Hip 331, a daughter of Preakness winner Early Voting bred by Sequel Thoroughbreds LLC and Tuscany Bloodstock, sold for $525,000 to top the opening session of the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale Sunday. Susie Raisher Photo.
The momentum from last week carried into Sunday night’s opening session of the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale.
Fresh off a record-setting Saratoga sale of selected yearlings, the first session of the New York-bred sale saw gains in total sales, average price and median, along with a slight increase in buyback rate.
Fasig-Tipton reported sales on 64 of the 84 offered for $8,338,000, up 21.5 percent from last year’s opening session when 66 yearlings sold for $6,860,000. The opening night average price came in at $130,281, up 25.3 percent from last year’s $103,939, while median rose 18 percent from $89,000 in 2024 to $105,000 this year.
“An outstanding opening session of the 2025 New York-bred yearling sale,” Fasig-Tipton President and CEO Boyd Browning Jr. said. “The positive momentum from the Saratoga Sale last week clearly continued tonight. It really is a result of having an improved quality of horses on the sales grounds in terms of pedigrees and physical conformation. The quality of the New York-breds that we’re exposed to in our inspection process continues to improve each and every year and it’s indicative of the results tonight. The sale started off very, very strong and ended very, very strong. It was a very good night.”
Six yearlings commanded bids of $350,000 or more, including a pair of fillies that sold for $525,000 and $500,000.
Hip 331, a filly from the first crop of 2022 Preakness winner Early Voting, landed the top price of the session from a group that included trainer Danny Gargan, bloodstock agent Megan Jones and Hal Mintz of Sabby Racing.
“Beautiful filly, best one of the sale,” Mintz said. “Didn’t really want to get into a bidding contest with Mr. (Tom) McCrocklin, but that’s what happens. The market is really hot and when people see a really nice filly it can get a little out of control. Even at the New York-bred sale. I’m happy to have her. There will be a couple partners that Danny (Gargan) will bring to the table. Hopefully next year we’ll be excited come summertime with her.”
Bred by Sequel Thoroughbreds LLC and Tuscany Bloodstock, the filly is out of the winning Ghostzapper mare Owl Moon. She was sold by a pinhooking partnership by Thorndale Farm, agent, after originally bringing $150,000 as a weanling at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga fall mixed sale.
“The market is bullish,” Jones said. “We thought she was the best filly in the sale. Amazing body, great physical. She had a lot of Gun Runner in her, I thought. We just loved her. She’s very smart. We just liked her all the way, and now we’re going to take her home. One of the best New York-breds that we can celebrate.”
Hip 329, a filly by Practical Joke bred by Dutchess Views Farm, SGO Thoroughbred LLC and Winding Road Thoroughbreds, sold for $500,000 Sunday at the New York-bred yearling sale. Fasig-Tipton Photo.
Hip 329, a daughter of Practical Joke who sold as a weanling at last year’s Saratoga fall mixed sale for $62,500, commanded a $500,000 bid from bloodstock agent Jacob West for Mike Repole’s Repole Stable. Bred by Dutchess Views Farm, SGO Thoroughbred LLC and Winding Road Thoroughbreds and consigned by Hunter Valley Farm, agent, the filly is out of the Gemologist mare Our Hope Diamond.
“The beauty of it was that she’s a very nice filly, but she’s also a New-York-bred,” West said. “It gives you a little bit more confidence that you can bid away, knowing that you’ve got a strong New York-bred program behind you. Physically she was very nice. She’s out of a family that seemed precocious and could run and she seems like it.”
Hunter Valley also sold the third highest-priced yearling, Hip 393, a daughter of Medaglia d’Oro that went to $410,000 to Phil Hager’s Taproot Bloodstock, agent, for Lee Lewis. Bred by Rockridge Stud, LLC, the filly is out of stakes winner and Grade 3-placed Archarcharch mare Strategic Dreams.
“Really pretty Medaglia filly; the owner loves Megdalias,” Hager said. “There are some updates in the pedigree, which was nice. The New York-bred is always good, too. We liked some Medaglias in the last sale, and I would put her up with some of those as well. It’s nice to get one for a little bit less than what some of those were bringing.
“We were feeling like (it would be in) that range. The average price for Medaglias so far has been $415,000 for the year. I told him it was going to be around there.”
Hip 400, a colt by Life is Good, sold for $400,000 as the final yearling through the ring Sunday. Susie Raisher Photo.
The final yearling through the ring, Hip 400, brought the highest price of the session for a colt. Kenny McPeek, bidding on the phone, went to $400,000 to purchase the son of Life Is Good out of the unraced Tapit mare Tapas.
Bred by Sequel Thoroughbreds LLC and Magnolia Mares LLC and consigned by Sequel New York, agent, the colt is a half-brother to three winners, including the stakes-placed Editor in Chief and Tawaret, a daughter of Pioneerof the Nile that sold in foal to Life Is Good for $175,000 at last year’s Keeneland November breeding stock sale.
The first yearling through the ring, Hip 301, a colt from the first crop of multiple Grade 1 winner Mind Control, sold for $110,000 and ended the night as the leading seller by a New York-based stallion.
Mike Ryan, agent for e Five Racing Thoroughbreds, signed for the first foal out of the winning Ghostzapper mare Madera. Bred by James Hogan and Harry Landry, the colt sold as a weanling for $25,000 at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga fall mixed sale. He was consigned at this year’s sale by Paramount Sales, agent.
Mind Control led the way for a yearling by a New York-based stallion when Hip 301, a colt out of the Ghostzapper mare Madera, sold for $110,000 to lead off the session. Susie Raisher Photo.
Mind Control, a 9-year-old son of Stay Thirsty out of the Lightnin N Thunder mare Feel That Fire, stands for $8,000 at Rockridge Stud in Hudson for the Rockridge Stud/Irish Hill Dutchess Views Venture.
Sackatoga Stable went to $80,000 to purchase the session’s second highest price for a yearling by a New York-based sire – Hip 327, a colt by Honest Mischief and half-brother to Grade 1 winner Haveyougoneaway.
Bred by Andy and Susan Beadnell and consigned by McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds, agent, the colt is out of the unraced Wiseman’s Ferry mare One Wise Cowgirl. She’s the dam of 11-time winner and $907,425-earner Haveyougoneaway, who sold for $1.1 million at the 2016 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky November mixed sale. One Wise Cowgirl is also the dam of five other winners, including the Central Banker gelding and $127,750-earner Top of the Mint and the Girolamo mare and $116,698-earner She’sakittykat.
Honest Mischief, a 9-year-old son of Into Mischief out of the Grade 1-winning Seattle Slew mare Honest Lady, stands for $7,500 at Sequel Stallions New York in Hudson.
The sale continues with the final session at noon Monday. The catalog features 204 yearlings and Browning knows the true test of the market comes on the final day of the Saratoga summer sales season.
“We’re not even at halftime. In hockey terms, we’re not through the first period. We’ve got two more periods to go, there’s a third of the catalog tonight and two-thirds of the catalog tomorrow,” Browning said. “But a very, very encouraging start. It gives continued confidence in the marketplace, to not only say that this is a very elite level like we saw last week. Very encouraging results. Our July yearling sale had encouraging results. It should provide confidence to the marketplace as we continue throughout the yearling process, which should translate into the mixed sales beginning in October and November. It’s fun selling horses right now.”
– Reporting by The Saratoga Special’s Julia Reedy, Darby O’Brien and Miles Clancy
