At A Glance

>> A total of US$34,507,000 (AU$47,179,415) in trade was done on Thursday from 182 yearlings sold. The average was US$176,959 (AU$241,884) and median was US$135,000 (AU$184,536).

>> Over the course of four days of selling so far, US$165,853,000 (AU$226,725,820) has changed hands on 622 transactions, including 33 post sale.

>> The cumulative average is US$266,645 (AU$364,509) and median is US$200,000 (AU$273,324).

>> Through four sessions of the September Sale, 45 yearlings by Into Mischief (USA) have sold for US$23,280,000 (AU$31,823,841) and an average of US$517,333 (AU$707,124).

>> An Into Mischief colt was the sole Book 2 youngster to reach seven figures, selling for US$1 million (AU$1.36 million) to phone-bidder Peter Leidel.

>> Donato Lanni, agent for SF/Starlight/Madaket, paid US$775,000 (AU$1.06 million) for a colt by Quality Road (USA) offered by Candy Meadows Sales.

>> A filly by Constitution (USA) sat atop the leader board for much of the day after selling online for US$725,000 (AU$990,552) to agents Alex Solis II and Jason Litt on behalf of the Roth family’s LNJ Foxwoods.

Stallion’s popularity continues

A colt by the in-demand Into Mischief, Hip 1203, was the lone Book 2 offering to reach the seven-figure threshold, selling for US$1 million (AU$1.36 million) to Peter Leidel, who did his bidding on the phone.

The son of Grade 2 winner Teen Pauline (USA) (Tapit {USA}) was consigned by Warrendale Sales, agent for Barbara Banke’s Stonestreet Bred & Raised. Stonestreet was also responsible for Book 1’s US$2 million (AU$2.73 million) Tapit (USA) sale-topper.

“It was a very exciting finish to have three individuals bidding all the way to the million-dollar mark,” Keeneland’s Director of Sales Operations Geoffrey Russell said.

“There was a lot of depth to the market, I thought, today. Again, the comment we’ve made before is that it is very selective. The ones that they align on are bringing great money; the ones that just miss the mark are having a hard time to get sold. It is a very selective market.”

A total of US$34,507,000 (AU$47,179,415) in trade was done on Thursday from 182 yearlings sold. The average was US$176,959 (AU$241,884) and median was US$135,000 (AU$184,536).

Over the course of four days of selling so far, US$165,853,000 (AU$226,725,820) has changed hands on 622 transactions, including 33 post sale. The cumulative average is US$266,645 (AU$364,509) and median is US$200,000 (AU$273,324).

The session reserve not attained rate was 40.1 per cent and overall buy-back rate sits at 38.35 per cent. While year-to-year comparisons remain somewhat difficult due to a difference in format compared to last year (three Book 1 sessions in 2019), the reserve not attained rate remains significantly elevated compared to 2019, when 28.18 per cent of horses were bought back by the end of Book 2.

“A couple of people told me they were happy to take their horses home, they had a Plan B when they came here,” Russell said. “They knew the market was going to be a little off, and they had already planned on Plan B. They brought horses to market hoping to be sold, but if they didn’t, they had other plans in their mind.”

Consignor John Mulholland noted, like many, the particular selectivity of the market: “Chickens or feathers; feast or famine. Everybody’s landing on the same horse, and you’re going to get paid a ton on those.

“If you bring 10 horses, three or four are going to have to carry the load for the rest. That’s the unfortunate state of the market right now. I can think of horses years ago that we brought up here that had one issue after another – whether it be on the x-rays, on the vetting, or some sort of conformational fault; but we’d still get them sold for something decent."

Russell ended his Thursday evening press briefing with a remembrance of long-time Keeneland auctioneer Cris Caldwell, who lost his battle with pancreatic cancer in May.

“This is the first sale we’ve had without Cris Caldwell and the amount of consignors and buyers who have come by and commented about it and acknowledged it,” he said.

“One guy said to me that he was a great ‘bouncer’ – he’d go and bounce ideas off of him and get a value. A lot of people have come up and said that they miss him and wish he was here. It’s quite humbling.”

Leidel strikes late

Peter Leidel, bidding over the phone, made the highest bid of the two-day Book 2 section of the September sale when going to US$1 million (AU$1.36 million) to secure a son of Into Mischief.

The bay colt, the fifth yearling by the Spendthrift stallion to sell for seven figures this week, is out of stakes winner Teen Pauline (USA) (Tapit {USA}).

