Honey Creek Farms

The seemingly ever-resent market trend of strength at the top and hit-or-miss results in the middle and lower segments continued during the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company’s March Two-Year-Olds in Training Sale, which concluded Wednesday.

Gross receipts for the two-day auction were $42,592,000 compared to $56,510,000 in 2017 when a catalogue with 104 more horses saw 47 more sell. The 2018 cumulative average was $167,685, down 10.7% from last year’s record of $187,741, while the median rose by 15.8% to $110,000 from $95,000. The RNA rate was 30% for the sale, compared to 27.3% last year after all post-sale transactions were added into the 2017 numbers. Because of OBS’s policy of updating statistics to include subsequent private sales, the RNA rate and other statistics are something of a moving target and are therefore somewhat inexact to compare year over year. Tuesday’s buyback rate, for example, had already dropped from 38% to 30% since the prior evening.

The average price Wednesday was $174,444 and the median was $120,000. The RNA rate was 29.2%.

A pair of $775,000 juveniles were tied for Wednesday’s priciest: a Strong Mandate colt consigned by Wavertree Stables, Agent V, and purchased by Carolyn Wilson; and an Uncle Mo filly picked up by agents Solis and Litt on behalf of LNJ Foxwoods out of the Eddie Woods consignment.

Wilson, Rivelli Hoping to be BC-Bound Again…

Owner Carolyn Wilson and trainer Larry Rivelli’s trips to OBS in 2016 and 2017 translated into starts in the Breeders’ Cup, and they’re hoping to be heading to Churchill for the 2018 world championships with hip 447. The member of Grade I-winning juvenile Strong Mandate (Tiznow)’s first crop was consigned by Ciaran Dunne’s Wavertree Stables, Agent V and cost $775,000 after a very flashy :9 4/5 co-bullet breeze (Click for ThoroStride video).

Wavertree also sold Wilson her prior Breeders’ Cup starters: ‘TDN Rising Star‘ Wellabled (Shackleford), a $340,000 OBS April grad who took the 2016 GIII Arlington-Washington Futurity S. and competed in that year’s GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf; and The Tabulator (Dialed In), who cost $460,000 last March and went three-for-three in the GIII Iroquois S. before most recently finishing fifth in the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.

“He was the best-looking horse in the sale, In my opinion, no doubt,” Rivelli said. “It was the most athletic breeze–it looked like he did it about as easy as you could do it. These past two years we’ve made the Breeders’ Cup with two that we picked who were pretty nice-priced horses, so we’re hoping now we can win one.”

Hip 447 was a $37,000 Keeneland November weanling and $47,000 OBS Winter Mixed Sale buy-back. His four-time-winning Majestic Warrior dam is half to juvenile stakes winner Tiz Blessed (Tiznow).

Of paying that much for a horse by a popular, but still unproven sire, Rivelli said, “He’s a son of Tiznow, so you’re hoping that some of that rubs off. If you had to pick out an individual in terms of looks–I’ve seen a million horses in my time–[hip 447] was a beauty. He looks like a 3-year-old.”

Rivelli noted the number of RNAs at this sale overall, and hypothesized that it could have been due to how much pinhookers had to spend for yearlings last year.

“It’s kind of the same at this sale,” he said. “The good ones go for a lot of money and the other ones kind of fall through the cracks. There have been a lot of buy-backs, too. I think that the yearling sales were nuts last year with what they were giving for horses.” –@BDiDonatoTDN

LNJ Back for ‘Mo’

A day after selling an $850,000 colt by Pioneerof the Nile (Hip 151), the Roth family’s LNJ Foxwoods brought home a 2-year-old filly by Uncle Mo for a session co-topping $775,000 at OBS March.

Purchased by Expo Racing for $200,000 as a KEESEP yearling, the bay was consigned by Eddie Woods, Agent XLV, as Hip 459. She worked a quarter in :21 2/5 at the breeze show.

Agents Alex Solis II and Jason Litt did their bidding while standing by the wall on the left side of the ring.

“She worked fantastic,” Solis said. “Eddie’s had her all winter and he kept on telling us how good of a filly she was.”

