By Sarah Mace
The New York-bred cohort at Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company’s Spring Sale of Two-Year-Olds in Training concluded business on a high note when late in the fourth and final session of trading Friday Larry Best’s OXO Equine made a winning bid of $1,100,000 on Hip 1312, a smooth-striding chestnut son of freshman WinStar sire Speightster. This was the third and final seven-figure sale at the auction.
Hip 1312, currently named Fortunate Son, was bred by Danzel Brendemuehl Classic Mares. His OBS consigner Tom McCrocklin bought the colt on behalf of Solana Beach for $110,000 at last year’s Fasig-Tipton New York-bred preferred yearling sale in Saratoga.
McCrocklin told the TDN, “I’ve got to tell you, I’ve been asked a lot here, ‘How did you buy that horse for $110,000?’ He was always beautiful and at the end of the day, I don’t know how I got him bought. He’s the only one I have by Speightster, but I started singing his praises as soon as this horse showed the ability he has.”
The colt turned in an effortless-looking quarter mile in :20 4/5 at the under tack show on June 6. [VIDEO] Like many of the high-profile sales at OBS, he was supplemented to the auction after being originally slated for the Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream sale.
The Speightster colt’s dam is Auspicious by Indian Charlie, who scored three wins at two and three, and collected a pair of stakes placings. The Kentucky-bred mare is a half-sister to Flatter Than Me, runner up in the Grade 3 Bashford Manor Stakes. The colt’s third dam is multiple stakes winner and multiple stakes producer Powder Doll, whose offspring include multiple graded winner Scott’s Scoundrel and stakes winner Gobedie.
Christina Jelm, who did the bidding on behalf of Best, commented to the TDN, “He”s a big beautiful horse that checked every box.”
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Another New York-bred high-flyer to sell in the closing session of the OBS spring sale was Hip 1226, a dark bay/brown colt by Twirling Candy who is a half-brother to two New York-bred stakes winners. Purchased by Donato Lanni on behalf of Michael Lund Petersen for $375,000, the colt is a graduate of the Fasig-Tipton New York-bred preferred yearling sale where he was acquired by Jeff Fugate for $95,000. In the under tack show he completed a speedy quarter in :10 flat. [VIDEO]
Bred by Joe Gioia’s Very Un Stable, the colt is out of Just Call Me Angel, a Kentucky-bred winner by Devil’s Bag and one-hundred percent producer with six winners from six foals to start. Gioia purchased her at the 2005 OBS winter mixed sale for $16,000 with her first foal, Afleet Alexandra (Northern Afleet), in utero. The filly went on to win the New York Oaks in 2008 and earn more than $250,000 for Very Un Stable. Her fifth foal Saythreehailmary’s (Repent) won the open Ladies Handicap and restricted Bay Ridge and earned nearly $500,000. Just Call Me Angel has a yearling colt by Kantharos and foaled filly by Freud this year.
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Top New York-bred to change hands in Thursday’s session three was a bay colt by Flatter, Hip 745, bred by Chester and Mary Broman. Consigned by Ocala Stud, Agent he was purchased by Cromwell Bloodstock, Agent for $180,000 in his first career trip through the ring after breezing a superior quarter mile in :21 flat. [VIDEO]
The Flatter colt is out of successful producer Arradoul who was purchased by the Bromans for $380,000 at the 2011 Keeneland November sale and has since been resold. A winning Kentucky-bred daughter of Dixieland Band with six winners from six foals to start, Arradoul has produced a pair of stakes performers including New York-bred East View runner-up Backwood Bay by Girolamo. The extended family includes Grade 1 winner A. P. Indian, Grade 2 winner Tiz Shea D and Grade 3 winner Doctor Mounty.
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The New York-breds at OBS got off to a bit of slow start but gained momentum over the course of the sale culminating with the seven-figure Speightster colt. As was the case across the board, a large number of New York-breds were withdrawn (54 of 133 catalogued) as a function of the COVID-19-related lapse between the originally scheduled date of the sale in April and mid-June.
In the end, of 79 offered, 56 New York-breds changed hands (including 10 private sales to date) for a solid average price of $84,411 and $38,000 median. The New York-bred buyback percentage which came in at an alarming 52.6% after the sale’s opening session, moderated as the sale picked up momentum, winding up at a somewhat more palatable 29.1%.
For the entire sale, which was conducted in the shadow of the global pandemic, the average price was $92,764 (down 13.9% from 2019’s sale record of $108,227). The median was $50,000 (down from last year’s record $60,000). The buyback percentage was 18.4%..
“Considering what we’ve all had to deal with and where we were two months ago, I think it was a solid sale,” said OBS Director of Sales Tod Wojciechowski. “We saw a lot of the same things we’ve been seeing in recent times. The top end of the market takes care of itself, but it gets a little dicey in the middle. But we finished up strong today. I think it’s just a continuing move of the industry in trying to get back to normal.”
