Wandering Eyes

Circus Couture, trained by Jane Chapple-Hyam, and the Simon Crisford-trained Century Dream are part of a 10-strong European raiding party spread across three grade 1 races this weekend. View the full article

Despite drawing the outside stall in gate 11, Amerman Racing LLC’s Oscar Performance (Kitten’s Joy) was made the 3-1 morning-line favorite for Saturday’s running of America’s original seven-figure test, the GI Arlington Million in suburban Chicago. Victorious in last year’s GI Secretariat S., the homebred can join Marlin (1997-98) and Beach Patrol (2016-2017) as horses to win the 3-year-old feature and the Million in consecutive years. Awad won the 1993 Secretariat and added the Million in 1995. Oscar Performance will be having just his second run of the season, having won Belmont’s GIII Poker S. in course-record time of 1:31.23. Chad Brown will saddle three in the Million as he looks to go back-to-back in the race. Robert Bruce (Chi) (Fast Company {Ire}) is lowest of the trio on the morning line at 9-2 and will try to atone for a trouble sixth at the hooves of the upset-minded Spring Quality (Quality Road, gate two, 8-1) in the GI Woodford Reserve Manhattan S. Shadwell’s Almanaar (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) has two wins from five starts in this country, including a victory over Beach Patrol in the GI Gulfstream Park Turf H. this past February and is a 5-1 chance on the morning line. Money Multiplier (Lookin At Lucky) is pegged as a 6-1 chance as he shortens up a bit in trip off a second-place effort to loose-on-the-lead stablemate Funtastic (More Than Ready) in the 11-furlong GI United Nations S. at Monmouth June 30. The Brown trio are drawn 10, three and eight, respectively. Deauville (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}, 6-1), third in the last two runnings of the Million, will have Ryan Moore from gate nine, while connections have opted to run Divisidero (Kitten’s Joy) in the Million instead of Saturday’s one-mile GI Fourstardave H. at Saratoga. Divisidero will be piloted by Jevian Toledo from gate four. Full fields for the Million, the GI Beverly D. S. and the GI Secretariat S. will appear in Thursday’s TDN. View the full article

Veteran jockey Edgar Paucar secured the 3,000th win of his career Aug. 6 when he guided Determinator to a 2 1/4-length victory in the third race at Mountaineer Casino Racetrack & Resort. View the full article

Freedman takes leap of faith with Iskandar for Tesoro ride View the full article

Early scratching August 10 View the full article

A filly by Medaglia d’Oro from the family of MGISW Elate (Medaglia d’Oro) was the first yearling to bring seven figures at the second session of the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale Tuesday evening, selling to Roy Jackson for $1 million. Consigned by Indian Creek as Hip 143, the bay is the first foal out of the winning Distorted Humor mare Veracity. Her second dam is MGSW Yell (A.P. Indy). Mike Ryan purchased Veracity on behalf of the filly’s breeder Fifth Avenue Bloodstock for $460,000 at the 2016 KEEJAN Sale. View the full article

Winx produced a career-best barrier trial performance, according to the men who know her best in her scheduled Aug. 6 trial, and quirky grey Chautauqua once again refused to leave the barriers during a high-class session conducted at Rosehill. View the full article

The Race Track Chaplaincy of America is currently seeking nominees for its 16th annual White Horse Awards, which honor heroes in the industry. This year’s program will take place Thursday, Nov. 1 in the Triple Crown Room at Churchill Downs, just prior to the beginning of the Breeders’ Cup World Championships being held at the same track. Nominees are being sought for the White Horse Award, the Tribute to Excellence Award and the Community Service Award. To submit a nomination, visit www.rtcanational.org/events for a complete list of rules and selection criteria, as well as nomination forms. The deadline for submission is Sept. 14. For more information, please contact the RTCA National Service Center at (859) 410-7822. View the full article

The Race Track Chaplaincy of America (RTCA) is currently seeking nominees for our 16th Annual White Horse Awards (WHA). View the full article

Phoenix Thoroughbred’s Advertise (GB) (Showcasing {GB}) is only “50-50” to take up his entry in the G1 Keeneland Phoenix S. at The Curragh on Sunday with connections considering a switch the G1 Prix Morny the following week. Martyn Meade’s colt filled the runner-up spot behind the subsequently sidelined ‘TDN Rising Star’ Calyx (GB) (Kingman {GB}) in the G2 Coventry S. at Royal Ascot before running out a facile winner of the G2 July S. at Newmarket on July 12. Connections have been aiming towards this weekend’s Group 1 feature ever since, but are now considering a trip to France. Freddie Meade, assistant to his father, said, “We are deciding whether we go to Ireland or France for the Prix Morny. Ireland has always been the plan. The forfeit stage has come out for the Phoenix S. today, so we will have a look at that and go from there. I’d say it is 50-50 at the moment. We always identified the Phoenix as the target and because those entries were out and the Prix Morny entries weren’t out, that is why Ireland was the main target, but having looked at it and thought about it, France might be a better option.” View the full article