Hip 459 was bred in Kentucky by Atlas Farm and Conor Doyle. The half-sister to GSW Southern Honey (Colonel John) and MSW Cali Thirty Seven (Eskendereya) is out of the unraced Carson City mare Mama Tia. ‘TDN Rising Star’ and last term’s GI Los Alamitos Cash Call Futurity winner McKinzie (Street Sense), disqualified from first and placed second in a wild renewal of last weekend’s GII San Felipe S., appears on the page under the second dam.

“She had a nice update in McKinzie,” Solis said. “I watched her work on the farm and she worked phenomenal on the dirt. We’re excited. She’s a May foal–I think she’ll grow up a lot. She’s a nice filly.”

A decision on a trainer will be made later, per Solis.

–@SteveSherackTDN

White Birch Adds’Quality’ to the Stable

Peter Brant of White Birch Farm, back in the game in a big way after a long hiatus, continued his recent shopping spree at OBS March Wednesday, landing a Quality Road filly for $750,000.

Brant, of course, campaigned 1988 homebred champion sprinter Gulch before shifting his attention to polo. He bought 13 yearlings at Keeneland September alone for gross receipts of $6.46 million in 2017, including a $1-million colt by the aforementioned Lane’s End stallion in partnership with Coolmore.

“That was going to be our absolute max–she’s quite a nice filly,” said trainer Chad Brown after signing the ticket out back.

Hip 439 was consigned by Eddie Woods, Agent XVI, on behalf of Bradley Thoroughbreds. Bred in Kentucky by Three Chimneys Farm, the :20 4/5 breezer RNA’d for $175,000 at KEESEP. Hip 439 is the first foal out of the winning Not For Love mare Love This Kitty, a half-sister to GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile turf hero Hootenanny (Quality Road). This Edward P. Evans family also includes GI Prioress S. heroine Cat Moves (Tale of the Cat).

Recent impressive 3-year-old filly debut winner at Santa Anita Well Hello is also by Quality Road out of a Not For Love mare.

“We’ve had a lot of luck getting horses off Eddie [Woods] last year,” Brown said. “Mr. Brant bought a nice filly named Significant Form [winner of last year’s GIII Miss Grillo S.] off him [for $575,000] at OBS April. We really liked this horse and Eddie has a lot of confidence in her. She’s going to fit right in with what Mr. Brant is looking to do–race at a high level and also build a really good broodmare band for the future.”

–@SteveSherackTDN

More Than Ready Filly Heading to Asmussen…

A More Than Ready filly (hip 420) consigned by Ocala Stud will be heading to Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen’s barn after the Phoenix Thoroughbreds team scooped her up for $625,000. The :20 3/5 breezer was bred by the Heath family’s Centaur Farm and bought back for $77,000 as a Keeneland September yearling.

“We know a little bit about [More Than Ready], Steve loved him and he’s trained about a hundred of them,” said Phoenix’s U.S. director of operations Tom Ludt, who was president of Vinery when More Than Ready stood there. “She’s very racey and we’re hoping to get lucky.”

Out of graded stakes-placed juvenile La Song (Unbridled’s Song), who Centaur purchased for $225,000 in foal to Animal Kingdom at KEENOV ’14, hip 420 hails from the female family of Grade I-winning 2-year-old Currency Swap. The More Than Ready–Unbridled’s Song cross has produced the likes of Asmussen trainee and ‘TDN Rising Star’ Copper Bullet, who won last year’s GII Saratoga Special S.

Ludt said that he hadn’t paid much attention to the market overall, but was pleased with how Phoenix had fared: “We stopped on one, so we’re three for four. We’re happy.”

The Dubai-based Thoroughbred investment fund picked up two other fillies Tuesday for an overall outlay of $1.9 million to be top buyer. –@BDiDonatoTDN

‘Real’ Big Pinhook Score for Hoppel…

Patrick Hoppel of Hoppel’s Horse & Cattle Co. enjoyed one of the biggest pinhook scores of the OBS March Sale when trainer Mark Casse went to $675,000 to acquire hip 479, a big-striding :21 2/5 breezer from the first crop of multiple Grade I-winning grasser Real Solution (Kitten’s Joy). Hoppel purchased the Ken and Sarah Ramsey-bred May 4 foal for just $32,000 at Keeneland September. The bay is a half to GSW Noble Beauty (Kitten’s Joy) and MSW Adorable Miss (Kitten’s Joy). His second dam is Grade I winner Favorite Funtime (Seeking the Gold).

