By Jessica Martini
SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY – Fasig-Tipton concluded an impressive week of work in Saratoga with the second and final session of the company's New York-Bred Yearling Sale Monday at the Humphrey S. Finney Pavilion. The auction finished with a sale-record median and the third-highest average in its history. Trainer Chad Brown, bidding on behalf of Seth Klarman's Klaravich Stable made the sale's highest bid when going to $370,000 just five hips from the end of Monday's session.
“It was another successful edition of the New York-bred sale,” said Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning, Jr. “There was a continuation of things that we saw all week. There was very active bidding throughout and there was real demand for quality horses.”
During the two-day New York-bred sale, 182 yearlings grossed $19,095,500 for an average of $104,920 and a median of $86,500. With a significantly smaller catalogue this year, the auction fell off its record gross of a year ago, but figures for both average and median were up from 2023 when 220 horses sold for $20,929,000. The 2023 average was $95,132 and the median was $75,000. Both buyers and sellers seemed happy with the two-day sale.
“I think the prices have been in the range that we expect,” said Eddie Rosen, advisor to Mike Repole who purchased three head for $820,000, while also selling a pair of homebreds. “The prices are fair. They are not crazy high and they are not giving them away. We sold two and we think we got fair prices. I think it's a good market for buyers and sellers. It's reasonable.”
David Cannizzo enjoyed a pair of pinhooking successes for his clients, while also doing some shopping.
“The top dollar is here for the New York-breds,” Cannizzo said. “It's like the big sale, but across the board, the average has been pretty strong the last two days. It's good buying and selling.”
The successful New York-bred sale came on the heels of record Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale which set highwater marks for gross, average and median a week ago.
“It was a very encouraging week,” Browning said. “We started last Monday at 6:30, we finished this week on Monday about 5 p.m and in that week we sold over $100 million worth of horses. We've never done that before. So that's a pretty significant accomplishment and something we are proud of. That's meaningful and significant to our industry.
Klaravich Strikes Late for Quality Road Colt
With just a few horses left to go through the ring, trainer Chad Brown made the highest bid of the two-day Fasig-Tipton New York-Bred Yearling Sale Monday, going to $370,000 to secure a colt by Quality Road (hip 595) from the Winter Quarter Farm consignment on behalf of Seth Klarman's Klaravich Stable. Bred by Waterville Lake Stable, the bay is out of graded-placed Portmagee (Hard Spun) and is a full-brother to stakes-placed Derrynane.
“Mike and Mary Ryan did all the work for us here,” Brown said. “I am busy racing across the street, so without them I would not have been able to get this covered. Mike thought he was the best horse in the sale, so we waited around all day. We were willing to stretch for him.”
Klaravich Stable purchased three yearlings at the New York-bred sale. In addition to the sale topper, the operation also acquired a pair of fillies by Yaupon: hip 503 for $200,000 from The New Hill Farm consignment and hip 583 for $190,000 from Four Star Sales.
“We got some good buys,” Brown said. “It was a good sale. There were some expensive horses, but I bought some horses quite under what I thought they would bring. There were some good value spots.”
Hip 595 c. QUALITY ROAD o/o Portmagee sells for $370,000 at NY Bred Yearlings! Congrats to buyer Klaravich Stable, consignor Winter Quarter Farm, agt, and breeder Waterville Lake Stable.#FasigNY #NYbred @LanesEndFarms pic.twitter.com/GAPYhhZrcO
— Fasig-Tipton (@FasigTiptonCo) August 12, 2024
Of buying in the Empire state, Brown said, “Seth Klarman has been a leading owner in New York for many years. He loves supporting New York racing and breeding and the whole industry in New York.”
Brown continued, “At this sale, we always try to identify New York-bred horses that look like we would buy them if they were not New York-bred horses.”
He continued, “So they have the potential to be open-company horses and that they are New York-breds is sort of an added bonus to fall back on, if you will, or to have some perhaps easier races to develop the horses before they get to open company. The horses we bought at this sale were by either proven stallions or exciting first-crop stallions that could take us to open-company races, but still have that option as New York-breds.”
