First American Frankel Offerings Highlight KEESEP

Four yearlings by champion Frankel (GB) (Galileo {Ire}–Kind {Ire}, by Danehill) will highlight Book 1 of the Keeneland September sale, marking the first foals from the Juddmonte freshman sire to enter a North American sales ring. The Frankels will surely be some of the most intriguing offerings during the first four sessions of the sale, but the question remains: how much appeal does the unbeaten racehorses's offerings hold for an American audience?

Frankel, a champion at two, three and four years old, was undefeated in 14 career starts with earnings over $4 million. The 16.1-hand bay recorded the highest-ever Timeform rating of 147 and holds the record for consecutive Group 1 wins in Europe. The Juddmonte homebred retired to Banstead Manor Stud in 2013 and currently stands for £125,000. According to Juddmonte, 89% of mares in his 2013 and 2014 books were black-type producers or performers.

The very first Frankel foal, a filly out of Goodwood March (GB), made ¥96 million at the 2014 JRHA Select Sale and during the 2014 Goffs November Foal Sale four of the six horses catalogued went through the ring and two sold. A filly out of Finsceal Beo (Ire) set a new Goffs weanling record when she was purchased by Dermot Farrington for €1.8 million. The other foal to sell was hammered down for €460,000 by the British-based syndicate R B L.

The August Arqana sale saw an impressive yearling debut from Frankel with six of his progeny selling for a total of €3.4 million, including a filly that went to Gordon Watson for €1.15 million. The Keeneland September sale will be not only Frankel's American debut, but just the second sale overall for his yearlings. All four of his offerings in the sale–hip 183, hip 332, hip 571 and hip 698–are colts.

The first Frankel yearling, and only one to sell during the opening session, will be a colt out of Compelling (Ire) (Kingmambo). The dam, who is a daughter of English Group 1 winner Damson (Ire) (Entrepreneur) and is a half-sibling to English MGSW Requinto (Ire) (Dansili {GB}), was purchased by Man o' War Farm's Michael and Reiko Baum in foal to Montjeu (Ire) for 325,000gns at the Tattersalls December sale in 2012. That British-bred Montjeu filly, the first foal from the dam, was purchased by Pegasus Farm and Herve Barjot for $270,000 at this sale last year. Named Mondelice, she is as yet unraced.

Michael Baum explained that he purchased Compelling with the intention of breeding to Frankel.

“We purchased her with the purpose of breeding someone to Frankel because I was fortunate enough to get a season if I had a horse they would accept,” Baum said.

Man o' War Farm has another Frankel colt catalogued in hip 548, but the breeder said the colt will be scratched in favor of the Tattersalls October sale. The select draft will have three additional hips during Book 1 in hip 246 and hip 279, both fillies by Smart Strike; and hip 256, a filly by Elusive Quality.

Baum said that, although the Frankel colt is a tad on the smaller side, he's well proportioned and should be appealing in the ring.

“He's developed great,” the breeder offered. “He was small for a long time. He's a very big-boned, strong-looking horse. In the last few months he's grown–he's 15.1 now. He's really well proportioned. If you saw him by himself, you would think he's bigger than that.”

Baum said that the colt certainly had the right substance and physique, but the real question would be how much buyers will be willing to pay for the Frankels, especially in comparison to many established American sires.

“The real question is money,” Baum said. “[Frankel] was a great horse and everyone knows him, but it just depends on how much money they'll pay. I really don't have an idea, but what's sold so far is encouraging, I think. Everyone who knew we have [the colt] was definitely intrigued and interested. We're just happy to have him.”

Frank and Jane Lyon's Summer Wind Farm bred hip 332, the sixth foal out of MGSW India (Hennessy). India, who was campaigned by Summer Wind Farm, hails from the family of To Honor and Serve, Angela Renee, Elnaawi and Sing Softly. She has a weanling filly by Tapit and was bred to Bernardini this year. The March 31 foal will be consigned by Lane's End (click here for the Thorostride inspection video).

“The colt is all quality, from his movement to his pedigree,” said Lane's End sales director Allaire Ryan. “He's an attractive, well-made horse with a very balanced frame with great natural strength. He's also a business-minded colt that carries himself with forwardness and intention. Looking at him you can't help but think, 'What an athlete.”

Mike Ryan, the breeder of hip 571, believes the Frankels will have no problem appealing to an American audience.