MG1SW sprinter Chautauqua (Aus) (Encosta de Lago {Aus}) refused to leave the barriers once the gates flew for the sixth time on Tuesday morning, reported Racenet.com.au. The steel grey eventually chased after the field in the sixth heat of the Rosehill barrier trials, but finished last of 10 in the 600-metre event won by Auchentoman (Aus) (Denman {Aus}) in :34.60. Trained by Michael, John and Wayne Hawkes, the gelding last raced in the G1 Darley Classic Victoria Racing Club S. at Flemington on Nov. 11 and ran fourth to reigning The Everest champion Redzel (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}). “We’ve worked him as much as we possibly can, we’ve done a lot with him to try to get him in the right frame of mind,” said co-trainer Michael Hawkes to Sky Racing. “I think now it will be determined on what we do and where we go, obviously we’ll have to talk to the owners. It’s one of those things that is not really good for Australian racing. We need this horse.” Added the 8-year-old’s co-owner Rupert Legh, “I feel more disappointed for John [Hawkes] because I know how much effort and work has gone into the horse and it would have been great to see the horse jump and give him some credit for the amount of work he has put into him. If you saw the horse in work, and saw his condition, you don’t see a more happier or healthier horse in your lifetime, so you know we’re all scratching our heads. At the end of the day we’ll do what we think is the right thing by Chautauqua and he gives us every indication he wants to be a racehorse, he’s done that in the last two weeks since his last mishap at Rosehill, otherwise we wouldn’t have jumped him out today.” View the full article

Australian champion Winx (Aus) (Street Cry {Ire}), who will return to the races in the G1 Winx Warwick S. on Aug. 18, ran third in a Rosehill 1000-metre trial on Tuesday (video). Breaking in the first heat, the 7-year-old mare, who is looking for her 26th-straight win in the Warwick which would take her past the record she shares with Black Caviar (Aus) (Bel Esprit {Aus}), was among the slowest away and raced last for the first 200 metres. Moving up at will with three furlongs remaining, she split horses leaving the turn and edged up into third at the line, while under a hard hold by regular pilot Hugh Bowman. Godolphin’s Alizee (Aus) (Sepoy {Aus}) won the trial over fellow MG1SW Ace High (Aus) (High Chaparral {Ire}) in a time of :59.10 over the Good 4 course. “I was very impressed with her,” said Bowman on Sky Racing. “I asked her to do a little bit more than I did in the first trial. She was more relaxed this morning than she was in her first trial and I think that was direct result of going to the races and having an exhibition gallop on Saturday. For me, it was a good step in the right direction. Some of that nervous energy has left her body and she’s ready to go to the races now. She felt as good as she looked. I did ask her to use herself and the response I got was very encouraging.” Added trainer Chris Waller to Racing.com, “Personally I couldn’t be any happier with this morning’s trial and she’s bang on target for two weeks’ time.” View the full article

