Four yearlings from the first crop of multiple grade 1 winner Gormley make their Keeneland September Yearling Sale debut Sept. 18 during the fifth session of the two-week auction.
Spendthrift Farm's 6-year-old son of Malibu Moon has already gotten off to a solid start during the late summer yearling sales, having been represented by two six-figure yearlings at the Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearlings Showcase Sept. 9-10. Summerfield sold a $160,000 colt out of the Tale of the Cat daughter and stakes producer Green Eyed Cat to Quarter Pole Enterprises, and agent Bill Murphy sold a colt out of the Perfect Soul winner Soul of Fashion for $115,000 to SGV Thoroughbreds.
"The physicals are being rewarded," said Ned Toffey, the general manager of Spendthrift. "Our breeders and our sales staff, who (have) been going out and looking at Gormley's yearlings, have been really happy with them. They are very athletic and really racy, similar to Malibu Moon in terms of size and substance. They may be a little more refined and typier."
Gormley has a total of 30 yearlings still entered in the Keeneland sale, and two of his initial offerings on Day 5 are with Machmer Hall Sales' consignment. Machmer Hall's two yearlings are Hip 1367, a bay colt out of the Zensational mare Fleeting Sensation, and Hip 1399, a chestnut filly out of the Forest Wildcat mare and stakes producer Honky Tonk Rose.
"Gormley was a really fast, precocious horse," said Carrie Brogden with Machmer Hall Sales. "Both of these yearlings have been raised on farms that have produced a lot of runners, and they are straightforward, uncomplicated horses that can go right into training."
The colt out of Fleeting Sensation has a hot pedigree this year because the mare is a half sister to the dam of grade 1-placed winner Gouverneur Morris, who was bred in Kentucky by Machmer Hall's Craig and Carrie Brodgen along with James Miller. The yearling's third dam is multiple graded stakes winner Fleet Lady, who is the dam of champion and sire Midshipman ; grade 2 winner Fast Cookie, who is the dam of grade 1 winner and sire Frosted ; and graded-placed stakes winner Regia Marina.
"This colt is a good-feeling horse with a good mind that looks very much like his father," Brogden said. "And while he was raised in Kentucky since he was two months old, he's West Virginia-bred. If he runs to his looks, he can swoop in on the West Virginia day of champions and capture those rich state-bred purses."
Machmer Hall's filly out of Honky Tonk Rose is a half sister to Matron Stakes (G3)-placed winner Spirituality. Honky Tonk Rose is a half sister to grade 3-placed winner Sea Level Drive (Malibu Moon) and stakes-placed winner Cascade Rose (Giant's Causeway). The immediate family also includes grade 1 winners Sacahuista, Santa Ana Lane, and Geri.
"She is a different type," Brogden said. "She is very tall, elegant, and very pretty. She is a really stretchy, two-turn type. The filly actually looks more like what Gormley's grandfather (A.P. Indy) throws."
Gainesway is selling one of the other two Gormley yearlings to be offered on Day 5 as Hip 1314, a colt out of the winning Johannesburg mare Crossing the Tape. The mare is a half sister to multiple grade 1 winner Gabby's Golden Gal (Medaglia d'Oro ) and to multiple graded stakes winner Always a Princess (Leroidesanimaux). The yearling sale colt is a half brother to multiple stakes-placed winner Life Mission (Noble Mission).
Lane's End as agent for Kinsman Stud is offering the fourth Gormley yearling as Hip 1605, a bay colt out of the winning Pleasant Tap mare The Best Option. The mare is out of the multiple stakes winner Out of Options, making her a half sister to multiple graded stakes winner My Option (Belong to Me).
Gormley is the only intact son of Malibu Moon to win a grade 1 stakes at 2. He won twice out of three starts as juvenile, taking the FrontRunner Stakes (G1) in his second start. He competed in the Sentient Jet Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) but finished unplaced.
As a sophomore, Gormley had a winning debut in the Sham Stakes (G3), was fourth in the San Felipe Stakes (G2), and then won the Santa Anita Derby (G1) over eventual Las Vegas Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) winner Battle of Midway. In the 2017 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1), Gormley was in contention, sitting fourth behind leader Always Dreaming in the stretch, but at the eighth pole got bumped and forced out by Practical Joke , which sapped his momentum and left him finishing in ninth place. He ended his career with fourth-place finishes in the Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (G1) and Shared Belief Stakes.
Gormley entered stud at $10,000 and attracted 180 mares in his first book, which eventually produced 123 live foals. He was supported in his second season by 127 mares also at $10,000. In 2020, he stood for $7,500.
Castleton Lyons and Kilboy Estate bred Gormley in Kentucky. He is the first foal out of the Gulfstream Park stakes winner Race to Urga, by Bernstein. His second dam, Miss Mambo (Kingmambo), was third in the Gainsborough Poule d'Essai des Pouliches (French One Thousand Guineas, G1), and his fourth dam is multiple grade 1 winner and 1986 champion grass mare Estrapade.