Portmagee was purchased by Don Robinson on behalf of Waterville Lake for $75,000 at the 2014 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. Her 2-year-old colt by More Than Ready, now named Rossbeigh RNA'd for $200,000 at this sale last year and the mare produced a filly by Medaglia d'Oro this year.
Derrynane, winner of the 2021 Woodbine Cares Stakes in her breeders' colors, was bred to Not This Time this year.
Connect Filly to Repole
Jacob West and Eddie Rosen, bidding on behalf of Mike Repole, went to $300,000 to acquire a filly by Connect (hip 486) during Monday's second session of the New York-Bred Yearling Sale in Saratoga. Out of Georgie's Angel (Bellamy Road), the dark bay yearling is a half-sister to multiple Grade I winner and 'TDN Rising Star' Cave Rock (Arrogate). She was consigned by Eaton Sales on behalf of her breeder, Dan Burke's Longford Farm.
“The whole team liked her,” Rosen said. “Obviously, being a half to Cave Rock and Assurbanipal, who has been running well in Japan, makes her appealing. She was a very nice individual and the pedigree is extremely attractive. She has residual value as a broodmare. It was kind of a no-brainer for all of us. She kind of stands out in this catalogue.”
Burke and daughter Kathleen Schweizer purchased Georgie's Angel, in foal to Arrogate, for $75,000 at the 2020 Keeneland November sale. They sold that in utero colt for $700,000 at the 2022 New York-Bred Yearling Sale just days after Cave Rock's impressive debut victory at Del Mar. That colt went on to win that year's GI Del Mar Futurity and GI American Pharoah Stakes and his year-younger full-brother sold to Katsumi Yoshida for $1.05 million at the 2023 OBS March sale. Assurbanipal is a nose away from being unbeaten in four starts, all going the one-turn mile at Tokyo.
Georgie's Angel's filly by Improbable, now named Lakeside, sold to Solis/Litt for $135,000 at last year's New York-Bred Yearling Sale and recorded her fourth workout Aug. 10, going a half-mile in :48 flat (6/73) at Belmont Park. The 15-year-old mare produced a filly by Flightline this year and was bred back to Good Magic.
Hip 486 f. CONNECT o/o Georgie's Angel sells for $300,000 at NY Bred Yearlings! Congrats to buyer @Westbloodstock, agt for @RepoleStable, consignor @EatonSales1, agt for @longfordfarm, & breeder Kathleen B. Schweizer & Daniel J. Burke. #FasigNY #NYbred pic.twitter.com/Tj29n5RhSx
— Fasig-Tipton (@FasigTiptonCo) August 12, 2024
Cannizzo Pinhooks More Than Lucky
David Cannizzo signed for a pair of pinhook weanling prospects at last year's Fasig-Tipton New York Mixed Sale in the name of Good Luck Farm. The duo proved just that in their return trip through the sales ring during the two-day New York-Bred Yearling Sale when a colt by freshman sire Vekoma (hip 386) brought $300,000 from trainer Christophe Clement Sunday and trainer Mike Maker purchased a colt from the first crop of Yaupon (hip 485) for $275,000 Monday. The first had been purchased as a weanling for $100,000 and the second was purchased for $120,000.
“When we go to the weanling sales, we usually look for first-crop sires or young sires, that people are looking for that can really go and hit the mark,” Cannizzo said. “It's one of the moves we make and it worked out this year. It doesn't always, but it was a good year for a few of my clients. Hopefully, we continue to do well with our strategy.”
Hip 485, who like hip 386 was consigned this week by Taylor Made Sales Agency, is out of multiple stakes winner Frostie Anne (Frost Giant).
“We were very high on Yaupon,” Cannizzo said of the colt's appeal last fall. “We thought he would be a good freshman sire, go the right way. He was a gorgeous individual last year at that sale and we knew we had to get him. He developed into an absolute beast. I actually liked him more than the Vekoma from [Sunday] night, so it hurt me to see him sell for a little less. But it was a good deal for a good client of mine and I am very happy with how it went. He is a very special colt and I wish Mike Maker the best of luck with him.”
Maker signed for the colt alongside Peter Proscia of Paradise Farms.
“It looks like Yaupon is stamping his foals,” Maker said. “We are glad to bring one home.”