“He’d gotten a lot of action–we thought he’d sell well–but to say we expected that, no. We thought he’d be in the $300,000 range,” said Hoppel. “He was just all frame and a raw horse [as a yearling]. I knew there was a lot of run there. If we could keep him in one piece, he could do that.”

Real Solution began his stud career in Kentucky at Calumet Farm, but was leased out for the 2018 breeding season by Blue Star Racing in Louisiana, where he’s commanding a $5,000 fee. Real Solution’s 2017 yearling average was just $18,733, but he wasn’t a one-hit wonder at OBS March. Hip 285, another colt who breezed in a snappy :20 3/5, was purchased by Klaravich Stable for $325,000 during Tuesday’s first session. That Top Line-consigned, $60,000 Fasig-Tipton Turf Sale pick-up by Zayat Stables is kin to another Kitten’s Joy graded stakes winner in Kitten Kaboodle.

“It made me know that at least they were looking at the sire,” Hoppel said when asked if seeing how hip 285 sold gave him added confidence. “No doubt this was a surprise, but he’s real special, that horse. We’ve always known that. My son Cody trained him most of the winter.” –@BDiDonatoTDN

Mixed Results for Ocala Stud, Among Others…

While Ocala Stud sold the aforementioned hip 420 for $625,000, the O’Farrell family’s operation saw hip 385–a Tapit colt who covered a quarter mile in :21 2/5–fail to meet his reserve at $725,000.

“The market carried her,” David O’Farrell said after hip 420 sold. “She’s a really nice filly. She breezed exceptionally well, showed herself with class, vetted. A lot of the elite buyers who are here were interested in her. We set a low reserve and the market carried her from there. We’re very happy with the result. We sold her for some of our best long-term clients. They had originally entered her in the Keeneland September sale. She was immature, she didn’t get sold, she came to the farm, and from that day forward she went the right way. She’s blossomed into a nice filly and she can just flat out run.”

Like hip 420, hip 385 is also out of an Unbridled’s Song mare in Peter Blum’s multiple stakes-winning turf sprinter Inspired. Already named Picasso, the Tapit colt was bought back by Blum for $735,000 at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale.

“It was disappointing,” said David O’Farrell. “Here’s a horse who was bred really well by Peter Blum. He got an outstanding individual who had a solid work, a super gallop-out and a perfect set of X-rays. Peter bred everything on the page. He believes in the horse. He didn’t want to give him away and he’s happy to take him and go racing. The horse means more to him than anyone else. He tested the market, the market spoke, and hopefully he proves them wrong.”

O’Farrell, like plenty of others on both the buy and sell side, noted that market dynamics seemed to be a bit off at March.

“It’s been a little bit of a tricky market,” he said. “[Hip 420] was a really nice sale and we sold a nice City Zip yesterday [hip 2, for $250,000]. It’s kind of an all-or-nothing deal. People are enthusiastic and looking for the better horses, but the reality is it takes a really good horse and the good Lord has only put so many on this earth.”

The March sale was switched from a select to more open format for 2015, while the larger OBS April sale has risen in popularity and prominence during that same span.

“The April sale is the sale that everyone really wants to be in,” O’Farrell said. “It gives you more time. When we enter these horses in the March sale it’s December. You really don’t know what you have. You know what you think you like, but you really don’t know what you’ve got. They’re just galloping at that point, and you’re taking a wild guess. They’ve got to have sire power, enough pedigree on the bottom side, and they’ve got to be a nice physical, but you don’t know if they can run or not yet. These horses were entered early on in their training career and you don’t find out what you have until the weeks leading up to the sale. So you better bring a horse you think can cater to the top end of the market. That’s why the April sale is so popular, because not only do you get a broader depth of buyers, but you get another six weeks to train your horses…. It’s just a safer sale. They had to de-select the March sale to attract more entries, but if you look around here, these are buyers here for the $250,000 – half-million-dollar horse and there’s a small percentage that can achieve that type of figure.”

