Yaupon

The TDN's popular annual series 'Mating Plans, presented by Spendthrift,' continues today in a conversation with Erin Fisher of Harper Ridge Thoroughbreds. "We have been working on upgrading our bloodstock over the last several years with a focus on good-running mares that might not have a Kentucky commercial pedigree up front, but still have the ability to create excellent racehorses and future stallion prospects. If you look at the current stallions in Kentucky, you will see that around half are out of mares with non -commercial Kentucky sires. My personal...

Zetta Z (Bernardini), dam of Saturday's dominating GIII Robert B. Lewis winner 'TDN Rising Star' Nysos (Nyquist), has been added to the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Winter Mixed Sale to go through the ring Tuesday, Feb. 6, announced the auction house via press release Sunday. Catalogued as HIP 536 and offered by Grovendale Sales as agent, she is in-foal to multiple Grade I-winning Cyberknife. In addition to Nysos, Zetta Z is also the dam of SP Attabe (Distorted Humor) as well as a 2-year-old filly by Street Sense and a yearling colt...

by Jessica Martini & Stefanie Grimm LEXINGTON, KY - The Keeneland January Horses of All Ages Sale continued into its second half Wednesday in Lexington with a session which, while significantly smaller, produced results largely in line with its 2023 counterpart. For the session, 196 horses sold for a gross of $4,352,900. The average of $22,209 was down 2.54% from last year's corresponding session, while the median of $10,000 was up 25%. From 316 catalogued horses, 242 horses were offered and 46 failed to meet their reserves for a buy-back...

Today we reach quite a crossroads in the market, between $20,000 and $29,999. It takes a degree of affluence to roll the dice at this level, but you'd do so hoping to reach blood of genuine elite potential. As usual, we've sieved out the new sires, having given them a separate treatment at the outset. Instructively, however, it's a tier dominated by stallions still in the early stages of their careers. And there is an auspicious flux here. One or two, if building on a promising start on the track,...

The Keeneland November Breeding Stock concluded its nine-day run in Lexington Thursday with numbers off from its 2022 renewal in what Keeneland Vice President of Sales Tony Lacy called a "pragmatic, solid sale." At the close of business Thursday, 2,128 horses had sold through the ring for $176,571,000. The average of $82,975 was down 16.94% from a year ago, while the median of $32,000 was down 20.00%. "Overall, it's been a very pragmatic, solid sale," said Lacy. "Demand for quality is extremely strong, probably as strong as ever, and that's...

LEXINGTON, KY - The Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale entered its Book 3 section Saturday in Lexington. Leading the day's trade was the 4-year-old broodmare Chameleon (Candy Ride {Arg}), who sold for $425,000 to the bid of Terri Burch of Stoneway Farm. The mare, in foal to Practical Joke, was bred and consigned by Mt. Brilliant Farm. During the session, 243 horses grossed $15,012,500 for an average of $61,780 and a median of $50,000. The average was down 27% from last year's opening Book 3 session and the median was...

The TDN sat down with longtime owner/breeder Bill Heiligbrodt for the next installment in this ongoing series presented in cooperation with the Consignors and Breeders Association (CBA). Through conversations with buyers and sellers, the series looks to contribute to the discussion on radiograph findings and their impact on racetrack success. Bill and Corinne Heiligbrodt have been in the racing game some 30 years and have enjoyed top-level success with Yaupon (Uncle Mo), winner of the 2021 GI Forego S., as well as Eclipse champion sprinter Mitole (Eskendereya). Both Grade I...

The catalogue for Wanamaker's 2023 April Sale is now available for viewing online. Bidding will open Thursday, Apr. 27 at 8:00 a.m. ET, with the first listing set to close at 5:00 p.m. Subsequent listings will close in three-minute increments. Detailed information on the buying process can be found at wanamakers.com/buy. The catalogue features newly in-foal broodmares, mares with their foals, broodmare prospects, racing prospects, yearlings, and stallion seasons. For more information on those being offered in the Wanamaker's April Sale, see wanamakers.com. Prospective buyers may browse the website to...

The first reported foal for nine-time GSW Firenze Fire (Poseidon's Warrior) has arrived in Japan, according to a tweet from Yano Farm in Hokkaido. The new filly is a daughter of the 5-year-old mare Wicked Bisou (Wicked Strong), who is out of Diva Delite (Repent) and therefore a half-sister to champion and millionaire Midnight Bisou (Midnight Lute). "I was born small, but the best thing is that I am healthy," the tweet reads. Florida-bred Firenze Fire raced over five seasons and amassed a career line of 38-14-7-3, $2,730,350. He won...

Spendthrift Farm's Grade I winner Yaupon (Uncle Mo) sired a colt, his first reported foal, on Jan. 13 at Rockridge Stud in Hudson, New York. Bred by Rockridge Stud, Saratoga Glen Farm and Pete Beals, the dark bay is out of MSW Frost Giant mare Frostie Anne, an earner of $584,443. "This colt is good sized, born at around 122 pounds. He's very balanced and correct, and you can tell he's going to have a big hip," said Lere Visagie, owner of Rockridge Stud. "I've had three foals out of...

It might feel a touch trite to repeat it, but the timeworn observation is such for a reason: the stallion market is one packed to the brim with tough customers and salty competition. And it turns out, both literally and metaphorically as evidenced by the recently released Report of Mares Bred. Breeders gravitate to quality and are more frequently turning to tried-and-true sources to find it, or are becoming more demanding of first-year sires before taking the chance. In an economy where connections are forced to steadily tighten their belts,...

The Jockey Club has released its Report of Mares Bred (RMB) statistics for the 2022 breeding season. Through Oct. 18, 2022 and based on the RMBs received, a total of 925 stallions covered 27,163 mares in North America this year, a decrease of the reported 27,829 mares from 2021. In Kentucky, the state's 196 reported stallions served 16,689 mares, a number which translates to 61.4% of all breeding activity in North America. That number reflects a decrease of 0.2% from last year when 16,727 mares were reported as bred in...