By Sarah Mace
The 16 New York-bred 2-year-olds who changed hands in the opening session of the 2-day Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company’s 2018 March sale drew some impressive winning bids Tuesday. Nine sold for six figures, and five (all colts) sold for $250,000 and up, including a colt from the first crop of New York sire Central Banker. At the very top, a juvenile by City Zip sold to agent Steve Young for $550,000.
With 20 New York-bred 2-year-olds offered in the session after scratches, the 16 who sold generated a buyback percentage of only 20%, which significantly outperformed the 38.3% RNA rate for the session and perhaps foreshadows a strong demand overall for the New York product this juvenile sale season. The New York-bred average was $168,313, virtually on par with the overall average price of $172,921, and the New York-bred median came in at $110,000, a few ticks better than the session median of $105,000.
The colt that went to Steve Young for $550,000 after posting a work in :10 flat in the under tack show sold as Hip 169 and is a son of the late City Zip named Big Zipper. Consigned by Bobby Dodd, agent, he was the sixth top juvenile of the session.
Bred by a partnership of Danzel Brendenmuel, Clocker Z Racing Stable, Gary Marsh and Sandra Powers, and foaled on January 19, 2016 at Hidden Lake Farm in Otisville, Big Zipper has now successfully changed hands three times in his young life. A $150,000 weanling purchase by Jim R. Wells at the 2016 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Fall mixed sale, he was the top New York-bred male to go through the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga select yearling sale when he fetched $300,000 from Grand Oaks.
Big Zipper’s dam Auspicious is a Kentucky-bred multiple stakes-placed daughter of Indian Charlie acquired by Clocker Z Racing Stable in foal for $65,000 at the 2015 Keeneland November breeding stock sale. A half-sister of stakes performer Flatter Than Me, Auspicious has produced one winner of three foals to start. Big Zipper’s third dam is multiple stakes winner Powder Doll, who is also a graded stakes producer.
The second-leading New York-bred seller was Hip 99, who went to Charles H. Boden, Agent for $375,000 following a :21 1/5 quarter-mile drill. The bay Fed Biz colt, who was foaled on March 23, 2016 at Gallagher’s Stud in Ghent, is a third-generation product of the Gallagher’s breeding program.
The colt’s third dam, Felicita, who produced the colt’s second dam Eventail (Lear Fan) for Gallagher’s Stud, is also the dam of $2.4-million earner and broodmare of the year Take Charge Lady, dam of Will Take Charge, a $3.9-million earner, and champion 3-year-old colt, and sire Take Charge Indy. Eventail was a multiple stakes winner and graded-placed stakes runner. Her offspring include graded winner Straight Story and Strong Souther, a stakes winner in Japan. Eventail’s daughter, multiple winner Tulipmania, the sale colt’s dam, has produced one winner from four foals to start.
A graduate of the Fasig-Tipton New York-bred preferred yearling sale, Hip 99 was purchased by De Meric Stables for $185,000, who consigned the colt at OBS.
Of the three New York-bred 2-year-olds who sold in the $250,000-$290,000 range, Hip 29 deserves particular mention as member of the first crop of New York-based sire Central Banker, a Grade 2 winner by Speightstown who stands at McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds for a 2018 stud fee of $7,500.
A bay colt bred by Hidden Brook Farm, LLC in partnership with Blue Devil Racing and foaled at McMahons’ Saratoga farm on April 8, 2016, Hip 29 sold to Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC for $260,000 from the consignment of Steven Venosa’s SGV Thoroughbreds LLC and turned in a furlong move in :10 2/5.
Co-breeder Blue Devil purchased the colt’s dam, Florida-bred Sister in Arms, as a Saratoga preferred yearling in 2012 for $125,000. A daughter of Colonel John, Sister in Arms went on to win a pair of turf contests before moving on to broodmare duty. Hip 29 is her first foal. She has since produced a colt by Awesome Again in 2017 and was bred last year to Animal Kingdom. Her half-sister Quiet Meadow is a multiple graded stakes-placed runner.
Typically, the boutique Fasig-Tipton March sale kicks off the juvenile auction season rather than the larger OBS March sale, but was scheduled this year to be held later, on March 28 in Gulfstream Park’s walking ring to coincide with Grade 1 Florida Derby week. The second and concluding session of the OBS sale takes place on Wednesday, March 14 beginning at 10:30.
