Into Mischief colt leads the way on day two of Keeneland September Yearling Sale
The second session of the Keeneland September Yearling Sale took no time to see fireworks, setting a new top price after Terry Finley signalled a final bid of US$3 million (approx. AU$4,686,100) for an Into Mischief (Harlan’s Holiday) colt for the partnership of Chuck Sonson, Woodford Racing, and West Point Thoroughbreds.
Lane’s End consigned the bay bred in Kentucky by Repole Stable as Hip 261.
“When you bring an individual like him to this sale, you hope to be rewarded, and that’s what happened today,” said Allaire Ryan, sales director for Lane’s End. “Over the past decade, of the horses we’ve raised at the farm, he is right up there. He’s always been a forward individual from day one. He’s been a special horse for us.”
The colt is out of Grade 1-placed Nonna Mia (Empire Maker), dam of Wood Memorial Stakes (Gr 1, 9f) winner Outwork (Uncle Mo) and the stakes-placed Nonna’s Boy (Distorted Humor).
“All the top players you think would be interested in a future stallion prospect like him,” Ryan said. “I’m just thrilled for everybody on the farm. To be entrusted with a mare like this for Mr Repole means a lot in and of itself, but raising a horse and bringing him to an auction is rewarding for everybody.”
Finley and Sonson were situated inside the pavilion to watch the colt sell on Tuesday afternoon.
“Beautiful colt,” Finley said. “He was always in the hands [of] Lane’s End, so we knew a little about his upbringing. We are excited and have a new group of partners who are in on him. We will try to get to the Derby in 2025.”
The group picked up two yearlings on day one, a US$325,000 (approx. AU$507,661) Gun Runner (Candy Ride) filly and the US$1.35 million (approx. AU$2,108,700) Uncle Mo (Indian Charlie) colt out of Diva Deliten (Repent), dam of champion Midnight Bisou (Midnight Lute). On Tuesday, they scored a Candy Ride (Ride The Rails) colt and a Quality Road (Elusive Quality) colt, each for US$800,000 (approx. AU$1,249,600), before the session leader purchase.
“I thought he would bring a significant amount of money, but you never know after they get past [US$1.5 million],” said Finley. “I am just glad we got to where I thought it was a reasonable amount – if you can say US$3 million is a reasonable amount of money for a racehorse who has never had a saddle on his back.”
Day two concluded with 112 horses traded of the 154 on offer for a gross of US$61,695,000 (approx. AU$96,369,800), up 5 per cent over the previous year. The average price was up eight per cent to US$550,848 (approx. AU$860,400), while the median dropped 8.3 per cent to US$412,500 (approx. AU$644,300) from 2022.
“It was a great day!” Keeneland president and CEO Shannon Arvin said. “There were lots and lots of buyers. The partnerships were active. It was active from the domestic side and the international side. The 15 top prices were bought by 13 different buyers, a real diversity among the consignors, which was really nice to see. There were a lot of consignors who had success today.”
Last year, during day two, Keeneland reported 115 of the 138 horses through the ring were sold for a gross of US$58,680,000 (approx. AU$91,660,300), an average price of US$510,261 (approx. AU$797,00-0) and a median of US$450,000 (approx. AU$702,900).
There were 15 horses who sold for US$1 million (approx. AU$1,562,000) or more, by Into Mischief, Uncle Mo, Not This Time (Giant’s Causeway), Tapit (Pulpit), Gun Runner, Volatile (Violence), Medaglia d’Oro (El Prado), and Curlin (Smart Strike).
One of those was the Uncle Mo half-sibling to multiple Grade 1 winner Shedaresthedevil (Daredevil), a WinStar Farm-bred filly who sold to John Stewart for a hefty US$2.5 million (approx. AU$3,905,000).
“She is a lovely filly,” Gavin O’Connor, agent for John Stewart, said. “I know the family personally – I worked for WinStar for five years. She’s an unbelievable broodmare prospect as well. The residual value is there; we feel we have a safe asset. [The price] was a little bit more than we wanted to go, but like we said, John is a buyer. John was on the phone, giving us the clearance to keep going.
“We’ve had an incredible sale, and I think we are sealed up now; we’re done. We have a total of ten, and for John, as a first-time owner, he has an exciting stable of horses.”
O’Connor added: “She is so pretty, and I love Uncle Mo babies. They are so smart, so intelligent. When you see them, you see them. Everybody loved her. She was a standout filly. To get her is a dream come true.”
“Good things come to those who wait,” Conrad Bandoroff, VP for Denali Stud, said. “It’s a cliche to say, but she’s a queen in every sense of the word. She was a beautiful filly with an unbelievable physical, fantastic pedigree, and raised by one of the best programmes in the industry. David Hanley said, ‘Leading into the sale, [I think] she is one of the best horses they’ve raised in a few years.’ And she’s one of the best horses we’ve seen all year. We go around to a lot of places, looking at a lot of horses, and that’s the kind of horse that you’re going to hope walks out of the stall, and she just had everything to back it up.