If you’re following the bloodstock sales trail in Europe, then it pretty much begins and ends in Deauville. It’s almost a moot point to talk about the sales season these days, as auctions happen week in, week out, from the pop-up variety on racecourses, to constant additions to the calendar at sales houses. But some things are cast, if not in stone, then in firm tradition and the European yearling season opens on the Normandy coast, permitting one to feel that, even though plenty of hard work is involved, at least some of it can be conducted in the holiday guise of shorts and flip-flops. Taking the yearling market as a whole, the term flip-flop could apply equally well here. As foal crops in France, Britain and Ireland rise well in advance of an increase of buyers, there remains a strong sense that parts of the industry are built on shifting sands, but not so at Arqana’s August Sale. One thing that members of the bloodstock community routinely agree on is that the top end of the market is very much ring-fenced and remains strong behind that invisible barrier. Major international buyers may come and go—and the Mayfair Speculators will be a notable absentee at this sale—but new faces also appear regularly, and we can expect to see plenty more this season of Phoenix Thoroughbreds, which bought last August’s top lot, a colt by Dubawi (Ire) out of the Grade 1 winner Giofra (GB) (Dansili {GB}), for €1.55 million. In fact, among the buyers in Arqana’s elite tier last year where at least four individual Japanese owners including Koji Maeda and Shadai Farm, the Americans Alex Solis, Jason Litt and James Crupi, the Hong Kong Jockey Club and many of the major European-based operatives. From the smallest ever August catalogue, a record average of €165,587 was produced, while the median held steady at the previous year’s record of €110,000, the first two years this sector had ever broken into six figures. The fact that only 305 yearlings were offered meant that turnover dipped a little from the 2015 record of €42,881,000 but this was also the year that recorded the highest price for an Arqana yearling of €2.6 million. “Last year was a bit of an exception as we happened to have a smaller catalogue. Not by design but because physical maturity plays a major role in the selection for the August catalogue—along with conformation and pedigree of course—as our October sale has also become a very viable alternative for the top individuals,” says Arqana’s director of communications Alix Choppin. “The aim for the August Sale is usually to find around 340 yearlings for that catalogue. This year’s catalogue has been easy to put together. We came up with 345 horses without having to lower our expectations, which is a really good sign. Clearly the rise of the stallion market [in France] can take some of the credit for that. It’s not the only reason but it’s definitely a positive.” While the buyers’ list remains truly international, the list of overseas consignors is perhaps shrinking. This is likely to be a reflection of the significant seachange that has taken place in the French bloodstock industry over the last decade. The notable success of some young French-based sires has in turn encouraged more stallion masters to take a chance on standing horses in France as a first choice rather than as an after-thought. This in turn has led to better mares staying in or travelling to the country, an increase in the number of overseas breeders boarding mares in France, and the rise of a number of popular young domestic consignors, such as Coulonces Sales, La Motteraye, Fairway Consignment and HSV Agency alongside the longstanding traditional vendors. Choppin adds, “It’s been great to see already this season the diversity at the top end of the market at Saratoga, where the top ten yearlings [on the first day] went to seven different buyers, and of course it was exciting to see American Pharoah’s yearlings being so well received. We have two beautiful fillies by him in the catalogue and they are both consigned by French-based operations who have raced fillies in America. It’s good to see that French breeders are not resting on their laurels with Siyouni (Fr) and Le Havre (Ire) on their doorsteps but are consistently trying to go to the best stallions around the world.” Ecurie des Monceaux consigns exclusively yearlings raised on the stud but with its range of influential partners from varying nations, the Henri Bozo-led team has become the dominant force of the August Sale over the last six years. With a strong draft of 35 yearlings to sell on the back of a successful racing season, which has included Group/Grade 1 victories for graduates Intellogent (Fr) (Intello {Ger}) and Sistercharlie (Fr) (Myboycharlie {Ire}), it seems unlikely that Monceaux will concede its position as leading vendor this year. As well as one of the American Pharoah fillies out of Grade 3 winner Marbre Rose (Ire) (Smart Strike) (lot 158), half-siblings to both Intellogent and Sistercharlie appear in the current draft, the former, a filly by first-season sire Gleneagles (Ire) being the eighth lot into the ring, while a Charm Spirit (Ire) colt out of Starlet’s Sister (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) is lot 43. In fact, Bozo will have a good sense of the way the sale is going very early in the proceedings as his draft is responsible for six of the first 23 lots through the ring, including two colts from the first crop of Muhaarar (Ire) out of the half-sisters Pacifique (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}) (lot 9) and Prudenzia (Ire) (Dansili {GB}) (lot 16), both of whom have played leading roles at this sale in the past. The latter is the dam of the G1 Irish Oaks winner Chicquita (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}) and this season’s G2 Ribblesdale S. winner Magic Wand (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). Piquing international interest may well be Haras de la Louviere’s three-parts sister to Australian Group 1 winner Contributor (Ire) ((High Chapparal {Ire}) from the first crop of the Irish National Stud’s Free Eagle (Ire), who will be offered as lot 33. She will be followed into the ring by another American Pharoah filly, the half-sister to G1 Yorkshire Oaks and G1 Prix Vermeille winner Shareta (Ire) (Sinndar {Ire}), selling from Haras d’Etreham as lot 34. The list of siblings to Group winners is deep, with lot 44 being Haras du Mezeray’s Siyouni half-brother to Naaqoos (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}), while the joined forces of Camas Park & Glenvale Studs will offer lot 52, an Australia (GB) half-brother to the ill-fated Permian (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}) from the dynasty of Pasadoble and Miesque which has been further well represented this year by the Niarchos family’s Classic winners Study Of Man (Ire) (Deep Impact {JPN}) and Alpha Centauri (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}). The stars aren’t all reserved for the first night, however. Among six Galileo yearlings catalogued is a half-brother to last year’s top lot from Haras de la Perelle (lot 121). There’s no denying how well the champion sire has worked with fast mares, which will make lot 159, Haras d’Etreham’s filly out of the G1 Coolmore Nunthorpe S. winner Margot Did (GB) (Exceed And Excel {Aus}), of particular interest. Of the heavyweight proven sires in the book, Dubawi is represented by a filly and a colt, the latter being the first foal of the G1 Irish 1,000 Guineas and GI EP Taylor S. heiroine Just The Judge (Ire) (Lawman {Fr}). The 8-year-old mare was a sales-ring sensation in her own right when selling for 4.5 million gns to the partnership of Qatar Racing and China Horse Club in 2014, and it would be no surprise to see her February-born son, catalogued as lot 137 through La Motteraye, play a leading role in Deauville. The seemingly unstoppable rise of Dark Angel (Ire) sees his prominence grow in France and he has 12 youngsters included in the August Sale. Among them are a half-brother to promising young stallion Havana Gold (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}), also from the La Motteraye draft (lot 135), and the first foal of the G2 Lancashire Oaks winner Lady Tiana (GB) (Sir Percy {GB}), offered by Haras de l’Hotellerie as lot 145. She will follow into the ring another filly out of a Sir Percy mare, this one the GIII Robert J Frankel S winner Lady Pimpernel (GB), whose daughter is by Ballylinch Stud’s freshman sire Make Believe (GB) (lot 144) and from a strong family which includes this season’s G1 QIPCO 1,000 Guineas winner Billesdon Brook (GB) (Champs Elysees {GB}). The strength and global appeal of the pedigrees will doubtless entice a cast of international buyers, as is the norm at Arqana in high summer, where the aesthetic and gastronomic delights of Deauville provide an extra draw. But the principal business focuses on a first taste of the cream of the European yearling crop in a country currently riding high on a bloodstock resurgence. “It’s a virtuous circle,” says Choppin. “French breeders and consignors have been selling well over the past few years and as a result have reinvested in broodmares, upgraded their broodmare bands and then invested in better nominations without necessarily having to travel abroad, and all that is being reflected in the quality of the catalogue.” The Arqana August Sale takes place from Aug. 18 to 20 and is followed by the V.2 Sale on Aug. 21. Printed copies of the TDN will be available in Deauville throughout and will feature further sale previews from Aug. 15. View the full article