–@BDiDonatoTDN

‘Mar’ to Come from Boden Thoroughbreds…

Charlie Boden–the longtime former Head of Sales at Darley–received a timely update for his fledgling bloodstock company when Maraud (Blame) delivered a narrow tally in Gulfstream’s GIII Palm Beach S. earlier this month. He signed the slip on the Treadway Racing Stable colorbearer for $375,000 at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale.

Boden was back at it during the two-day OBS March Sale, purchasing five juveniles for a total of $1.325 million ($265,000 average) on behalf of undisclosed clients.

“Things are good,” Boden said. “We’ve had some early success and I really think the world of Maraud–he’s done everything right.”

Boden’s OBS March purchases include:

Hip 45, f, Munnings–Spring Breeze (:10 1/5), consigned by Wavertree Stables, Inc. (Ciaran Dunne), Agent VIII. Price: $160,000.

Hip 58, f, El Padrino–Stuttgart (:10), consigned by Julie Davies, Agent II. Price: $310,000.

Hip 99, c, Fed Biz–Tulipmania (:21 1/5), consigned by de Meric Sales, Agent VIII. Price: $375,000.

Hip 465, c, City Zip–Meiann (:9 4/5), consigned by Hartley/DeRenzo Thoroughbreds LLC, agent. Price: $360,000.

Hip 555, c, Dialed In–Red White and Blue (:10 1/5), consigned by Bobby Dodd, Agent VIII. Price: $120,000.

After a year at Calumet Farm as racing manager and stallion director, Charles H. Boden Thoroughbreds was launched in 2016.

“There is plenty of money at this sale,” Boden said. “This isn’t a one-man job–Gary Young and I are working together. He clocks horses on the frontside and I’m on the backside watching these horses come on and off the racetrack and also listening for any anomalies. I also watch for any behavioral things that might be negatives, too. We look at the videos and head back to the barn to see what we think of the physicals. I saw plenty of nice horses here.”

Boden concluded, “When I get done here, I’ll head back to Kentucky, then flip it around and come back to Miami [for Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream] and OBS April.” –@SteveSherackTDN

OCALA, FL – Continued strength at the top and an elevated RNA rate of 38% were among the headlines as the 2-year-old market opened up in Ocala with the two-day OBS March Sale Tuesday.

With post sale transactions still being added in the early evening, 114 juveniles switched hands for $19,713,000, good for an average of $172,921 and a median of $105,000. During last year’s opening session, 148 2-year-olds sold for $26,766,500. The 2017 day one average was $180,855 and the median was $100,000.

There are 105 fewer offerings in the catalogue at this year’s OBS March auction compared to 2017.

“Coming in with 100 less horses in the catalogue, we didn’t foresee where we could possibly have the same gross,” OBS President Tom Ventura said. “The average and the median are in the ballpark from where they were last year and the buyback rate is higher than we had hoped for. But that’s a number that’s a moving target this early in the sale–we’re 38% this year versus 28% after all was said and done with the post sales last year. That number will move down as we go through tomorrow.”

Amer Abdulaziz’s Phoenix Thoroughbreds III purchased the day’s topper, an $875,000 Scat Daddy filly from the Hartley/DeRenzo Thoroughbreds consignment.

Phoenix also acquired a $400,000 Uncle Mo filly from Crupi’s New Castle Farm.

Larry Best’s OXO Equine LLC was the session’s leading buyer. Best signed for an $850,000 Pioneerof the Nile colt and a $575,000 colt from the first crop of freshman sire Mucho Macho Man. Eddie Woods consigned the former and Richardson Bloodstock consigned the latter.

De Meric Sales led all consignors with 15 sold for $2,523,000. Woods sold six for $2,320,000.

“I thought it was very competitive up at the top end,” Ventura said. “We’re seeing a similar market place at that end. There’s certainly some weakness on the bottom side of the sale. The good thing from our end is that the bar is pretty high now so it’s going to be difficult to match up to what we did over the last couple of years. I think we have some nice horses still to go through the ring Wednesday and maybe we’ll crack that magical million-dollar mark. The activity in the barns was very strong throughout and there was a good vibe to the market, so I’m certainly not disappointed.” –@SteveSherackTDN & @BDiDonatoTDN.