Galilean Yearlings Proving Popular
Galilean (Uncle Mo), a six-time stakes winner who topped the 2018 Barretts 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale when selling for $600,000 in 2018, was well-represented by his first yearlings in the sales ring at the New York-bred sale in Saratoga. The stallion, who stands for $3,500 at Hidden Lake Farm, had three yearlings through the ring during the two-session auction sell for an average of $158,333.
Jacob West, bidding on behalf of Mike Repole, purchased a colt by the sire (hip 350) for $220,000 Sunday, while Legion Bloodstock, bidding on behalf of JCE Racing, purchased a son of the sire–and the very next hip in the ring (hip 351)–for $160,000.
“We have liked a lot of the Galileans here so far,” said Legion Bloodstock's Kristian Villante. “They look very similar to Uncle Mo–very clean lines, big strong horses. They look like they will be precocious. They are easy to like.”
Of the back-to-back offerings by the stallion, Villiante said, “We liked the hip right before that Jacob bought and liked the one we bought every bit as much. We kind of figured we would follow them up to the ring and see what happened. Jeremiah [Englehart] fell in love with him as soon as we saw him and he's going to train the horse.”
Rounding out the trio of yearlings by the stallion, Bronco Bloodstock purchased a colt (hip 511) from the McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds consignment for $95,000 Monday.
Galilean had 11 first-crop weanlings sell at auction last year for an average of $13,818. The group was led by an $80,000 daughter out of Dawn Lightning (The Factor). Bred by Franklin Ave. Equine, Michael DiDonato and Charles Esau, the filly was purchased by Reeves Thoroughbred Racing at the Fasig-Tipton New York Mixed Sale last fall.
Tacitus Pays
A pair of yearlings from the first crop of multiple graded winner Tacitus (Tapit) topped the $200,000 mark Monday in Saratoga, rewarding the horsemen who invested in the youngsters last fall. Colin Brennan consigned hip 459, a son of the stallion out of Dreamed to Dream (Deputy Wild Cat) who sold for $230,000 to Adelphi Racing Club, Steven Rocco and RT Racing. The colt had been purchased by ELC Investments for $125,000 at last year's Keeneland November sale.
Jonathan Thorne's Thorndale enjoyed an even bigger score with the stallion a few hips later when selling hip 516 for $220,000 to West Point, Sharp TB and Double BL Ranch. Out of Judiciary (Union Rags), the colt was a $30,000 purchase by Thorne at last year's Fasig-Tipton New York Mixed Sale.
“I just liked his physical and his walk,” Thorne said of the youngster's appeal last fall. “It was the first time I had seen a Tacitus–it was his first crop. I just thought he was a great individual and hoped he would continue growing the way he was. He was perfectly balanced. He did everything right. And he's gotten bigger. He grew just perfect.”
Tacitus, who stands at Taylor Made for a fee of $10,000, had eight yearlings sell at the New York-bred sale for an average of $97,375. At the Fasig-Tipton July Sale last month, he had six sell for an average of $112,833.
“I think he's gotten kind of a cult following,” Thorne said of the stallion. “People are realizing that he is stamping them pretty well. And they all look like fast, speedy horses that can probably go long since he's a Tapit and he went long. And they are just well-balanced, athletic horses. He's a promising stallion if he can throw horses who look like that consistently. He should have a big future. It's a beautiful family.”
A son of champion Close Hatches (First Defence), Tacitus won the 2019 GI Wood Memorial and Tampa Bay Derby and the 2020 GII Suburban Stakes. He was second in the GI Belmont Stakes and GI Travers Stakes. His full-brother Batten Down won this year's GIII Ohio Derby and was third in the GII Jim Dandy Stakes, while his 'TDN Rising Star' full-sister Scylla won this year's GIII Shawnee Stakes and GII Fasig-Tipton Fleur de Lis Stakes and was most recently second in the GI Clement L. Hirsch Stakes.
Thank you to our buyers & consignors for supporting the NY Bred Yearlings sale! The sale has ended. Results are available at https://t.co/ILi6Sojn53 #FasigNY pic.twitter.com/N8JTj5uTgv
— Fasig-Tipton (@FasigTiptonCo) August 12, 2024
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