Reigning G1 Cox Plate champion Winx (Aus) (Street Cry {Ire}) will face 134 rivals after Racing Victoria released the nominations for the A$5-million G1 Ladbrokes Cox Plate on Tuesday. The 98th edition of the 2040-metre Australian weight-for-age championship will be run at Moonee Valley on Saturday, Oct. 27. A winner of the last three Cox Plates, the Chris Waller-trained 7-year-old mare will face a stern test in October, with MG1SW Poet’s Word (Ire) (Poet’s Voice), the highest-rated horse in Europe, one of 26 international entries. Aidan O’Brien fields a 14-strong team for the Cox Plate, led by G1 2000 Guineas hero Saxon Warrior (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) and five other Group 1 winners in: Lancaster Bomber (War Front), Deauville (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), Hydrangea (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), Rhododendron (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and Happily (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). Godolphin’s MG1SW Benbatl (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), trained by Saeed bin Suroor, has been nominated, as have fellow Godolphin colourbearers G1SW Blair House (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}), GSW Emotionless (Ire) (Shamardal), and GSW & MG1SP Folkswood (GB) (Exceed And Excel {Aus}) from the Charlie Appleby yard. Neorealism (Jpn) (Neo Universe {Jpn}), a Group 1 winner in Hong Kong, will represent Japan in the Cox Plate and last year’s G1 Melbourne Cup-winning connections of trainer Joseph O’Brien and owner Lloyd Williams have nominated their G1 Irish Derby hero Latrobe (Ire) (Camelot {GB}), one of 12 Northern Hemisphere 3-year-olds among the nominees. Humidor (NZ) (Teofilo {Ire}), runner-up to Winx in 2017, also returns to go one better for Darren Weir. Racing Victoria Executive General Manager-Racing, Greg Carpenter, said, “This year’s Ladbrokes Cox Plate is shaping as a moment in history not to be missed, with several elite horses from both home and abroad nominated alongside Winx, the undisputed champion who will be chasing a record fourth consecutive win. “It’s testimony to the stature of this race that we’ve received such strong international nominations from France, Japan, England and Ireland, including a record 14 entries from Aidan O’Brien, of which six are Group 1 winners. To view the full list of Cox Plate nominees, click here. View the full article

