Monday, March 27, 2023
Wins Sophomore Fillies by 17 1/4 lengths in 3rd start. . .

    OLDSMAR - Munnys Gold didn’t just live up to the hype before Sunday’s Florida Cup Stonehedge Farm South Sophomore Fillies. She sent veteran racing writers to their thesauruses to try to find an apt description for her record-breaking victory.

    Awesome and incredible seemed totally inadequate. Unbelievable might suffice after the 3-year-old daughter of Munnings obliterated the 7-furlong track record in her third career start.

    Munnys Gold’s 17 ¼-length victory over Dreaming of Snow – the filly who upset Champion 2-Year-Old Filly Wonder Wheel here on Feb. 11 in the Suncoast Stakes – provided the top thrill in the 20th annual Florida Cup, which decided bragging rights among registered Florida-breds in six races.

    Each Florida Cup race carried purse money of $110,000, with three of the six winners earning $70,000 and three earning $60,000 based on their eligibility for the additional $10,000.

STONEHEDGE FARM SOUTH SOPHOMORE FILLIES

    Samy Camacho, the jockey on trainer Gerald Bennett’s runner-up Dreaming of Snow, did his best to put Munnys Gold’s victory in perspective, albeit from almost a time zone in arrears. “The winner is a champ,” Camacho said. “My horse did her best, but (Munnys Gold) is amazing.”

    The winner’s time of 1:20.09 astounded onlookers. The previous track mark of 1:20.89 was set in the 2019 Pasco Stakes by Win Win Win, who as a 4-year-old won the Gr. I Forego Stakes at Saratoga.


    Long-shot Pretty’n Awesome stayed with Munnys Gold early, and Dream Concert threatened to mount a challenge on the turn for home. But the winner had too much class, too much talent and who knows what else for winning jockey Irad Ortiz Jr., to worry.

    “She took a step forward from her last race,” Ortiz said of her Jan. 25 allowance victory at Gulfstream. “I wanted to feel what she had early and I felt she was able to relax. When I asked her for some speed, she just took off. She was very impressive in the stretch. Hopefully she stays solid because she has a lot of talent.”

    Ortiz was joined in the winner’s circle by his parents Irad Sr. and Vilma, visiting from Ocala.

    Munnys Gold, a 3-year-old daughter of Munnings out of the Medaglia d’Oro mare Haraawa, bred by Nicksar Farms, is owned by Lawana L. and Robert E. Low, who purchased her for $300,000 at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Select Yearling Sale. She had won her previous two starts by a combined 20 ¾ lengths, including her career debut at Monmouth last June in :56.60 seconds for 5 furlongs.

    Winning trainer Todd Pletcher can only hope he can keep Munnys Gold on an upward spiral. "That was a pretty impressive performance. She's handled each step up in class and each increase in distance without any problem,” he said via telephone. “You don't see horses do what she's done very often. She broke her maiden going 5 furlongs by 15 lengths and she won by even more today, so this is very exciting.

    “We'll see how she comes out of it and maybe take a look at the Eight Belles at Churchill Downs going 7 furlongs on (Kentucky) Oaks Day. Hopefully, she'll keep stepping up."


    On breaking the track record at 7 furlongs, Pletcher remarked, "I didn't see too many other races there today so I don't know if the track is really fast or not, but regardless, that's a crazy fast time on any surface."

OCALA BREEDERS’ SALES SOPHOMORE

    The connections of 3-year-old gelding Zydeceaux knew they were taking a chance running him 15 days after his ninth-place finish in the Gra.II Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby.


    But when Zydeceaux emerged from that race looking as fresh and fit as ever, trainer Ramon Minguet decided to roll the dice at a distance Zydeceaux had already won at on Jan. 14 in the Pasco Stakes.

    Rated nicely off the lead of Dangerous Ride early, Zydeceaux responded to jockey Samuel Marin’s urgings around the turn for home and powered home to a length-and-a-quarter victory over Diamond Cool. This Run’s for You finished third. Zydeceaux’s time for the 7 furlongs was 1:23.29.

    “Before the Tampa Bay Derby, Ramon told me he was thinking about this race,” said Jose Carrillo, who owns Zydeceaux under his Stud Carmen Cristina banner. “We had some doubts, but this horse has a lot of class and we didn’t work him too hard, just galloped him up to the race. We took the chance today and it paid off. Maybe we can make something more with him now, but he will definitely get some rest before he races again.”

    The victory was the fourth in eight starts for Zydeceaux, a son of Cajun Breeze-Wink At the Boys, by Graeme Hall, bred by Dee Ellen Cook and Suzette Parker. Zydeceaux paid $5.20 as the wagering favorite in the six-horse field.

GREY GOOSE TURF CLASSIC

    Peter Mattson’s homebred 6-year-old gelding Drama Chorus joined select company with his length-and-a-quarter victory over Me and Mr. C, becoming the second horse to capture back-to-back editions of the race. Old Time Hockey was a two-time winner in 2014-2015. Drama Chorus becomes the fourth horse to win any of the Florida Cup races in back-to-back years.

