By Jessica Martini
LEXINGTON, KY – The Fasig-Tipton October Yearlings Sale continued to churn out steady results as the four-day auction reached its midway point Tuesday with a pair of colts sharing the sale's top price of $500,000. Through two sessions, 520 yearlings have sold for $24,157,300, for an average of $46,456 and a median of $22,000.
“It was another solid session today,” said Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning, Jr. “We saw a continuation of the same trends that we've seen throughout the yearling sales season. There are still plenty of people here in attendance and competition throughout the day, from start to finish. You have to vet and you have to have a pretty good physical and if you do those two things, there is significant demand for your horse. If you don't vet and/or you don't have a physical or have a pedigree that has some appeal, it's tough in the marketplace right now. That's just the reality of it.”
While the October sale has come off back-to-back record-setting renewals, Browning agreed it was unrealistic to expect those kind of results this year. Halfway through the auction, the average is down 13.8% from the same point last year and the median is down 12%.
“I don't think there was ever any expectation in our mind that we would [match last year's figures],” Browning said. “I think we were somewhere between blown away and shocked at Saratoga this year to have increases coming off the same kind of trends. What we have learned over the entire yearling sales season is that, for the most part, except for the elite part of the market, is it's off a little bit. Interest rates last year were at two or three percent, they are at 8% now. Training costs continue to be high. Purses are stable, they are good, but they are not increasing. There is no question there was, either COVID euphoria and/or a lot of money injected into our overall economy that a lot of people benefited from and they had some higher discretionary income. So now we are kind of back to normal.”
Jesse Longoria, bidding on behalf of new owners Zane Kiehne and Grier Brunson, tied Monday's top price when going to $500,000 to acquire a colt by Bernardini from the Scott Mallory consignment. That figure was matched late in the day, when Tom Ryan signed the ticket on a colt by Into Mischief from the Taylor Made Sales Agency consignment on behalf of the partnership of SF Racing/Starlight Racing/Madaket Stables.
Tom McCrocklin has been active throughout the market during the first two days of the October sale, buying horses everywhere from $380,000 to $10,000.
“It's strong at the top,” McCrocklin said of the market. “You need everything–pedigree, horse, vetting. But I think it's still healthy. I worry about the middle and the lower market. But I buy inexpensive horses, I bought a Temple City for $10,000 that I thought was way underappreciated. I try not to follow all of the sheep over the cliff all of the time. You can buy a horse anywhere. They don't have to be expensive to be good.”
Joe Pickerrell of Pick View made his first purchase of the October sale when acquiring a colt from the first crop of Instagrand for $285,000 Tuesday. The Ocala horseman admitted, looking ahead to resale next spring, veterinary issues were limiting what he felt like he could bid on some yearlings.
“It's competitive for the ones that tick all the boxes,” Pickerrell said of the market at the October sale. “There are some outstanding physicals here that you are going to have a little trouble getting past the vets for pinhooking. They are probably OK to race, but the veterinary scrutiny is something that we have to be very aware of. Even though I don't agree with all of it, we've got to do it to be profitable to do what we do. Until the pendulum swings back to reality on some of this veterinary stuff, we have to buy horses who are pretty pristine.”
The Fasig-Tipton October sale continues through Thursday with sessions beginning daily at 10 a.m.
Longoria Gets a Bernardini for New Owners
Zane Kiehne and Grier Brunson made their first Thoroughbred purchase when Jesse Longoria went to $500,000 to acquire a colt by Bernardini (hip 714) on their behalf late in Tuesday's second session of the Fasig-Tipton October sale.
“I have known [Kiehne and Brunson] for a long, long time,” Longoria said. “They are used to buying Quarter Horses, but they called me up and said they'd like to buy some Thoroughbreds. They said they wanted to buy a really, really nice horse. And told them they would have to pay top dollar for those kind of horses. He said, 'If we are going to do it, let's do it right.' That's how it started.”
After showing the two men the horses on his October short list, Longoria was given instructions to return to his Ocala farm with hip 714.