The catalogue for the SGA Selected Yearling Sale, scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 22 at La Maura Racetrack in Milan, is now online. A total of 167 yearlings, 93 in the “Blu” pages of the catalogue, will go under the hammer beginning at 10 a.m. local time. Nearby San Siro Racecourse will host two fixtures that weekend, including the first running of the €90,000 Gran Premio delle Aste SGA for juveniles at the end of Saturday’s card, as well as a quality stakes card on Sept. 23. Past graduates of the sale have already left their mark on the racecourse, with Guest of Honour (Ire) (Cape Cross {Ire}), purchased for €64,000 by Alan Quartucci for owner Earle Mack in 2010, subsequently winning a Group 2 in England for different connections. 2017 graduate You Better Run (Ire) (Thewayyouare), bought for €13,000 by Stefano Pugliese last year, has already saluted in the G3 Premio Primi Passi, while maiden Nobless Oblige (Ity) (Myboycharlie {Ire}) was third in the Listed Premio Mantovani after bringing €15,000 on the bid of Francesca Turri. All horses through the ring at the 2018 SGA Sales will hold a pre-entry in the 2019 Gran Premio Delle Aste SGA. View the full article

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY – A pair of seven-figure yearlings from the first crop of Triple Crown hero American Pharoah helped get the Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearlings Sale off to a rousing start Monday evening in upstate New York. With the two-day auction still in its infancy, Larry Best made a session-topping bid of $1.2 million to acquire a filly (hip 26) by the Coolmore resident from the Gainesway consignment. Later in the session, American Pharoah’s trainer Bob Baffert, standing alongside Coolmore’s M V Magnier, bid $1-million for a colt by the champion from Summerfield. The two million-dollar transactions tied the total number from last year’s auction. In all, 83 yearlings sold Monday for a total of $28,965,000. The average of $348,976 was up 7.2% from last year’s opening session and the median remained constant with last year’s record-setting figure of $300,000. During the first session in 2017, 75 horses grossed $24,425,000 and averaged $325,667. “It was a successful opening night to the 2018 Saratoga Yearling Sale,” confirmed Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning, Jr. “You’ve got to be pleased when the gross is up 18 or 19%, the average is up 7% and the median is still equal to the record high of last year. And the buy-back rate is certainly an acceptable level of 22%. So it was a very, very encouraging start to the sale tonight.” Seven of the top 10-priced lots Monday were purchased by separate buying interests and there were 42 horses who sold for $300,000 or over in 2018. That figure was 39 in 2017. “We thought we had good horses and I think the buyers responded very favorably across the board,” Browning said. “This is what we’ve seen in recent years–there is very intense competition and lots of activity on most of the horses, but buyers do have limits. The sales-topper was $1.2 million and another horse brought $1 million, which is essentially in line with the sales toppers of recent years. I don’t think that’s any surprise to any of us. There was great activity between $250,000 and $750,000. So it was a very good start.” Baffert agreed there was plenty of competition for the most-prized offerings Monday. “Everybody wants the good ones,” Baffert said. “There is a lot of money here, but if you want to compete, you have to step up to buy them.” The Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale concludes Tuesday with a session beginning at 6:30 p.m. and, while seven of the top eight prices Monday were for fillies, Browning expects the colts to take center stage during the sale’s finale. “We knew we were really strong with fillies, we may have been kind of heavy with fillies tonight, but we probably have a little bit stronger colt group tomorrow night.” American Pharoah Filly to Best Larry Best, standing alongside advisor John Dowd out back, went to a session-topping $1.2 million to add a filly by Triple Crown winner American Pharoah to his increasingly power-packed racing stable during Monday’s first session of the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale. The appeal of the seven-figure yearling was simple for Best. “I didn’t have one,” Best said in reference to the filly’s Triple Crown-winning sire. “I don’t think you can go wrong with an American Pharoah filly crossed with a Malibu Moon mare. The residual value, just on the dam’s side, is huge. I thought the price would actually go higher, but I wasn’t going to go any higher. So I was surprised I got her.” The chestnut yearling (hip 26), out of multiple Grade I winner Life at Ten (Malibu Moon), is a half-sister to graded stakes placed Singing Bullet (Hard Spun) and her half-sister Bohemian Queen (Animal Kingdom) was an impressive debut winner at Woodbine Sunday. Bred by Adena Springs, she was consigned by Gainesway on behalf of the pinhooking partnership Blue Sky Stables, which purchased her for $500,000 at the 2017 Keeneland November sale. Life at Ten, winner of the 2010 GI Beldame S. and GI Ogden Phipps S., was purchased by Adena Springs for $1.95 million at the 2011 Keeneland November sale. In foal to Shackleford, the mare sold to SF Bloodstock for $550,000 at last year’s Keeneland November sale. She produced a colt by Shackleford this year. Best returned later in