Aussies continue their spend on the second day at Keeneland
Steady trade continued on the second day at the Keeneland Breeding Stock Sale in Kentucky on Wednesday and once again there was some activity from Australian buyers headed up by James Harron who purchased three–time stakes winner Betsy Blue (Tonalist) for US$375,000 (approx. AU$563,200).
Harron was joined on the buyers sheet by Emirates Park, who bought Sweet Harmony (Bayern) for US$350,000 (approx. AU$525,700), while Sean Buckley’s Ultra Thoroughbreds secured Value Area, a filly by More Than Ready (Southern Halo), for US$265,000 (approx. AU$398,000).
Offered by Ballysax Bloodstock, Betsy Blue won ten of her 24 career starts, headed by her three wins in Listed company. Out of stakes-placed winner Honest To Betsy (Yonaguska), the mare was offered in foal to Darley America stallion Nyquist (Uncle Mo).
Harron was re-entering the market at the world’s biggest bloodstock sale after a four-year absence. The last time his name appeared on the sheet was when he teamed up with Byron Rodgers to purchase stakes-winning mare Fashion Faux Pas (Flatter) for US$310,000 at the 2020 edition of the sale.
Since being sourced at the US auction, Fashion Faux Pas has produced a filly by King’s Legacy (Redoute’s Choice), a Coolmore Stud-based stallion who raced in Harron’s colt syndicate. That filly was purchased by Peachester Lodge for $110,000 at this year’s Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale when offered by Newgate Farm. Last season, the mare foaled a colt by Snitzel (Redoute’s Choice) and in September produced a filly by Newgate’s star stallion Extreme Choice (Not A Single Doubt).
Emirates Park returned to the scene where they snapped up Red Lodge (Midshipman), the dam their 2023 Sires’ Produce Stakes (Gr 1, 1400m)-winning filly Manaal (Tassort), with Nasser Lootah’s operation snapping up Sweet Harmony, whose two wins were headlined by a victory in the Colleen Stakes (Listed, 5f) in 2022.
The daughter of Bayern (Offlee Wild) is out of the stakes-winning mare Sweet Marini (Marino Marini), herself a half-sister to Excessivespending (Shackleford). Sweet Harmony was offered in foal to Elite Power (Curlin).
Emirates purchased Red Lodge at the 2018 edition of the sale for US$500,000 and her two-year-old daughter by I Am Invincible (Invincible Spirit) is called Rajwa and is now a member of the Michael Freedman stable, where her half-sister Manaal is also trained. Last spring, Red Lodge produced a filly by Zoustar (Northern Meteor) and is expecting a foal by Justify (Scat Daddy) this season.
Value Area, Ultra Thoroughbreds’s purchase, is a stakes-placed winner by brilliant broodmare sire More Than Ready, who is out of Grade 1 winner Her Smile (Include), making her a half-sister to Grade 2 scorer Pink Sands (Tapit) and stakes-placed duo Wharton (Candy Ride) and Elegant Man (Arrogate).
More Than Ready’s daughters have produced 186 individual stakes winners, headed by 25 Group / Grade 1 winners and they include Tuesday’s Melbourne Cup (Gr 1, 3200m) winner Knight’s Choice (Extreme Choice), dual top-flight winner Southport Tycoon (Written Tycoon), last season’s Golden Slipper (Gr 1, 1200m) winner Shinzo (Snitzel), two-time elite-level winner Coolangatta (Written Tycoon) and Bivouac (Exceed And Excel) to name a small few.
Smash Ticket tops Keeneland at $600,000
After getting outbid for Grade 2 winner Slammed (Marking) two days before, Flying Dutchmen went to US$600,000 (approx. AU$899,600) on Wednesday to secure her half-sister Smash Ticket (Midnight Lute) during the second session of the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale, writes Bloodhorse’s Molly Rollins.
“It’s a running family, we liked the mare physically, we’re just really happy we got her,” said bloodstock agent Hunter Rankin, who signed on behalf of the Flying Dutchmen breeding and racing outfit.
“We thought it was a fair price for her. I think when you buy something nice you’re always going to have to pay for it.”
Smash Ticket, consigned by Legacy Bloodstock, was the fifth mare Flying Dutchmen purchased at the Keeneland November sale. She brought the highest price at Wednesday’s session.
Formerly known as Boardshorts, the operation, founded by Travis Boersma, recently acquired a boutique farm off Old Frankfort Pike in the Lexington area. During the opening session, Boardshorts spent US$1,805,000 (approx. AU$2.7 million) on four mares, led by US$875,000 (approx. AU$1.31 million) buy Fast And Shiny, a stakes-winning Bernardini (A.P. Indy) mare in foal to Curlin (Smart Strike).
“We’re trying to just get some really nice, fast mares that were good on the track to develop our program for racing,” said Rankin. “These guys are really committed to the long term, they want to breed to race and have a lot of fun.”
Smash Ticket, a five-year-old daughter of Midnight Lute (Real Quiet), is in foal to hot stallion Nyquist, sire of this year’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (Gr 1, 8.5f) winner and likely two-year-old champion filly Immersive.
The mare earned US$226,870 in her career, breaking her maiden at Del Mar as a two-year-old before running third in the 2021 Sorrento Stakes (Gr 2, 6f). As a three-year-old, she captured the 2022 Weather Vane Stakes (Listed, 6f) at Pimlico, recording a 102 Equibase Speed Figure.
Besides Slammed, who fetched US$1.1 million (approx. AU$1.65 million) on Monday at Fasig-Tipton’s November Sale, Smash Ticket is a half-sibling to multiple state-bred stakes winner Roll On Diabolical (Diabolical) and Smash It (Star Guitar), an impressive two-year-old winner this past summer at Del Mar.
In all, 215 horses sold for US$31,060,000 (approx. AU$46.56 million) (including private sales) during the second session of the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale on Wednesday.
The figures constituted an eight per cent reduction in average price at US$144,465 (approx. AU$216,600) compared to the same session a year earlier, and a 14 per cent reduction in gross. The decline in gross was partly due to 29 fewer horses offered, and 14 fewer horses changing hands than in 2023. The median was on a par with last year at US$120,000 (approx. AU$179,920).
Though prices for individual horses did not meet those from the more select first session on Tuesday, six horses sold for US$400,000 (approx. AU$599,731) or more.
Second-top lot was the Grovendale Sales-consigned Music Street, a Graded-placed Street Sense (Street Cry) mare in foal to Taiba (Gun Runner), for US$500,000 (approx. AU$749,660). Greg Tramontin, in the process of buying Siena Farm near Paris, Kentucky, purchased the mare.
Six mares sold by Claiborne were part of the complete dispersal of breeding stock for Stuart Janney, chairman of the Jockey Club and a lifelong thoroughbred owner and breeder. His family has been involved in the sport for decades.
The Janney-raced Gun Boat, a stakes-placed War Front (Danzig) mare, was the highest-priced mare sold by Claiborne on Wednesday, when the five-year-old broodmare prospect fetched a US$310,000 (approx. AU$464,790) final bid by Burger Racing Stables.
A filly by the speedy Life Is Good (Into Mischief), consigned by Runnymede Farm, agent for the complete dispersal of Breed First, was the top-priced weanling at US$410,000 (approx. AU$614,720). Classic Equine bought her.
The November Sale continues on Thursday with the third session beginning at 10am local time.