“I took him to the airport this morning and he said, 'Buy him,'” Longoria said. “I said, 'How much?' He said, 'No, buy him.'”
The bay yearling is out of the stakes-placed Knarsdale (Medaglia d'Oro). He was consigned by Scott Mallory on behalf of Matt Dorman's Determined Stud.
“All the credit goes to Scott Mallory and Rebecca Baker, who run the farm,” Dorman said. “They handle all the foaling, breeding shed runs, the daily responsibilities, all the way through sales prep and sales. I'm fortunate to have great land and a great team.”
📽️ Watch Hip 714 c. BERNARDINI o/o Knarsdale sell for $500,000 at Kentucky October Yearlings! #FasigKY @DarleyStallions pic.twitter.com/12praIO85j
— Fasig-Tipton (@FasigTiptonCo) October 24, 2023
Determined Stud purchased Knarsdale in foal to Uncle Mo for $430,000 at the 2020 Keeneland November sale. Her first foal, a filly by Uncle Mo, sold for $400,000 as a weanling at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton November sale and resold for $550,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale.
“We are building a quality broodmare band with young, attractive mares with strong pages, as well as graded producers,” Dorman said. “It takes time, but our efforts in 2020 and early 2021 are paying dividends. We added quality producers in 2022 and now we are seeing our first mares coming off the track.”
Longoria said he wasn't done shopping for Kiehne, a rancher and major land owner in Texas and New Mexico, and Brunson.
“I am not done here and I will maybe buy some 2-year-olds for them in the spring,” he said. “All of these horses will be shipped to down to me in Ocala. Hopefully everything works out and they have a lot of fun.”
Into Mischief Colt to SF/Starlight/Madaket Partnership
The stallion-making partnership of SF Racing/Starlight Racing and Madaket Stables was the leading buyer at last month's Keeneland September sale, but the group wasn't quite done, adding a son of Into Mischief to its roster when SF Racing's Tom Ryan signed the ticket at $500,000 for hip 788. Bred by Susan Casner and consigned by Taylor Made Sales Agency, the yearling is out of graded-placed Live for Now (Tiznow), a half-sister to champion Point Given (Thunder Gulch).
“He stood up very well against the group that was here–by Into Mischief out of a Tiznow mare, the cross works,” Ryan said. “The family is deep. So we are excited about him.”
At Keeneland September, the partnership purchased 20 yearlings for $12,590,000. The group also purchased two yearlings at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale in August.
“We have been busy all year and we do try to shop every sale,” Ryan said. “We try to follow through as far as we can. Typically, the problem is trying to find the product. And he qualified under every metric that we are looking for. We are happy to own him and happy to put him in the system.”
📽️ Watch Hip 788 c. INTO MISCHIEF o/o Live for Now sell for $500,000 at Kentucky October Yearlings!#FasigKY @TaylorMadeSales @spendthriftfarm @TomRyanKY @DonatoLanni @StarlightRacing @MadaketStables pic.twitter.com/3MU8NLjwSZ
— Fasig-Tipton (@FasigTiptonCo) October 24, 2023
Uncle Mo Filly Destined for Resale
Buyers will get another chance at a filly by Uncle Mo (hip 669) next spring after the yearling sold for $380,000 to the bid of Tom McCrocklin Tuesday at Newtown Paddocks. The bay filly is out of graded winner Jacaranda (Congrats) and is a half-sister to stakes-placed American West (Curlin). Jacaranda is a half-sister to Constitution (Tapit).
“It's a great family and she's a very nice filly,” McCrocklin, who signed for the filly on behalf of Michael Sucher's Champion Equine, said. “She's the one we wanted today. She has all the things we want in a horse. We will pinhook her, but she certainly has a racing and broodmare pedigree, so we will keep that option open.”
The yearling was bred by Jon Clay's Alpha Delta Stables and was consigned by Mill Ridge Sales. The May 16 foal was specifically targeted at this last yearling auction of the season, according to Mill Ridge's Price Bell.