the session to secure a filly by Into Mischief (hip 82) for $950,000. Consigned by Denali Stud on behalf of her breeder, Three Chimneys, the yearling is out of Reve d’Amour (Warrior’s Reward). Only in the industry for two years, Best has already made a major impact in the sales arena and on the racetrack. His OXO Equine campaigns ‘TDN Rising Star’ Brill (Medaglia d’Oro)–a $1-million purchase at the 2017 Fasig-Tipton July Sale–and ‘Rising Star’ Instagrand (Into Mischief), who was acquired for a co-topping $1.2-million at this year’s Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream sale. “I only work on things I have fun with,” Best said. “And I’m having a lot of fun in racing. I’m meeting a lot of great people and having a great time.” @JessMartiniTDN Another Saratoga Score for Graves Before selling to Larry Best for a session-topping $1.2 million in Saratoga Monday, hip 26 was purchased by a pinhooking partnership spearheaded by Gainesway’s Brian Graves for $500,000 at last year’s Keeneland November sale. “We thought she was a standout filly,” Graves said. “From the time we bought her, we thought she was a standout and she got a lot better. She was bought by a smart guy and a guy who buys good horses and is having a lot of luck. She was vetted 14 times here by some of the best judges in the business. We wish them the best of luck.” Graves’s father Bill passed away in May, and Terence Collier opened the sale by dedicating the auction to the longtime Fasig-Tipton vice president. Brian Graves admitted he thought his late father was helping him Monday. “I showed this filly to my dad at the weanling sale last year and he gave me the thumbs up,” Graves said before pulling something out of his jacket pocket. “And I had his lucky handkerchief.” Of the filly’s final weanling price tag, second highest among pinhooking prospects at the Saratoga sale, Graves added, “We talked about a much lower number to buy her, but I went ahead with my partners Jamie Hill and Mike McMahon and Bonne Chance Farm and we formed a partnership, so we were able to push a little bit to get her.” It was the second year in a row that Graves has been responsible for a seven-figure pinhook at Saratoga. Last year, the horseman sold a colt by Orb, purchased for $310,000 as a weanling at Fasig-Tipton November, for a co-sale-topping $1 million. “That feels great,” he said of the accomplishment. @JessMartiniTDN Baffert & Coolmore Return to the Well Bob Baffert was all smiles after signing the ticket on a $1 million colt from the first crop of his first Triple Crown winner American Pharoah (Pioneerof the Nile) on behalf of Coolmore’s M.V. Magnier, whose Ashford Stud stands the three-time Eclipse winner. “I really like the sire. He made me famous,” the Hall of Famer said after signing the ticket out back by the walking ring. “Of the ones I have seen, I really like him. He is late foal, so he is going to change a lot. It should be for the better, so we are excited about him.” Bred in New York by Joanne Nielsen of Sunnyfield Farm, Hip 62 is a half-brother to MGSW and MGISP millionaire Upstart (Flatter), who faced American Pharoah on three occasions. The bay was consigned by Summerfield. (Click here for a pre-sale feature on Nielsen and Hip 62). “He is a really good horse, so hopefully he can follow in his daddy’s footsteps,” Baffert said. “It’s really exciting. It is a lot of money, but he is a beautiful horse and they had him looking great. It was like love at first sight.” The Hall of Famer continued, “You never really think they are going to go that high, but there is a lot of excitement here and some really good horses.” The second highest-priced horse of the evening, Hip 62 is one of 15 youngsters from American Pharoah’s first crop entered in the sale and one of seven to go through the ring Monday. Of those seven, six sold for a total of $3.22 million, including the $1.2 million session topper, Hip 26, a filly by MGISW millionaire Life at Ten (Malibu Moon). “I have seen a lot of them,” Baffert said when asked his thoughts on American Pharoah’s offspring. “He is stamping his foals pretty well with their head and demeanor. [The colt] had a great athletic body. That is the thing we look for. I didn’t have to do a lot of thinking about him. I am glad I get to train him.” @CDeBernardisTDN Three Chimneys Filly Proves Popular Three Chimneys purchased Reve d’Amour (Warrior’s Reward) for $310,000 at the 2013 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale and, while that mare never made it to the races, her filly by Into Mischief (hip 82) proved popular in that same sales ring Monday night, selling for $950,000 to Larry Best’s OXO Equine. “We’re very pleased with that sale,” Three Chimneys’ Chris Baker said after congratulating Best on the purchase. “We’ve always liked her. She’s been a special filly all along, but that [final price] exceeded our expectations. I’m glad everybody else thought as much of her as we did.” Reve d’Amour is a daughter of Group 1 placed Smolensk (Danzig) and a half to graded winner Can the Man (Into Mischief) and multiple stakes winner Martha’s Moon (Malibu Moon). Hip 82 is Reve d’Amour’s second foal. The 6-year-old mare produced a filly by Malibu Moon this year and was bred back to Strong Mandate. “We have bills to pay like anybody, so ones that are like that, that we feel really have commercial appeal, we’ll sell,” Baker said of the decision to offer the yearling at the Saratoga sale. “She’s a young mare, we’ve