Phoenix Rises Again at OBS…

Amer Abdulaziz’s Dubai-based Phoenix Thoroughbreds continued to play at the top of the market at OBS March Tuesday, as it saw off stiff challenges from several spots to take home a filly from the final crop of international sensation Scat Daddy for a session high $875,000. A $160,000 Keeneland November weanling who RNA’d for $335,000 at Keeneland September, the :9 4/5 co-bullet breezer was consigned by Hartley/DeRenzo Thoroughbreds, LLC as hip 141.

Phoenix’s U.S. head of operations Tom Ludt signed the ticket, while trainers Jeremy Noseda and Bob Baffert were close by. Abdulaziz revealed that the filly would be heading to Europe, but declined to confirm whether or not she would be conditioned by Noseda.

“She’s very athletic,” Abdulaziz said. “We love the stallion–we’ve obviously done very well with him. And she was beautiful. We’re hoping she’ll be as good as the others that we bought.”

A May 10 foal, hip 141 is half to four black-type horses, including GSW turf sprinter Sharp Sensation (Sharp Humor). She hails from the family of G1 Epsom Derby hero Benny the Dip.

Phoenix paid $800,000 for a Scat Daddy filly now named Take Me With You at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream sale. Group 3-placed for Noseda at Royal Ascot while still a maiden, she was last seen romping by nine lengths to graduate in September. Phoenix also paid $3 million for GISW broodmare prospect Nickname (Scat Daddy) at Fasig-Tipton November, and has done very well with its 2017 breeze-up purchases, which include Baffert-trained four-for-four Grade I winner and GI Kentucky Oaks hopeful Dream Tree (Uncle Mo). Baffert, of course, also conditions 2-for-2 ‘TDN Rising Star’ Justify (Scat Daddy) for different owners.

“So far, so good,” Abdulaziz said when asked about early market impressions. “We thought it was going to be a lot stronger and we thought she was going to bring a million. We got lucky with the Uncle Mo filly (hip 128)–we got her a lot cheaper than we expected. We’re done for the day now. We’ll be back tomorrow.”

Hip 128, a New Jersey-bred, cost $400,000 after working in   :10 flat. She was purchased for $200,000 by consignor Crupi’s New Castle Farm as a Fasig-Tipton July yearling. The Jan. 24 foal is the first out of stakes-placed Winiliscious (Lawyer Ron).

–@BDiDonatoTDN

Best Back at It…

Larry Best of OXO Equine purchased catalog cover boy and GIII Lecomte S. winner Instilled Regard (Arch) for $1.05 million at this sale 12 months ago, and one of the bloodstock business’s most noteworthy newcomers continued to solidify his status as a major player with Tuesday’s acquisition of hip 151, a Pioneerof the Nile colt who tied for the first breeze show’s quarter-mile bullet of :21 1/5.

The May 7 foal is out of stakes winner American Lady (Stormy Atlantic) and was purchased in utero for $350,000 at KEENOV ’15 by agents Alex Solis II and Jason Litt on behalf of the Roth family’s LNJ Foxwoods. American Lady is a half to talented MGSW The Pamplemousse (Kafwain), who Solis purchased and co-owned.

“We’ve loved this colt since he was a yearling,” Solis said. “The LNJ plan is to always sell the colts and keep the fillies. We only had two colts in this crop and 12 fillies, so we held them both back to this sale and [consignor] Eddie [Woods] has been really high on him all year.”

LNJ Foxwoods’ other colt, hip 114, was withdrawn.

Of 151, Solis added, “He’s a really nice colt. He’s really well-balanced and correct. He’s just a good Pioneerof the Nile and I think he’s only going to get better. He’s a May foal and you saw how fast he breezed and he galloped out well. We wish Larry Best the best.”

Best went back to the well later in the day for another May-foaled colt, a $575,000 Indiana-bred from the first crop of GI Breeders’ Cup Classic-winning $5.6-million earner Mucho Macho Man (Macho Uno). Consigned by Richardson Bloodstock as hip 282, he was just a $12,000 Keeneland January short yearling and $170,000 KEESEP yearling purchase by Michael Neatherlin.

“I’m actually pretty happy with the two that I bought,” said Best, who was accompanied by veteran horseman John Dowd. “They’re two nice colts, so I’m satisfied. It was a good day… They both had good breezes, and coincidentally both are May foals, so they’ve got some big growth ahead of them. If they’re good now, hopefully they’ll just get better.”

