Speedway Stables secures two-year-old for US$1.5 million
A colt by Lane’s End-based stallion Quality Road (Elusive Quality) was the headline act of the OBS Spring Sale of Two-Year-Olds in Training on Wednesday after Marette Farrell on behalf of Speedway Stables went to US$1.5 million to secure the de Meric Sales-consigned youngster.
Catalogued as Lot 381, the colt is out of dual Grade 2 winner Wasted Tears (Najran), making a half-brother to stakes-placed Coffee Crush (Medaglia d’Oro).
Wasted Tears herself is a daughter of stakes winner Wishes And Roses (Greinton), who is also the dam of fellow stakes winner Wishingitwas (Sandpit) and Almost Certain (Favorite Trick).
He worked an eighth-mile in :10 during the sale's second under tack show session April 13 in Florida.
Farrell told Bloodhorse the colt would head into training with Bob Baffert.
"(Speedway Stables') Peter Fluor and K.C. Weiner asked me who my favorite horse in the sale was," told Bloodhorse. "My whole team here, Tescha Von Bluecher and Zoe Cadman, every one of us absolutely loved this horse. He had the composure of a real racehorse. He's physically spectacular and he's got the pedigree.
"They (Speedway Stables) have already had Grade 1 success with Roadster, by Quality Road, and this horse really looked the part," said Farrell. "They're thrilled to have them. I was worried we might (have to go that high). They buy very few horses so they always try and zone in on one they really love and they want the best that they can buy."
Bred in Kentucky by Bart Evans and Stonehaven Steadings, The colt was offered at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale last year, but where he was an RNA on a final bid of US$385,000.
"He's been a class act from day one, from the moment he entered the world," said Stonehaven Steadings' Aidan O'Meara. "He was probably the best-looking colt we've raised on the farm to this stage. He went on as a yearling and kind of got unlucky at the September sale with the COVID deal and he drew Hip 10 on top of all that. We had very high expectations going out there before the sale, but then we got our hip number and knew we were going to be compromised.
"We went out and RNA'd him for what he RNA'd for and we were probably about as disappointed as I've been coming down from the ring for what we thought of him and everything. We had a huge amount of faith in him and de Meric bought into him after that. He rolled down here and the rest is history. They've loved him."
Later on in the day, a filly from the first crop of the ill-fated Juddmonte Farms’ stallion Arrogate (Unbridled’s Song) also broke the seven-figure barrier when she was purchased by Katsumi Yoshida for US$1 million.
Catalogued as Lot 463 and consigned by Mayberry Farm, the filly is out of the dual Grade 2 winner and Grade 1-placed Montbrook (Buckaroo) mare Amen Hallelujah, who is herself a out of Listed winner Sara’s Success (Concorde’s Tune).
The price signalled a good result for Nice Guys Stables, who purchased the filly for US$150,000 from the Taylor Made Sales Agency at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale and she breezed an eighth-mile in :10 during the under tack show.
In total, OBS reported 181 horses sold Wednesday for gross receipts of US$21,056,500. The average was US$116,334 and the median was US$47,000. The 41 horses that went unsold represented an RNA rate of 18.5 per cent. Total receipts for all 373 horses sold at the completion of the first two days of the sale come to US$39,283,000.
During the 2020 renewal, when the sale was delayed to June due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the auction house sold 158 horses during the second session for receipts of US$15,990,000 at an average of US$101,203 and median of US$55,000.
"I think we certainly picked up where we left off yesterday, and I think the action was just as good if not better," said OBS director of sales Tod Wojciechowski. "We're continuing to move forward into the next two days.
"The consignors have done a fabulous job of selecting horses, whether they need to be in March or they need to be in April. The quality of horses that they bring seems to step up every year no matter what. They adapt and they evolve and the quality just gets better and better."
