Nov. 3 Turnback the Alarm S.

The bay filly is out of Babcock (Uncle Mo), a half-sister to Canadian champion Uncaptured (Lion Heart).

Repole, who said Tuesday he expects to return Nest to the races in 2024, also plans to send Surprisingly (Mastery) (hip 140)  back to the track after purchasing the 4-year-old filly for an even $1 million Wednesday from the Claiborne Farm consignment. Bred and campaigned by the Phipps family, the filly won the GIII Endeavor S. in February for trainer Shug McGaughey before hitting the board in four straight graded events through the summer. She was most recently seventh in the GII Ballston Spa S. in August at Saratoga.

“I have a lot of respect for the Phippses,” Repole said. “I have been partners with them on other horses. Plus, I like that she can race. We will keep her here for about 30 days and then ship out to Palm Beach to Todd [Pletcher] and have some fun with her last year. And then put her in our broodmare band.”

Surprisingly is out of Vagabond (Arch), a half-sister to graded winner Great Island (Scat Daddy). Her third dam is Matlacha Pass (Seeking the Gold), who produced MGISWs Point of Entry and Pine Island.

“I get excited about the mares we are buying to race,” Repole said. “[My associates] are getting excited about the mares we are buying in foal. But I like running and I enjoy the races. If we can keep horses around at ages four and five, they can become stars and be more durable.”

Champagne Lady to Barronstown Stud

Stakes-placed Champagne Lady (Uncle Mo) (hip 214) has a pending date with Triple Crown winner Justify after selling for $1.45 million to the bid of the David and Diane Nagle's Barronstown Stud. The 6-year-old mare, who sold in foal to champion Flightline, was consigned by Lane's End. She is out of Grazie Mille (Bernardini) and is a full-sister to Grade I winner Mo Town and a half-sister to stakes-winning and multiple graded placed 'TDN Rising Star' Justique (Justify).

“We loved Champagne Lady's pedigree and we bought her to go to Justify,” said Diane Nagle. “She's a gorgeous mare. Fingers crossed.”

Don Adam's Courtlandt Farms purchased Champagne Lady for $875,000 at the 2018 Keeneland September sale. She was third in the 2022 My Charmer S.

Spendthrift Back in Action at Keeneland

On the heels of an active day of buying the preceding day, Spendthrift Farm was back at it during Keeneland's Book 1 session. The operation's purchases were led by the $1.05-million buy Tarabi (First Samurai) (Hip 142), offered by Lane's End Farm.

“She is a really impressive physical and a well-bred filly, so we are really excited to have her,” said Spendthrift's Ned Toffey. “It was about what we thought we would have to pay. It was a fair price for her. She would be a nice addition to the broodmare band.”

 

A stakes winner and twice Grade I placed on the track, the chestnut is out of Indian Bay (Indian Charlie), also responsible for full-sibling Shivaji, a group stakes winner and Group 1 placed in Japan.

Asked about who might be first up as a possible mate for the 4-year-old mare, Toffey said, “We have a couple of options there. Maybe something on the farm, or maybe we'll take her off the farm. We'll figure it out.”

At Fasig-Tipton Tuesday, Spendthrift secured five mares for $7.7 million, headed by the $3-million purchase of GI Kentucky Oaks heroine Secret Oath (Arrogate).

“A couple of years ago we bought a number of really strong mares,” said Toffey, explaining the nursery's spending over the two days. “We always continue to try to upgrade the broodmare band. The old adage: pad at the top, and carve from the bottom. That's us just trying to do that. This is part of our process.” —@CbossTDN

Technical Analysis to Japan

Technical Analysis (Ire) (Kingman {GB}) (hip 145), consigned by Elite, will eventually be heading to the Far East after selling for $1 million Wednesday at Keeneland. Bloodstock agent Keisuke Onishi of J S Company made the winning bid on behalf of an undisclosed Japanese client.

“She was a very good race horse and was quite a good mover,” said Onishi. “The owner may keep her here to breed her in the U.S. or he may send her straight to Japan.”

Technical Analysis, purchased for 200,000gns at the 2019 Tattersalls October sale, was a four-time graded stakes winner for Klaravich Stables and trainer Chad Brown, with victories in the 2022 GII Ballston Spa S. and 2021 GII Lake Placid S. The 5-year-old mare capped her racing career with a win in the Oct. 27 Athenia S.

The mare's trip through the sales ring Wednesday added to an impressive roster of sales for Seth Klarman's Klaravich Stables, which also sold Grade I winner Search Results (Flatter) to Katsumi Yoshida for $3.6 million and stakes winner Strong Incentive (Warrior's Reward) for $2,150,000 to Alpha Delta Stables at Fasig-Tipton Tuesday.