Best said he didn’t have trainers picked out yet for either colt, but would send them to Eddie Woods for a bit.

As for Instilled Regard, who was most recently fourth in the GII Risen Star S. at Fair Grounds, Best said, “Instilled Regard is healthy and sound, which is the most important thing. He’s training for his next race–we haven’t picked that race yet–but there are a fair number of options.”

Best made his first splash at the 2016 Keeneland September sale, but really stepped up at last year’s 2-year-old sales. So far, he’s pleased with the results.

“I’m pretty happy–we’ve had a graded stakes winner who’s also Grade I-placed in the first year,” he said. “We’re on the Derby trail–whether we get there or not is still a question mark. … I really didn’t understand [Derby fever] a year ago. Now, with Instilled Regard, I understand why people get so excited. I’m just trying to control my excitement. As we all know, there are 20 horses who get there and only one who wins. I’m trying to look longer term, thinking about a good 3-year-old season and

4-year-old season and hopefully we have good enough results to have a stallion.”

Best noted that he has already bred some of his fillies who failed to pan out on the track, and he plans to do more breeding to race in the future. –@BDiDonatoTDN

Kellys Active on Day One at OBS…

Owners Jon and Sarah Kelly made their presence felt during Tuesday’s opening session of the OBS March 2-Year-Old Sale, led by a $500,000 colt from the first crop of freshman sire Cairo Prince. The Southern California-based Paddy Gallagher will train.

“Very athletic–he looks like he’s ready to go,” said Jon Kelly, who was seated alongside advisor Jamie McCalmont. “If you watch the video, you’ll see that the guy was standing up on him and he still did [an eighth in] :10 1/5–he wasn’t even going. He’s got a good, long stride. He’s got a chance to be a nice horse.”

Hip 61, consigned by Crupi’s New Castle Farm, brought $100,000 as a FTKJUL yearling. He was bred in Kentucky by Coteau Grove Farms. The dark bay previously RNA’d for $42,000 as a KEENOV weanling. He was produced by the two-time winner Summer Shade (Stephen Got Even), a half-sister to MGSW Hot Summer (Malibu Moon).

Cairo Prince ranked second among North American freshman sires at last year’s yearling sales with 75 sold for an average of $150,786, according to TDN Sales Statistics.

Kelly also purchased Hip 18, a filly by Animal Kingdom from the Halcyon Hammock Farm, Agent II, consignment (:10 1/5), for $170,000. The former television executive’s family established and owned KCRA-TV in Sacramento, California. The Kellys campaigned GI Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup S. heroine Vacare (Lear Fan). –@SteveSherackTDN

Crupi: ‘Horse Business is Good Right Now’

Jimmy Crupi’s New Castle Farm enjoyed a nice day of selling at OBS March Tuesday. Highlights from Crupi’s draft included:

• Hip 171, Bernardini-Awesome d’Oro (Ire) filly (:10 1/5) purchased by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Repole Stable for $575,000.
• Hip 61, Cairo Prince-Summer Shade colt (:10 1/5) purchased by Jamie McCalmont, agent for Jon Kelly, for $500,000.
• Hip 128, Uncle Mo-Winiliscious filly (:10) purchased by Phoenix Thoroughbreds III for $400,000.
• Hip 23, Midnight Lute-Showtime Samurai colt (:10 1/5) purchased by Jerry Durant for $300,000.

Hip 171 was a $50,000 KEESEP yearling; Hip 61 was a $100,000 FTKJUL yearling; Hip 128 was a $200,000 FTKJUL yearling; and Hip 23 was a $65,000 FTKJUL yearling.

In total, Crupi sold five juveniles for $1,784,000.

“Everything is good–the horse business is good right now,” Crupi said from his golf cart back at Barn 6. “If you have the right horse and they looked good breezing, they are very easy to sell.”

