Fasig-Tipton concluded its annual November sale of breeding stock Monday evening with strong numbers and a propensity for proven producers.
Although the November Sale is always affected by the Breeders’ Cup (which typically occurs the weekend before the sale), its top prices have, in the past, been dominated by horses wrapping up their racing seasons with win or solid placing in their Breeders’ Cup divisions. This year, the most expensive broodmare prospects were not those fresh off the plane from California, where the Breeders’ Cup races were held at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia Nov. 4-5.
Many of the most successful or most favored females at this year’s Breeders’ Cup turned out not to be for sale. Beholder, narrow winner of the Breeders’ Cup Distaff, will retire after her fifth season on the racetrack, but she’ll be retained by owner Spendthrift Farm. Her chief rival, 3-year-old Songbird (who lost the Grade 1 Distaff by inches), will stay in training according to owner Rick Porter of Fox Hill Farm. Tepin, beaten Breeders’ Cup Mile favorite, will likely race another season, as will Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf winner Queen’s Trust and Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint winner Finest City.
Fifteen fillies and mares sold for seven figures, and seven brought $2 million or more Monday. Seven of those seven-figure mares sold while carrying a foal for delivery in 2017, and three already have notable produce records.
The top price of $3.5 million went to Baffled, a daughter of WinStar Farm sire Distorted Humor who was purchased in partnership by Florida’s Bridlewood Farm and Chile’s Don Alberto Corp. Baffled has already delivered Grade 1 winner and WinStar stallion Constitution.
Whatdreamsrmadeof, dam of recently retired Curalina, sold to Summer Wind Equine of Georgetown for $1.65 million. Her daughter, one of the million-dollar horses who flew in from Breeders’ Cup, sold later for $3 million to Japanese interests.
Embellish the Lace brought a bid of $1.9 million at last year’s November sale, but did not attain the minimum price (reserve) her owners had set for her. This year, she brought $2.45 million after she returned to sale carrying a foal by popular sire Uncle Mo.
Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning said it’s not unusual for the type of high-priced mare to change from year to year.
“I think it’s more a reflection of the composition of the product this year,” said Browning. “Sometimes the sellers are folks that are selling horses coming off the racetrack and sometimes you’re fortunate enough to attract some of the proven producers. There’s no rhyme or magic to the composition. We had some higher-end proven producers this year than we did last year.”
Browning also hinted there were a few mares his team tried, unsuccessfully, to recruit to sale.
“There’s a couple really, really, really valuable racing/broodmare prospects that didn’t come to the sale this year that we worked really, really hard on, that we’d really, really like to sell next year,” he said.
One of the most talked about hammer prices was a no-sale. Bubbler, dam of Arrogate, winner of this year’s Breeders’ Cup Classic over betting favorite and 2014 Kentucky Derby winner California Chrome, brought $4.7 million in the ring, but did not sell. Although it’s hard to imagine walking away from money like that, it’s not entirely uncommon.
“That’s the nature of the beast,” said Browning. “Every man and woman has the right to put a value on their horse. They can ask us for our opinion; some do, some don’t. We try to give them honest, objective feedback, but ultimately it’s their right to set a reserve and it’s their right to bid on their own horse and there were not tears from the consignor on the most expensive horse that was bought back tonight. They were prepared to keep the horse if the market didn’t meet their expectations.”
The dam of 2014 Horse of the Year California Chrome, Love the Chase, was one of the sale’s seven-figure prices at $1.95 million. Agent John McCormack signed the ticket, and while he said the mare would stay in the United States, he declined to reveal the identity of the person who now owns her.
“She was a nice mare, physically,” McCormack. “She had lovely quality. It’s there for everyone to see, what she’s done with the Horse of the Year. She’s in foal to Tapit, believed to be carrying a colt. You can hope and believe that actually, the story could get better.”
Fasig-Tipton’s economic indicators were up significantly over last year’s November sale. This year, 87 horses sold for $53,652,000, a gross sales figure up 23 percent. The average price was up 30 percent from last year to $616,690, while the median of $375,000 was up 60 percent. The proportion of horses not attaining their reserve prices was down, from 34 percent last year to 28 percent this year.
From here, the bloodstock market moves immediately to Keeneland, which begins the first of its bloodstock sales Nov. 8 and runs through Nov. 20.