England's Cheveley Park Stud Ltd paid $1 million for Group 2 producer Fools in Love on Thursday during the third session of the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale.
Fools in Love is the 18thhorse to bring $1 million or more during the first three sessions of the November Sale, equaling the number of seven-figure horses recorded during the initial three sessions last year.
On the first of two days of the Book 2 portion of the sale, Keeneland sold 229 horses for $31,774,000, up slightly from the corresponding session in 2016 when 222 horses brought $31,634,000. The average of $138,751 was 2.63 percent below $142,495 last year. The median of $120,000 increased 17.07 percent from last year's $102,500.
"Today's session had a lot of different buyers, along with some new people coming into the market," Keeneland Director of Sales Operations Geoffrey Russell said. "But still we have some people left over from Book 1 who are shopping away. There is plenty of action in the barns, and people are pleased with what they're seeing out there."
Cumulatively, Keeneland has sold 430 horses for $115,770,000, a 13.96 percent
decrease from last year's gross of $134,553,000 for 475 horses. Average price
of $269,233 is down 4.96 percent from $283,269 in 2016, while the median of
$157,500 is a 7.35 percent decrease from $170,000 last year.
Fools in Love, an
11-year-old stakes-winning daughter of Not For Love, is the dam of Seahenge,
winner of the Howcroft Industrial Supplies Champagne (G2) in September at
Doncaster. In his next race, the Darley Dewhurst (G1) at Newmarket in October,
Seahenge, by Scat Daddy, finished third behind winner U S Navy Flag and
runner-up Mendelssohn, who won the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf (G1) on Friday
at Del Mar. Fools in Love also produced Grade 3-placed Urban Bourbon and
stakes-placed Frank's Folly.
"She was very expensive, but she is proven and she is an outcross," Chris Richardson, managing director of Cheveley Park, said. "We came here to buy special pedigrees and special mares. She is a proven producer. She has a good connection to the U.K. She will be going home now (to Cheveley Park), but to whom she will (be bred) we are not quite sure."
Out of the French Deputy mare Parlez, Fools in Love is a half-sister to multiple graded stakes winner and millionaire International Star and stakes winner D C Dancer. She was consigned by Lane's End, agent.
"It was a big update there in the pedigree," Bill Farish of Lane's End said. "The 2-year-old (Seahenge) is now a (Group 2 winner and Group 1-placed). She's had three stakes horses in her first three foals, and she's open and ready to go, so I think she appealed to a lot of people. We thought she'd sell very well. We thought that was a very good price for her."
Japan's Shimokobe Farm/Polo Green Stable, agent, paid $800,000 for Curlin Hawk, a 7-year-old half-sister to champion and classic winner Afleet Alex in foal to Malibu Moon. Curlin Hawk is the dam of Seabhac, a son of Scat Daddy whose victory in the Sept. 30 Pilgrim (G3) at Belmont Park occurred after the November Sale catalog was printed.
"At first I did not know about the (catalog) update," Yukio Shimokobe said. "She is in great shape and is a good walker. The face – she had a lovely face. Then the consignor told me that her first foal won (the Pilgrim).
"We will bring her back to Japan. We need a new international pedigree to add to the Sunday Silence line. Many, many stallions are by Sunday Silence, so we need another line."
Taylor Made Sales Agency, agent, consigned Curlin Hawk, out of the Hawkster mare Maggy Hawk, who also produced stakes winner Unforgettable Max.
"She is young and a proven graded stakes producer, so she kind of stuck out," said Mark Taylor, Taylor Made's Vice President of Marketing and Public Sales Operations. "That was our thinking when we put her in Book 2 (so) she could be a bit of a standout. She is a very good-looking mare. She has a nice Strong Mandate foal back at the farm that we were showing pictures of, and it's just a great (catalog) page. The first dam takes up the whole page."
Taylor Made was Thursday's leading consignor with sales of $6,042,000 for 36 horses.
At $550,000, the session's top-priced weanling is a son of Pioneerof the Nile purchased by Baccari Bloodstock. Bedouin Bloodstock, agent, consigned the colt, a half-brother to Grade 1 winner Starship Truffles. He is out of the stakes-winning Not For Love mare Bobbie Use.
"The first time I saw him I knew I was going to have to own him, so I knew that going into it because he's a very special horse," Chris Baccari said. "He's a later foal, but he's just got such a big, strong walk. Every time you saw him he never ever missed a beat, ever. I knew he was probably going to be anywhere from that $500,000 to $700,000 range.
"Just like any case when you have sire power like that sire (Pioneerof the Nile), and you have a little female pedigree to go with it, they're going to be very, very expensive."
"I thought that was a great price," said Neal Clarke, partner with Conor Doyle in Bedouin Bloodstock. "He was so well received at the barn the last two days. He has a beautiful walk. He is a little immature, but he has plenty of room for improvement and I think everyone saw that. Everyone was bidding on him; it was exciting."
With four purchases totaling $1.3 million, Baccari Bloodstock was the session's leading buyer.
The November Sale continues through Saturday, Nov. 18, with all sessions beginning at 10 a.m. ET. The entire sale is streamed live at Keeneland.com .