got another filly out of her by Malibu Moon that we like a lot. So we’re going to cash in and let somebody else help us pay the development costs of proving our young mare.” @JessMartiniTDN Verrazano Filly Passes the ‘Test’ for Bridlewood Bridlewood Farm’s George Isaacs thought he might get Hip 105, a Verrazano half-sister to recent GI Test S. heroine Separationofpowers (Candy Ride {Arg}), for around $500,000 as bidding began to stall. However, it quickly picked up again and the determined Isaacs came out on top at $750,000. “It looked like I was going to get her for a little less there for a minute, but someone joined the party late and put a little pressure on me,” Isaacs said. “It’s a strong sale. I’ve been right there on two other big fillies tonight. I was hoping to get one of those, but I am glad I got something done.” Consigned by Bluewater Sales on behalf on Three Diamonds Farm, Hip 105 is out of the Empire Maker mare Shehadmefromhello. The filly’s half-sister, ‘TDN Rising Star’ Separationofpowers, won the GI Frizette S. last term and won a gritty stretch battle with fellow ‘Rising Star’ Mia Mischief (Into Mischief) to capture the Test across the street at Saratoga Race Course Saturday. “We are always trying to buy live American families with big pedigree updates, so we have some residual protection,” Isaacs said. “But, they always have to check the boxes off with that strong physical. She’s got that for sure, in spades.” He continued, “I guess it’s more like what’s not to like. She has a big, strong physical. Obviously, she had a very current update. She should make a lovely mare down the road, but lets hope she can run.” When asked who might train the filly down the road, Isaacs said, “We might keep her in house. We will keep our options open. We have a pretty good farm trainer [Jonathan Thomas].” Hip 105 is the most expensive progeny of young Coolmore sire Verrazano (More Than Ready), who won the 2013 GI Wood Memorial S. and GI Haskell Invitational S., to be sold at auction thus far. The 8-year-old stallion’s oldest foals are 2-year-olds this year and he is still waiting on his first winner. @CDeBernardisTDN Partnerships Justified for SF, Starlight, et al When Justify (Scat Daddy) swept through the Triple Crown this spring, he carried a host of partners on his back. Three of those partners were back for more Monday evening in Saratoga, purchasing a pair of colts who will join Justify’s trainer Bob Baffert in California. With bloodstock agent Donato Lanni acting as agent, SF Bloodstock and Starlight West purchased hip 16, a colt by Violence for $575,000. Later in the session, Lanni paid $500,000 on behalf of the same partnership for hip 50, a colt by Blame. In addition to SF and Starlight, Sol Kumin’s Madakat Stables is also part of the partnership group , according to SF’s Tom Ryan. “Clearly, Bob is a remarkable trainer and I think we put together a nice group of owners,” Ryan said. “Donato is helping us, Henry Field came up from Australia. We have Starlight involved with us and Madakat Stables are going to take a piece of this partnership as well.” Hip 16, bred by Whisper Hill Farm and consigned by Timber Town, is out of L.A. Devine (Pulpit) and is a half-brother to stakes placed Gettysburg (Pioneerof the Nile). “He’s just a really cool horse,” Lanni said. “He moves really well and he has a great mind. He looks fast and the sire has done well.” Ryan added, “He’s an impressive colt. He strutted his stuff every time he came out. Every time he came out, he was forward moving. He’s a beautiful animal with good balance. We are excited about Violence, we are excited about sending him out to Bob Baffert and we’re excited that Donato loved him.” For Ryan, the increasing number of racing partnerships just makes sense. “Why not?” Ryan said when asked about forming partnerships. “Why not share the joy of racing horses together and why not share the upside, if there is upside? But there is also a lot of risk in racing, and why not share that as well.” @JessMartiniTDN Carpe Diem Proves Popular in Saratoga Yearlings from the first crop of two-time Grade I winner Carpe Diem (Giant’s Causeway) proved quite popular in Saratoga Monday evening, with four selling for a total of $1.17 million, topped by a $475,000 colt (Hip 22) bought by Phoenix Thoroughbreds. That colt was immediately followed by a $375,000 filly (Hip 23) by the WinStar stallion, who stands for $25,000. “I had to stretch, which I hate to do for a first-year sire, but our team really liked him,” Phoenix Thoroughbreds’ Tom Ludt said. “We went after the one right after that Headley Bell had.” He continued, “He’s throwing a beautiful horse and you have to pay for that. Hopefully it transitions into having a good heart and running down that lane.” As for his overall impressions of Carpe Diem’s first crop, Ludt said, “They are beautiful. They are really nice-looking horses. For a first year sire, they are quite impressive, which is probably why Fasig-Tipton has so many.” Consigned by Gainesway, Hip 22 was bred by Normandy Farm and is out of SW and MGSP Lemonette (Lemon Drop Kid). In addition to the strapping chestnut colt, Phoenix also picked up Hip 64, a $460,000 Into Mischief colt; Hip 92, a $400,000 daughter of Malibu Moon; and Hip 44, a $240,000 filly by Declaration of War. “We will get them all down to Ocala and in the process,” Ludt said. “Over time, we will sort them out and decide where they need to go.” @CDeBernardisTDN View the full article