“We couldn’t be more thrilled for WinStar and wish the best of luck to the connections. She’s the kind of filly who you would hope to see running like her sister in the Kentucky Oaks and further down the line being a foundation blue hen mare for somebody. She’s got every license to do that.”
Over the past two days, 229 yearlings have been traded of 298 to go under the hammer, for gross receipts of US$118,465,000 (approx. AU$185,046,600). An average price of US$517,314 (approx. AU$808,100) and a median of US$400,000 (approx. AU$624,800) was made.
At this point last year, 235 yearlings had sold of the 282 on offer for gross receipts of US$117,295,000 (approx. AU$183,219,000), at an average price of US$499,127 (approx. AU$779,600) and a median of US$450,000 (approx. AU$702,900).
“When you look at everybody from Elm Tree Farm having their first [seven-figure sale], seeing Brian Graves [Gainesway] having a banner Book 1, and for Mandy Pope [breeder, Whisper Hill Farm], it was a testament to her breeding programme that she was able to gain such amazing results,” Tony Lacy, vice president of sales, said. “It was incredible to see.”
“The depth and diversity of the market was encouraging,” Lacy added. “It was great to see new money still here. The Japanese were very active today. People say they are enjoying themselves again, and seeing people happy is good. It’s not an easy process. There are good sales and some slightly disappointing sales, but people are encouraged by the fact that so many people here are very active. The repository was getting a lot of hits from the vetting side.”
Coolmore make a splash
Two more Into Mischief offspring to cross the million-dollar threshold at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale came just half-hour apart when Coolmore’s MV Magnier signed the ticket on two colts during the sale’s second session.
The first, consigned by St George Sales, is a son of Grade 2 winner Princess Haya (Street Cry) and is a half-brother to three Graded stakes performers in Lady Kate (Bernardini), Prince Of Arabia (Mineshaft) and Princess Theorem (Nyquist). Hip 283 was acquired by Brookstone Farm for US$550,000 as a weaning out of the Havens Bloodstock Agency consignment at the 2022 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale.
“I’m kind of speechless at the moment,” said consignor Archie St George, after the colt had been hammered down to Magnier for $1.8 million (approx. AU$2,811,700). “We’re just very fortunate to have a horse as good as him. He’s by a top-class stallion. His mind is unbelievable. He’s just a very nice horse.”
St George remarked on the risk-reward factor when purchasing a weanling for such a lofty price.
He said: “It’s nerve-racking. [Buying an] Into Mischief was a big thing and physically he was a nice horse. It’s [been] a huge team effort.
“I’d like to thank Coolmore and their partners and wish them the best of luck. A lot of work has gone into the horse. I’d like to thank the lads at the farm and my wife, Michelle, Roger O’Callaghan, and his dad.”
Hip 283 was bred in Kentucky by Barry and Judith Becker. The couple bought Princess Haya for US$300,000 at the 2017 Keeneland November Sale in foal to Nyquist (Uncle Mo). All four of her foals to race have been winners.
Magnier said the success of third-crop stallion Practical Joke was a major factor in the purchase. Practical Joke, a son of Into Mischief, stands at Coolmore’s American branch in Kentucky, Ashford Stud. He is second on the third-crop sires list and is responsible for this year’s Santa Anita Derby (Gr 1, 9f) hero Practical Move.
“[Hip 283] is a very good mover and Into Mischief is a very good sire and [his son] Practical Joke is doing really well at the moment,” said Magnier.
A short while later, another consignor was overcome with a wave of emotions when her homebred Into Mischief colt struck at US$1.2 million (approx. AU$1,874,400) to the Coolmore operation.
Hip 331, a son of Carrie and Craig Brogden’s blue hen mare Special Me (Unbridled’s Song), became the couple’s most expensive yearling they’ve ever bred. The handsome grey sold under the Brogdens’ Machmer Sales banner.
“I’m just overwhelmed,” said Craig Brogden. “I had no idea he would bring that much money. I had his reserve set for well below $500,000.”
The colt’s US$1.2 million price tag was also a milestone achievement for Special Me, a mare Brogden picked up for a mere US$6,000 at the 2009 Keeneland January Sale. Her daughter Gina Romantica, a sister to Hip 331, commanded US$1.025 million at the 2020 Keeneland September Sale before going on to land Grade 1 glory last year as a three-year-old in the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Stakes (Gr 1, 9f) at Keeneland.
Among hip 331’s other decorated siblings are Grade 1 winner victor Gift Box (Twirling Candy) as well as Grade 2 winners Stonetastic (Mizzen Mast) and Special Forces (Candy Ride).
“I’m just overjoyed he went into great hands,” said Brogden. “It wouldn’t surprise me if he was a great dirt horse and it wouldn’t surprise me if he was a great turf horse.”
Special Me has a weanling filly by Twirling Candy (Candy Ride), a sister to Gift Box, and is in foal to 2022 Horse of the Year Flightline (Tapit).
Magnier also bought the second-to-last horse to pass through the ring on Tuesday when he landed Hip 391 for US$1.25 million (approx AU$1,952,500). The Gun Runner colt, consigned by Gainesway, is a son of the Graded stakes-placed Arch (Kris S) mare Special Event.