“The female family is entirely American,” Ryan said . His siblings have raced in this country and raced well here. We have a lot of turf racing in this country, too–the leading sires are War Front and Kitten's Joy, both mostly turf sires.”

The gray Feb. 2 foal is out of unraced dam Rose of Summer (El Prado {Ire}) and is a half-sibling to GI Hollywood Starlet S. winner Laragh (Tapit) and MGSW and MGISP Summer Front (War Front) (Thorostride inspection video).

Ryan said the decision to send Rose of Summer to Frankel was an easy one.

“She bred a good one by Tapit, and a good one by War Front,” he explained. “Frankel is certainly in Europe is the best horse I've ever seen and probably will see. I think there are very experienced horsemen who share that same feeling. In the fall of 2012 when she was open I thought, 'You know, she's the dam of a Grade I winner and a Grade II winner, I wonder if she'd get in to Frankel. I spoke to Garrett O'Rourke [of Juddmonte Kentucky] and he encouraged me to submit her.”

Ryan kept the mare in Europe and she produced a Frankel filly in 2015 and was bred to Dubawi (Ire) this spring.

The breeder is pleased with the colt and sees many similarities between him and his sire.

“I think he's a very impressive horse,” Ryan explained. “He's very like Frankel, there's a lot of similarities–the only difference is the color. He looks like him from the size and strength to the substance, muscle, movement and demeanor. All those qualities Frankel has, he has. He's very like Frankel through his head. He's a strong horse–he's 15.2. He's got tremendous substance, power and muscle, which Frankel got from his mother, Kind.”

Ryan also said that many of Frankel's offspring have clearly been stamped by the sire.

“I've seen quite a few Frankels in Europe in 2014 and again this year and saw a video of many of the ones that were sold at Deauville,” he offered. “It was interesting to hear the comments from the consignors over there. The ones that I saw were very good movers–fluent, free, effortless movers. That seems to be consistently thrown in his offspring.”

Ryan concluded, “I am very impressed with [hip 571] and the class that he has. He has a terrific demeanor. He's a very relaxed horse, nothing troubles him, and that's the sign of a good horse–they don't expend energy unnecessarily. He's a beautifully bred horse, so if he's a good horse, he's got stallion potential, so I would think he has American appeal.”

The final Frankel offering of the sale, hip 698, was bred by Qatar Bloodstock and was purchased in utero by Louise and Kiki Courtelis's Town and Country Farms for $775,000 at the 2013 Keeneland November Sale. This foal is from a deep female family, as dam Tashzara (Ire) (Intikhab) is a half-sibling to top-class miler and Frankel foe Excelebration (Ire) (Exceed and Excel {Aus}), a MG1SW in England and France and GSW in Germany and Ireland; as well as Mull of Killough (Ire) (Mull of Kintyre), an English MGSW. Tashzara RNA'd for $385,000 with a Giant's Causeway filly in utero at last year's Keeneland November Sale. She was bred to Malibu Moon this spring. The yearling will be consigned by Taylor Made Sales.

“The colt we have is very exciting,” said Taylor Made's Mark Taylor. “He's a horse we've watched all along–he was raised at Town and Country Farm and they do a great job. We watched this horse grow up and he just keeps getting better and better and better. He's got a beautiful, elegant walk on him and he just looks like a racehorse. We're really excited about ours and we're really excited about the Frankels in general.”

Taylor believes that the Frankels will garner a lot of attention on the sales ground and will bring a good deal of excitement and interest.

“I think everybody around the world is kind of captivated by the whole Frankel mystique,” he explained. “He's a horse that's transcended all the borders. He was such and incredible racehorse and he's got the pedigree, he's got everything. I think there's a real desire by a lot of Americans to try their hand at bringing some more international pedigrees back to America to run, so while there's some debate on whether a horse like Frankel will excel over here on the dirt, I think people will be willing to try it. Obviously, he's going to have huge appeal to buyers from all other parts of the world, but I think Frankel is a horse who commands enough respect where Americans would give it a try. And if he doesn't work on the dirt, obviously, he could still be a top turf horse over here. I think it's really a fun thing to be a part of, just to see what happens.”

Book 1 of the Keeneland September Sale will run from Monday, Sept. 14-Wednesday, Sept. 16. Each session will begin at 11 a.m. in the Keeneland sales pavilion. The sale will be streamed live at Keeneland.com. Follow Justina Severni on Twitter @JseverniTDN.