A Seth Benzel painting inspired by Nobel Prize winner Pablo Neruda’s poem, “Horses,” is on view at the Pavilion Grand Hotel in Saratoga Springs. Benzel, a horseman and artist, said his “Berlin Winter” gives a visual interpretation of the poem, which describes Neruda’s inspiration from a group of ten horses being led into a snowy field in the midst of a gloomy, winter day in Berlin. 30% of sales from the painting will benefit Saratoga Arts. To view the painting, viewers can visit the Pavilion Grand Hotel at 30 Lake Avenue in Saratoga Springs. For more information, call Saratoga Arts at 518-584-4132. View the full article

The hype for yearlings continued on Monday as the 2015 Horse of the Year’s Hall of Fame conditioner Bob Baffert went to a cool $1 million to pick up hip 62 on behalf of Coolmore’s MV Magnier. The New York-bred colt, a half-brother to MGSW and GISP Upstart (Flatter), was consigned by Francis & Barbara Vanlangendonck’s Summerfield on ehalf of Sunnyfield Farm. View the full article

Jumbo Jet the right fit for Clarton Super: Tan View the full article

Well Done on comeback trail, but not in running for Triple Crown View the full article

Softer approach gets Super Fortune to the line View the full article

War Affair one gallop away from NZ debut in G2 race View the full article

Curatolo to ride on a stay at Kranji this weekend View the full article

Hip 26, a filly from the first crop of Triple Crown winner American Pharoah and out of MGISW Life At Ten (Malibu Moon), became the first yearling to cross the seven-figure threshold during Monday’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga session as Larry Best of OXO Equine fended off all challengers with a $1.2-million winning bid. A $500,000 KEENOV weanling acquisition by Blue Sky Stables, the Mar. 22 foal was consigned by Gainesway, Agent VI. Best’s stable is already well-stocked with juveniles, including ‘TDN Rising Stars’ Brill (Medaglia d’Oro out of a Malibu Moon mare) and Instagrand (Into Mischief). Earlier in the session, a colt by American Pharoah (hip 10), was bought back for $800,000. View the full article

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-pedigreed horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Tuesday’s Insights features a son of G1 Prix Saint-Alary winner Sagawara (GB) (Shamardal). 2.20 Deauville, Debutantes, €27,000, 2yo, f, 7 1/2fT SUPHALA (FR) (Frankel {GB}) cost €650,000 at Arqana August due to being out of a listed-winning and graded-stakes placed daughter of the G1 Coronation S. heroine Sophisticat (Storm Cat). Among her rivals is Lady Neartica (GB) (Kodiac {GB}), Ecurie Jean-Louis Bouchard’s Freddie Head trainee whose dam is a half to Goldikova (Ire) (Anabaa). 2.50 Deauville, Debutantes, €27,000, 2yo, c/g, 7 1/2fT QAABIL (IRE) (Charm Spirit {Ire}) debuts for Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Jean-Claude Rouget and is a €500,000 ARQAUG half-brother to the stable’s G1 Coronation S. and G1 Prix Rothschild heroine Qemah (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}). He meets His Highness The Aga Khan’s Sanary (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), a son of the G1 Prix Saint-Alary winner Sagawara (GB) (Shamardal) who represents the Alain de Royer-Dupre yard. View the full article