Member of BHB graduate scheme alumni signs for $700,000 Keeneland sale-topper

The second session of the Keeneland January Horses of All Ages Sale finished with a bang as Belgrade commanded $700,000 from Carl and Yurie Pascarella to top the second session of the winter breeding stock sale.

Agent Jane Buchanan, an alumni of the BHB graduate development programme from the class of 1996, signed the ticket for the three-year-old son of Hard Spun, who won by six lengths on his debut last month in a six-furlong maiden special weight at Fair Grounds.

"We have followed him after his race," said Buchanan, racing manager for trainer Graham Motion.

"We liked how he won and tried to buy him privately after his race. We liked how he did it, and he ran good numbers. The Pascarellas owned part of Animal Kingdom with Team Valor."

Randy Bradshaw picked up the colt from Brookdale Sales' consignment at the 2020 Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearlings Showcase for $45,000 and campaigned him in is lone start with trainer Brendan Walsh.

"He is a two-turn colt trained by Brendan Walsh, who does an outstanding job," said Buchanan, who is from Northern Ireland and whose brother Peter is a former National Hunt jockey. "He is a good trainer to buy from."

Belgrade tops the second day of the Keeneland January Horses of All Ages Sale at $700,000Credit: Keeneland

The colt will ship to one of Motion's divisions, either Fair Hill Training Center in Maryland or Tampa Bay Downs or Palm Meadows Training Center in Florida.

Buchanan has been hard at work looking for this type of colt to add to the stable of various clients.

"It is terribly tricky to buy a horse like this," she said. "We have been trying to buy all last year privately. The price was high, but that is what these horses [three-year-old colts with two-turn potential] are making right now."

Ashely Franz, director of bloodstock for consignor Four Star Sales and Bradshaw's daughter, was all smiles after getting off the phone with her father after the colt was hammered down.

"We are super excited," she said. "It was a great result and he was a great colt. We felt confident bringing him here with that impressive maiden win. It was a really, really exciting result and we are thrilled with that."

Bradshaw, who mainly purchases yearlings for pinhooking purposes, always has a back-up plan if a two-year-old sale doesn't pan out for a purchase.

"He's done that in the past, taken horses on and raced them, then sold them at public auction, so he feels comfortable doing that," said Franz.

The chestnut colt was bred in Kentucky by JR Ward Stables out of Miss Prytania, an unraced mare that has produced three runners and two winners. She has an exciting two-year-old Practical Joke filly ready for this year.

Larry Best purchased that filly as a weanling for $150,000 from the 2020 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale. The 2021 colt by Accelerate recently went through the Keeneland November sale, selling for $28,000 to David Rodawalt.

Belgrade's second dam is Brisquette, a Grade 3-placed winner that has produced two Grade 3 winners in Medal Count and Garden District .

"It was a really good day," said Tony Lacy, Keeneland's vice-president of sales. "Coming into the second day last year, we had the two dispersals in Paul Pompa and the Sam-Son Farm, which were big shoes to fill.

"We maintained the median at $40,000 and came close to last year's gross. This year, not having any dispersals and just going off the core group of horses we had, I think it went well."

A total of 263 horses from 327 offered changed hands on Wednesday for gross receipts of $18,859,500. The median progressed upward from the first day to $40,000 and the average was up slightly from the opener to $71,709. The 64 horses that did not sell represented a reserve not attained rate of 19.6 per cent.

A year ago, 259 horses were sold of the 318 offered for receipts of $23,851,400 at an average of $92,090 and a median of $40,000. The 59 that did not sell represented an RNA rate of 18.6 per cent.

Cumulatively in 2022, 517 horses have sold of the 661 to go under the hammer for a gross figure of $37,043,700, an average price of $71,651, and a median of $40,000. Failing to meet their reserve were 144, for an RNA rate of 21.8 per cent.

Cumulative figures for the first two sessions of 2021 showed 474 horses sold of the 620 on offer for gross receipts of $36,219,300. An average price of $76,412 and a median of $37,000 were attained. The 146 that didn't meet their reserve represented a 23.5 per cent RNA rate.

The top-priced mares sold Wednesday, with both bringing $600,000, were Co Cola (Candy Ride) and Susie's Baby (Giant's Causeway).

James Keogh's Grovendale consigned Co Cola as hip 492. She sold in foal to Flatter on an April cover and was purchased by Peter Blum so will head to Hurricane Place. The resulting foal will be a full-sibling to 2021 Acorn Stakes winner Search Results.

"I thought the market was fair today, a little different market than the November sale, but I think it's a good market for the January trade," Keogh said at the close of the night.

Budding bloodstock agent Ryder Finney, the son of consignor Meg Levy, signed the ticket on Susie's Baby for client Cypress Creek.

Consigned as hip 845 by Gainesway, the mare sold in foal to Constitution. She produced a stakes winner on the turf in her first foal, Family Way. The mare's dam, stakes winner Mekko Hokte produced Group 1 winner Caravaggio, who stands at Ashford Stud for $35,000 in 2022. My Jen is a Grade 2 winner out of Mekko Hokte.

The sale of both mares tied Flatter and Constitution as the session's leading covering sire.

Stuart Morris consigned the day's top short yearling, an Uncle Mo colt out of Canadian River. Nick de Meric signed as Sand Hill Bloodstock to secure the colt offered as hip 472 for a client at $310,000. The day's top-priced short yearling filly, hip 644, by Twirling Candy, was purchased by the same entity for $160,000 from Paramount Sales.

"I think there is a sense, there is a feeling of protection," Lacy commented on the day's short yearling activity. "It's a sign of strength when people are protecting their short yearlings if they feel they are going to be better for September.

"Everybody said the babies were bringing good money, and buyers were happy with what they spent. Overall no complaints from sellers and buyers were happy with what they were getting for what they were paying."

Reiley McDonald's Eaton Sales finished the second day of selling with receipts of $2,291,000 for 18 head sold at an average price of $127,278 to be the session-leading consignor. Cumulatively, Taylor Made Sales Agency still leads the way with gross receipts of $4,603,000 for 54 sold.

Sand Hill Bloodstock purchased six short yearlings at an average of $169,167 and a gross total of $1,015,000 to emerge as Wednesday's leading buyer. OXO Equine maintains its lead as the cumulative leading buyer with receipts of $1,490,000 for six head purchased.

"The old truism is ringing true," said De Meric. "The market is strong on the horses you want. We got three yesterday that we are delighted with, but we have been bridesmaids on a couple of others we loved. As is life in the big city."

The sale continues on Thursday with hips 854-1224G set to go through the ring.

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