Breeders' Cup Glitz Elevates Fasig-Tipton November Sale

Fasig-Tipton's prestigious November Sale begins Nov. 2 in Lexington, showcasing a premier selection of top-tier weanlings, broodmares, and racing or broodmare prospects. Fresh off the Breeders' Cup World Championships at Keeneland, the deep catalog is bolstered by a wave of major updates. Ten horses who participated in the Breeders' Cup will head to the sale ring Monday afternoon. At the head of that group are a pair of Breeders' Cup winners in Kathynmarissa (Hip 208), who prevailed in the Oct. 31 Filly and Mare Turf (G1T), and Filly and Mare Sprint (G1) heroine Ways and Means (Hip 161). They will be consigned by Gainesway and ELiTE Sales, respectively. READ: Breeders' Cup Horses Highlight November Sales The Breeders' Cup results delivered timely pedigree updates to numerous horses in the catalog, well beyond just the active runners. Lane's End, agent, will offer Philly's Finest (Flameaway), a 5-year-old half sister to Dirt Mile (G1) winner Further Ado (Gun Runner). The 5-year-old mare, consigned as Hip 132, is offered in foal to multiple grade 1 winner and 2024 champion 3-year-old colt Sierra Leone. "The mare is carrying her second foal. She's a beautiful, young mare who is very straightforward and seems to be going over very well here," said Allaire Ryan, sales director at Lane's End. "That was a big race yesterday, a huge effort from Further Ado." Lane's End will offer a draft of four horses, including stakes winner and multiple graded stakes-placed Thermal (Nyquist) and Holly's Holiday (Maxfield), who is a half sister to last year's Del Mar Oaks (G1T) winner Velocity (Nyquist). Both are offered as racing or broodmare prospects. "It's fun having the Breeders' Cup in your own backyard and seeing all the new faces that it does bring," Ryan said. "We feel like we're seeing more fresh faces that we haven't seen in the last three or four years and I would have to think that Breeders' Cup is a contribution to that." Ryan said she expects the trends that have bolstered the Thoroughbred sales industry all year to continue. "I expect there to be plenty of depth where there's quality," she said. "Top horses are in high demand and breeders are very well-rewarded at that level of the market. "The activity has been very good here. I expect (the sale) to be strong." Another timely update came for Hip 212, Wesawtaylorinparis, who is a full sister to Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) winner Emphatic. The 3-year-old filly is out of the Tiznow mare Convinced, who is out of Tap of the Day, a full sister to legendary sire Tapit. She is consigned as a broodmare prospect by Taylor Made Sales, agent. "She is a beautifully balanced filly. Correct, great mover, a lot of quality," said Mark Taylor, president and CEO of Taylor Made. "The pedigree has really taken off. She's very desirable and would fit a lot of people's programs to plug in and try to produce Saratoga or Book 1 (Keeneland) horses." Taylor Made brings a large group to the sale, which includes four grade 1 winners—Ag Bullet (Hip 166), Concrete Rose (Hip 178), Cy Fair (Hip 182), and Scottish Lassie (Hip 147). Cy Fair, winner of last year's Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G1T), finished second to Bacio in Saturday's Turf Sprint against the boys. The 3-year-old daughter of Not This Time is offered as a racing or broodmare prospect. "Based on the traffic that I'm seeing here and the quality we have in our consignment, I'm expecting the top end to be very strong," Taylor said. "I think around the world, racing is very healthy at the top. "We've all got our issues we're dealing with, the foal crop going down, losing some racetracks. There are definitely issues, but where racing is healthy, it's really healthy, and business is booming. I think the top of the market is going to be really good." The November Sale is the second sale on the North American calendar where buyers can purchase a weanling by a first-year sire. The progeny of unproven sires hold a unique allure for buyers looking to get in early on future potential. "I think the foal market is going to be strong," Taylor said. "The foal market is always kind of indicative of the quality on offer. A few more of our clients have put good ones in this year. I expect to be rewarded because I think the quality's there." Brian Graves, general manager of Gainesway, has a well-respected eye for horse flesh at the sales. He said the new group of sires always attracts attention at the sales. "It's a good group," Graves said. "The beautiful thing about new sires is they haven't done anything wrong yet. So, hope springs eternal, and I think that we just all have to look at them like anything is possible. "It's always fun to seek them out and see which ones you think are actually going to do it." Gainesway will offer three Breeders' Cup runners. Joining Kathynmarissa as part of that group is last year's Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1T) winner Shisospicy (Hip 149) and Filly and Mare Sprint participant R Disaster Hip 141). Bluegrass Thoroughbred Services offers a pair of ties to Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1) runner-up Englishman: his dam, In It for the Gold (Hip 202), and a Tiz the Law half brother (Hip 97). In It for the Gold is in foal to leading sire Into Mischief, who sired two Breeders' Cup winners over the weekend in Sovereignty and Hughes. "She's a good-looking stout horse. She was fast and she could run," said John Stuart of Bluegrass Thoroughbred Services about In It for the Gold. "That's the kind of mare I like to buy. I don't buy any unraced or unplaced mares. I am a strong believer in buying athletes." In addition to Englishman, the mare has also produced the stakes-placed Thought Control (Gun Runner). Englishman's half sister English Woman (Authentic), is currently in training with Cherie DeVaux. The filly was a $425,000 purchase at the Ocala Breeders' Sales Spring 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale after breezing in :09 3/5 during the under-tack show. Darley will offer a lifetime breeding right in Sovereignty and Knightsbridge, first- and third-place finishers in the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1). Darley will also offer a lifetime breeding right to their top stallion Nyquist. The buzz on the sales grounds and the eager faces in the crowd signaled widespread optimism for the upcoming auction. Last year's sale was topped by Streak of Luck—dam of champion 2-year-old colt Ted Noffey—who sold for $6.2 million to AMO Racing USA. The top racing/broodmare prospect was Shisospicy, who brought $5.2 million from Morplay Racing. A total of 144 horses changed hands for gross receipts of $105,327,000, including private sales. The average price was $731,438 and the median was $322,500. Katsumi Yoshida of Northern Farm was the leading buyer of the sale with six purchases totaling $14,900,000. Hill 'n' Dale at Xalapa led the consignors, selling 13 from their draft for $17,375,000. ELiTE was not far behind, selling 11 horses for $17,075,000. The momentum from the Breeders' Cup is set to carry directly into Fasig-Tipton's star-studded, single-session November Sale, with bidding slated to begin Monday at 2 p.m. ET. As of Sunday evening, Fasig-Tipton had reported 36 outs. "I think the business has a tremendous amount of momentum," said Bradley Weisbord, founder and managing partner of ELiTE Sales. "I thought the yearling sales had tremendous momentum. The Breeders' Cup had great results, great performances. The turf and dirt course played fair. It was a safe Breeders' Cup and the best horses won. All of this is great for the industry."