“He is a lovely horse, ticked all the boxes as they say,” Warrendale’s Hunter Simms said. “He has a great walk. The Into Mischiefs have been on fire at this sale and on the racetrack. The mare was a new track record holder. Stonestreet did a nice job prepping him and he showed himself well at the barn. He is a classy animal.”

Thursday’s session opened with a Stonestreet-bred colt by Into Mischief, consigned by Taylor Made Sales Agency, selling for US$675,000 (AU$923,739) to Shadwell Estate Company Ltd.

“Stonestreet has been very supportive of us over the years and we greatly appreciate it. We have had good success for them,” Simms said.

Through four sessions of the September sale, 45 yearlings by Into Mischief have sold for US$23,280,000 (AU$31,823,841) and an average of US$517,333 (AU$707,124).

Stonestreet purchased Effectual (USA) (Carson City {USA}), with Teen Pauline in utero, for US$475,000 (AU$649,234) at the 2009 Keeneland November sale. Racing in the Stonestreet colours, the dark bay won the 2014 G2 Top Flight H. and was third in the 2012 GI Spinaway S. She is the dam of 3-year-old Cambria (USA) (Speightstown {USA}), who beat the boys in the Listed Kentucky Downs Juvenile Turf Sprint in 2019.

In partnership with Stonestreet, Leidel campaigned 2017 G1 King’s Stand S. and G1 Darley Prix Morny winner Lady Aurelia (USA) (Scat Daddy {USA}). Banke purchased the filly for US$7.5 million (AU$10,249,171) at the 2018 Fasig-Tipton November sale to dissolve the partnership.

Avengers step in

The stallion-making partnership of SF Racing, Starlight, Madaket, et al, more commonly referred to as “The Avengers” these days after their trainer Bob Baffert coined the nickname, woke up a somewhat sleepy sales pavilion late in the session to add another 2022 Classic prospect to their formidable roster.

The Quality Road (USA) colt was bred and consigned by Everett Dobson’s Candy Meadows as Hip 1197. He cost US$775,000 (AU$1.06 million).

“He’s a Quality Road, great stallion,” said SF’s Tom Ryan. “We’re just starting to see the cream rising to the top now with him. Just think of what he’s accomplished already; the future’s so bright for him.

“A good horse comes in there, and there’s plenty of competition. We really felt like we were going to have to reach for this horse, but Bob, Donato, everybody loved him.

“It’s been a busy sale for us. Keeneland assembled a great group of horses here, and good horses are hard to buy.”

Dobson purchased Hip 1197’s dam Sustainable (USA) (Forestry {USA}) for US$200,000 (AU$273,279) at the 2012 Fasig-Tipton July sale, and raced her under his Cheyenne Stables banner to a couple of stakes placings and nearly US$260,000 (AU$355,306) in earnings. Her 2017 Pioneerof The Nile (USA) colt sold for US$400,000 (AU$546,667) here two terms ago and has been working in California towards a debut.

Constitution filly sells for a ‘fortune‘

A filly by Constitution (USA) out of Candy Fortune (USA) (Candy Ride {Arg}) sat atop the leader board for much of the day after selling online for US$725,000 (AU$990,552) to agents Alex Solis II and Jason Litt on behalf of the Roth family’s LNJ Foxwoods.

The half-sister to last year’s GI Woody Stephens S. winner Hog Creek Hustle (USA) (Overanalyze {USA}) was consigned to the sale by Kitty Taylor’s Warrendale Sales on behalf of Sandra Sexton and Steven and Brandi Nicholson’s Silver Fern Farm as Hip 904.

“She was just beautiful,” Taylor said. “She was vetted a tremendous amount. I sold her for some long-standing clients of mine who are very dear friends, Sandra Sexton and Silver Fern Farm. She was vetted so much and handled it so well. She went to a great place with LNJ Foxwoods.”

Candy Fortune (USA) lost her Flatter (USA) foal this year and was bred back to Frosted (USA).

Hip 904, meanwhile, is the highest-priced yearling to sell so far this season by leading sophomore Tiz The Law’s (USA) red-hot sire Constitution – Solis/Litt also bought his second-most-expensive seller, a US$375,000 (AU$512,337) colt at last week’s Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearlings Showcase.

Shadwell back for more Mischief

Shadwell Estate Company’s Rick Nichols, who was forced to US$700,000 (AU$956,481) to acquire a colt by Into Mischief on Wednesday, was able to get another son of the leading sire for US$675,000 (AU$922,123) early during Thursday’s session.

“I thought we might have to go a little bit more than that,” Nichols admitted after signing the ticket on Hip 880.