He continued, “We knew we had a good bunch here. The top 10% always sell well. If you have a top horse with pedigree and they look good doing it-they don’t have to go :10 flat or :9 4/5. We sold Audible (Into Mischief) [for $500,000 at Fasig-Tipton Florida]. He went :10 2/5 and he just won the [GII] Holy Bull. So what does that mean? I think people are starting to realize that now. People are looking for Classic, two-turn horses with pedigree.” –@SteveSherackTDN

Stinson Adds ‘Saturday Afternoon Horse’…

Tom McGreevy, a long-time advisor for Rick Porter’s Fox Hill Farm, was extended to $725,000 to secure a Bodemeister colt on behalf of owner Michael C. Stinson.

Hip 108, bred in Kentucky by WinStar Farm, RNA’d for $140,000 as a KEESEP yearling. Consigned by Woodford Thoroughbreds, agent, he zipped through an eighth in :10. The son of the stakes-placed Friendly Island mare Victory Island hails from the extended female family of champion Victory Gallop.

“Obviously we liked him,” McGreevy, sporting a Battle of Midway cap, said with a laugh out back. “He’s the kind of horse we look for. It’s difficult to pay that much because it’s so difficult from here to make a good horse, but he was just one of those outstanding individuals that had all the potential to be that really top Saturday afternoon horse. That’s what we’re looking for.”

McGreevy purchased 10 yearlings in 2017 for the aforementioned Texan, who was one of the partners in the ownership group Taylor Made formed for two-time Horse of the Year California Chrome. He also bought into New Mexico’s champion Pepper’s Pride after she concluded her racing career undefeated with 19 victories. Stinson campaigned New Mexico multiple stakes winner Proceed (Desert God).

“Mike Stinson is a great guy and he’s just so enthused about the business,” McGreevy said. “He has a lot of confidence in me-I didn’t know he had that much confidence in me! [Hip 108] was just an outstanding individual and he worked great. I pay a lot of attention to demeanor-he just had all the class and confidence in the world. We’ll keep our fingers crossed. We weren’t the only ones that liked him. It’s hard to hide a good one. The good horses show up.”

McGreevy added that a decision regarding a trainer hadn’t been made yet. –@SteveSherackTDN

‘Lucky Day’ for Golden Legacy…

Hip 201 turned plenty of heads when breezing in a co-fastest :9 4/5 during one of last week’s breeze shows, and the money came for him in the ring as well with Japan’s Katsumi Yoshida taking him home for $525,000.

From the first crop of Spendthrift Farm resident, Grade I winner and OBS March grad Itsmyluckyday (Lawyer Ron), the chestnut is out of dual Grade II winner and GISP Briecat (Adcat).

He was sold by Golden Legacy on behalf of an undisclosed client who purchased him privately from Spendthrift.

“He bought two horses privately,” explained Golden Legacy’s Blas Perez. “He bought them to race, and he sent them to me and I kind of liked this guy, so I talked him into putting him in the sale.”

When asked to describe the colt, Perez said, “He’s very athletic and smart. He was very laid back, but he did everything right from the beginning. He just kept improving every time. I think he’s going to be a real nice racehorse–not just a speedball.”

Perez knew hip 201 would do well, but didn’t know how well.

“I knew we had some big guns behind him,” he said. “I never overprice my horses, but I knew a lot of people liked him and there would be plenty of money for him.”

Itsmyluckyday, who stands for $5,000, had 25 yearlings sell in 2017 for an average of $18,856. If Perez’s impressions are accurate, the stallion’s first crop could be poised for a solid year on the track despite him flying a bit under the radar so far.

“I have one homebred by the same sire,” Perez said. “He’s a little bit smaller than [hip 201], but he’s just as athletic as him and just as smart.” –@BDiDonatoTDN

Godolphin’s multiple graded stakes winner Avery Island (Street Sense) has been sidelined and will be shipped to Lexington Tuesday to be further evaluated by Dr. Larry Bramlage at Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital, Godolphin announced Monday. The colt came back lame after working Friday, but initial x-rays ruled out any structural damage.

“It’s very disappointing for all of us here at Godolphin, and plans are on hold until we know more about the injury,” trainer Kiaran McLaughlin said. “He’s done something to himself. But we will wait until we hear from Dr. Bramlage before deciding the next move.”

A second-out winner last September at Belmont, the bay colt went on to dominate the GII Nashua S. Nov. 5 at Aqueduct, and after running second as the favorite in the GII Remsen S., bounced back with a victory in the GIII Withers S. Feb. 3.