“If you looked at her, she was still kind of upside down,” Bell said. “She was very hip high. Some great judges found her and supported her.”
Bell said results at the midway point of the October sale showed it was a buyers' market.
“It's easy to say it's more of the same,” he said. “But I think we are cautious and I think we have to be cautious considering everything that is happening in the world. I would be curious what yearling number that was that just sold in the market so far this year–was it the 5,000th or 6,000th yearling? By the time it's all said and done, I think people are allowed to be more selective. Fasig has done a great job. There are a lot of people here. We are finding homes and good homes. I think the buyer's dollar might be going a little bit further and there is some recalibration happening. Hopefully, happy buyers make repeat buyers. And we will play the next dance.”
Medaglia d'Oro Filly to DJ Stable
“It's a good way to start off the day,” consignor Dave Anderson said after watching his filly by Medaglia d'Oro (hip 414) sell for $350,000 to the internet bid of the Green family's DJ Stable early in Tuesday's second session of the Fasig-Tipton October sale.
Bred by Anderson Farms, the Ontario-bred is out of Elusive Luci (Elusive Quality) and is a half-sister to graded winner Big Runner (Stormy Atlantic). Elusive Luci, who was purchased by Anderson for $72,000 at the 2016 Keeneland November sale, is a half-sister to Grade I winner Stormy Lucy (Stormy Atlantic).
“We had pointed her to this sale from the start,” Anderson said of the yearling. “She is a late May foal and needed the extra time. We've always done really well at this sale with those type of horses and especially coming from Canada, we are always maybe a month behind the Kentucky horses. So that extra month really does well for our horses.”
Later in Tuesday's session, DJ Stable purchased a colt by Tapit (hip 730) for $170,000.
DJ Stable purchased 12 yearlings–including a $600,000 daughter of Tapit–for $1,910,000 at last year's October sale. Midway through this year's auction, the operation has purchased seven yearlings for $790,000. In addition to hips 414 and 730, the Green family acquired a colt by Street Sense (hip 281) for $130,000 and a filly by Girvin (hip 92) for $50,000 during Monday's first session of the auction.
Pick View Strikes for Instagrand Colt
Joe Pickerrell's Pick View went to $285,000 to acquire a flashy first-crop yearling by graded stakes winner Instagrand (Into Mischief) (hip 517) during Tuesday's second session of the October sale.
“He was my favorite colt in the sale,” Pickerrell said of the yearling who will be pointed for resale next spring. “We were at Gulfstream when Instagrand did what he did there. And we never forgot what he looked like from then on. I think this colt is very similar to his sire and has a lot of the characteristics of the good Into Mischiefs.”
Instagrand worked a furlong in :10 flat before selling to Larry Best for a co-sale-topping $1.2 million at the 2018 Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream sale. He won the GII Best Pal S. that year and returned in 2019 to finish third in the GI Santa Anita Derby and GIII Gotham S. The stallion stands at Taylor Made for $7,500.
“He seems to have done a really good job of moving his mares up,” Pickerrell said of Instagrand's first crop of yearlings. “I am excited about what they are going to do next year. I feel like he is a horse who could be a quiet first-crop sire who could really take off.”
The dark bay yearling, bred by Lochlow Farm and consigned by Four Star Sales, is out of graded winner Garden District (Dixie Union). He is the second most expensive yearling by Instagrand to sell this year. The stallion had a colt (hip 1524) sell for $350,000 at last month's Keeneland September sale.
“Some of our best pinhooks have been freshman sires, going all the way back to Structor (Palace Malice) and some others,” Pickerrell said. “We gravitate to freshman sires. We always try to see them all just because it's exciting and new and sometimes the proven sires are a little hard to afford. Sometimes you get a bargain. I don't feel like he was much of a bargain, but we felt strongly about him. And we needed a couple quality colts to complete our package for the year.”
Pickerrell continued, “We have always had good luck here. Fasig does a great job of assembling a very diverse group of horses and there are always a couple of stars that rise to the top. I think he was one of them.”
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