Consigned by Taylor Made Sales Agency as agent for his breeder Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings, the yearling (Hip 880) is out of Bella Jolie (USA) (Broken Vow {USA}) and is a half-brother to sprint champion Runhappy (USA) (Super Saver {USA}).

“He’s a very nice colt,” Nichols said. “He’s a half-brother to a good sprinter with good conformation and he looks like he has a really good head on his shoulders. Nice horse.”

Sheikh Hamdan’s Shadwell operation finished third in the GI Runhappy Hopeful S. with Mutasaabeq (USA), a son of Into Mischief, and Nichols said it was no surprise the stallion’s yearlings have been in demand at the September sales.

“He’s the leading sire in the country,” Nichols said. “We have a really good 2-year-old by him. We really like him.”

Nichols came back a few hips later to acquire a colt by Curlin (USA) (Hip 911), again consigned by Taylor Made on behalf of Stonestreet for US$500,000 (AU$682,770).

Another Moon for the Lows

Robert and Lawana Low, who had graded success with Magnum Moon (USA), added another son of Malibu Moon (USA) to their racing operation when bloodstock agent Jacob West made a final bid of US$610,000 (AU$833,070) for Hip 977 in the back show barn.

Bred and consigned by Larry Doyle’s KatieRich Farms, the yearling is out of multiple Graded-placed Fantasy Of Flight (USA) (Tiznow {USA}).

“He was kind of representative of what they look for,” West said of the yearling. “He looks like a big two-turn horse out of a mare who could run by a stallion they love. He vetted clean and was a beautiful specimen.”

West said demand for the top offerings remained strong as the September sale’s Book 2 concluded Thursday.

“It’s been strong for the right ones, but we’re inching towards that spot in the sale where I think you are going to see a dramatic drop off,” West said.

“I think it’s slowed down just a little bit and I think we are inching towards that – I don’t know when it’s coming. I hope not for a long time for the breeders’ sakes, but I think it’s coming.”

Cayala rewards Kingswood again

Roderick Wachman’s Kingswood Farm and David Egan enjoyed their second consecutive year with high-dollar sale of a son of Into Mischief out of Cayala (USA) (Cherokee Run {USA}) at Keeneland September.

Last year’s colt brought US$550,000 (AU$750,800), and this year’s (Hip 912) one-upped his brother at US$600,000 (AU$819,295), selling to GI Kentucky Derby winner Authentic (USA) (Into Mischief {USA}) co-owners Spendthrift Farm and MyRacehorse.com.

“It was a fantastic price; the reserve was way before that,” Wachman said. “He was a nice horse, so happy days. I hope they are very lucky with him. The mare and the stallion have been very good to me.

“As you would expect, a lot of people have not travelled so, while we have lots of agents, the principals are not here,” Wachman said of the market. “When principals are not here, agents are a little more risk-averse because the person isn’t giving them a push.”

New mark for Lord Nelson

Spendthrift Farm freshman Lord Nelson (USA) (Pulpit {USA}) achieved his highest auction price to date when a half-brother to 2018 G2 Remsen S. hero Maximus Mischief (USA) (Into Mischief {USA}), now a Spendthrift resident himself, brought US$460,000 (AU$628,114) from Frank Fletcher Racing and Ten Strike Racing. The strapping April 3 foal was consigned to the sale as Hip 1136 by his breeders, Mulholland Springs.

“I really felt like he was something fantastic,” John Mulholland said. “Like with most nice horses, you know they’re nice as soon as they’re foaled. He reminded me a lot of Maximus Mischief, and that’s because the mare throws a lot of herself into her foals.

“This one reminded me a lot of Max himself, and obviously it was a huge for the pedigree with him winning the graded stake and all of that. Hip 1136 is exactly what you’re hoping for when you raise something. He’s beautiful, he’s strong and a lot of body to him. He’s everything you hope for as a breeder.”

Lord Nelson, knocked out of the 2016 GI Breeders’ Cup Sprint in which he would have been a heavy favourite due to a leg infection, then had to overcome a battle with laminitis that forced him to miss the entire 2017 breeding season.

While he may have lost a bit of momentum before covering his first mares last term, Mulholland is bullish on Lord Nelson’s future.

“I have supported him; I’ve liked him from day one,” he said. “Obviously, it was a tough start with him getting hurt and then his feet and all, but I’ve bred to him and I’m very hopeful. We need another son of Pulpit, and he’s a beautiful horse. I’ve liked everything he’s thrown for us, so I hope he makes it.”