The Japanese buyers, who were such a strong presence at Fasig-Tipton, continued to be active across town Wednesday despite the weakness of the yen to the dollar.

“The currency situation is not that good for us, but I think the Japanese buyers still have to be active and try to find good pedigrees and horses to import to Japan,” said Onishi.

AAA Active from Fasig to Keeneland

Randy Hartley and Dean DeRenzo's weanling-to-yearling pinhooking partnership AAA Thoroughbreds, which enjoyed seven-figure success at last year's Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale, has been busy buying foals, both at Newtown Paddocks Tuesday and at Keeneland Wednesday. The group purchased a colt by Gun Runner (hip 51) for $470,000 and a colt by Justify (hip 67) for $450,000 Tuesday.

At Keeneland Wednesday, AAA Thoroughbreds purchased four weanlings, led by a daughter of Curlin (hip 151) consigned by Denali Stud for $550,000. The foal is out of multiple graded winner Tin Type Gal (Tapit), who is a daughter of Grade I winner Miss Shop (Deputy Minister).

“She's a Curlin filly with a big pedigree,” Hartley said of the chestnut's appeal. “It's so hard to buy Curlins, so we felt like any one that we can get our hands on, we are going to try to buy. I felt like this filly, with the pedigree, she had the whole package. It's a lot of money, but to get a Curlin, if you like them, you're going to have to pay for them.”

Keeneland November Sale | Keeneland

The AAA Thoroughbreds partnership also acquired a colt from the first crop of Grade I winner Yaupon (Uncle Mo) (hip 37) for $400,000 from the Taylor Made Sales Agency consignment. The weanling is out of graded winner Lady Sabelia (Majestic Warrior).

“I thought he was the best Yaupon on the ground,” Hartley said. “My goal was to come here and try to buy the best one.”

Hartley said he had plenty of faith in the young stallion, who stands for $25,000 at Spendthrift Farm.

“And my friend Hoby Kight bought [Yaupon] as a yearling, so I was around him when he worked :20 and change at Gulfstream,” Hartley said. “He was such a beautiful horse. And then he went off and won those graded races. We just felt like he could be a big up-and-coming stallion for us. We searched over there [at Fasig] and over here and he was the best one we saw.”

Yaupon worked a quarter in :20 3/5 before RNA'ing for $485,000 at the 2019 Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream sale. He returned to sell for $255,000 to Corinne and Bill Heiligbrodt at the OBS June sale and went on to win the 2021 GI Forego S.

Yaupon was also represented in the Keeneland sales ring Wednesday by a filly (hip 5) who sold for $400,000 to Haruya Yoshida.

Asked about paying $400,000 for a pinhooking prospect by a first-crop sire, Hartley said, “$400,000 is the new number if you like a baby now. You used to be able to come here and buy these for $200,000 or $250,000, but those $200,000 babies are $400,000 now. If you want them, you've just got to buy them.” @JessMartiniTDN

Justify Colt Brings $525K On Day 1

Midway through Wednesday's Book 1 session, a weanling colt by Justify, Hip 150, realized $525,000 from Michelle St. George, signing as Teddy Town Thoroughbreds from the back of the sales pavilion. Consigned by Vinery Sales, the Feb. 27 foal is out of Peruvian Group 3 winner and Group 1-placed Thundering Emilia (Thunder Gulch).

“Everything about him was desirable,” said St. George. “He was a beautiful horse. The stallion is also on top of the world right now. We are very happy to have him.”

According to St. George, also the wife of Archie St. George, the colt was purchased as a pinhook prospect.

“We have been very fortunate this year,” she said when asked about the year in the ring thus far. “Some of them were pinhooks and others, homebreds. But we did have a  good year. When you have the right stallions and the right pedigree, it helps.”

The colt's 17-year-old dam is also responsible for Peruvian Group 1 scorer Emilia's Moon (Malibu Moon), SP Mighty Scarlett (Scat Daddy) and Helium (Ironicus), winner of the GII Tampa Bay Derby.

The St. Georges also purchased Hip 138, a filly by Charlatan, for $280,000 earlier in the session. Consigned by Taylor Made Sales selling on behalf of the dispersal of White Fox Farm, the chestnut is out of GSW Summersault (Rock Hard Ten).

According to St. George, the operation aims to secure up to about 20 weanlings throughout the season, but admits that they typically aren't at the price point of Wednesday's purchase.

“You have to do this [buy at the upper level] unfortunately. It's hard, but it's kind of what we're up against now. But this is the one we wanted for today, and we are delighted to have him.” —@CbossTDN

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