    The race unfolded in similar fashion to last year’s running, with Drama Chorus and jockey Alonso Quinonez leading his eight opponents on a merry chase almost the entire way. The son of Big Drama-Missmollybygolly, by Scat Daddy, spurted clear on the turn for home, then outlasted even-money favorite Me and Mr. C, the 2021 winner, with Cashier Check getting third. The winner’s time for the mile-and-an-eighth distance was 1:48.65, .07 seconds off last year.

    “The pace was slow enough early that it was perfect for him,” said winning trainer Tim Padilla. “When he cut that corner and opened up about 2 lengths, I said ‘Game over, boys.’ He (Quinonez) rode him perfect.” Padilla said Mattson, who recently had a pacemaker installed, watched the race back in Minnesota.

    The victory was the second at the meet for Drama Chorus, who is 8-for-29 lifetime. The Florida Cup victories are the only stakes triumphs for Drama Chorus, who needed 12 tries to break his maiden as a 4-year-old.

    “It’s so easy to ride for Tim because he doesn’t give me any instructions – I mean, I read the form and I played the break good and that’s my horse’s style anyway, so I let him out and sent him away,” Quinonez said. “We were where we wanted to be, and coming for home I had so much horse I was like ‘Let’s go’ and then ‘vroom.’ He can move pretty strong.”

EQUISTAFF SOPHOMORE TURF

    Trainer Kelsey Danner found her attention split between her two entrants, Otago and Anamnestic, during the stretch run, and by the time she switched back to Otago, he was powering along the hedge to grab an upset victory under jockey Antonio Gallardo. Gr. III winner Boppy O, the betting favorite, held on gamely for second, a neck behind the winner, with pace-setter Swan Lake third and Anamnestic fourth after a troubled trip in the eight-horse field.

    This was the first start for Otago since a fifth-place finish in a high-level Keeneland allowance race on Oct. 29. The son of Speightstown out of Mom’s Deputy, by War Chant, finished second on Oct. 1 in the Laurel Futurity, which was taken off the turf because of sloppy conditions.

    “We had to kind of rush him up to the Laurel race after he broke his maiden (on Sept. 11 at Pimlico), which probably wasn’t the best thing for him mentally,” Danner said. “At Keeneland, we were trying to get him to back off the bit and settle and he didn’t quite have the concept, so we gave him some time off and took everything kind of slow.”

    Otago improved to 2-for-5 with the victory for owners Crown’s Way Racing, NBS Stable, Eduard Dalava and Eli Diamant. The winner was bred by Courtney Meagher and Speightstown Syndicate. He paid $27.80 after touring the mile-and-a-sixteenth on the grass in 1:42.47.

NYRABETS SPRINT

    Entering the race, 4-year-old gelding Magical Warrior hadn’t won in more than a year. And when co-owner Rich Averill saw the field included a pair of Gr. III winners from the barn of trainer Jorge Delgado, along with the well-regarded Gatsby, he suggested to his partner and trainer, Gerald Bennett, that he consider scratching out of the race.

    “He said we had no shot. He told me I was nuts,” Bennett said after Magical Warrior rallied late under Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano for a length-and-a-quarter victory from Lightening Larry. “My wife Mary said, ‘Did you see the form on these other horses?’

    “I asked her, ‘Do you remember those other times when no one thought we could win?’ You can’t win it unless you’re in it,” said Bennett, who increased his career victory total as a trainer today to 4,107, also winning the fourth race with R Funny Bizness.

    Magical Warrior improved to 4-for-11 with the victory, with all four victories in Oldsmar. Bred by Richard Arnold, the son of Poseidon’s Warrior-Magical Madam, by Put It Back, was claimed in February of his 3-year-old season for $20,000 by Bennett, whose investment was paid back handsomely.

    The winner’s time for the 6-furlong distance was 1:08.96, just off It’s Me Mom’s stakes and track record of 1:08.67 set in 2012.

    Bennett, Oldsmar’s leading trainer who turned 79 two weeks ago, was almost giddy to be in a winner’s circle with Castellano for the first time. And Castellano, who recently was voted the recipient of the George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award, was just as pleased to get the opportunity to ride the winner.

    “When you get the opportunity, you have to take advantage of it,” Castellano said. “He (Bennett) gave me this opportunity, and it was the right time and the right place.”

    Magical Warrior benefited from the red-hot pace set by Lightening Larry and Oil Money, who dueled through the first quarter mile in 21.37 seconds and the half in :43.85 to set up the finish. Magical Warrior paid $23.60.

    ‘Our horse has a lot of speed, but our only shot at winning it was to get the horse to relax, and we had a world-class rider who was able to do that,” Bennett said. “When I saw he was sitting third on the turn for home, I thought, we can win this.”

PLEASANT ACRES STALLIONS DISTAFF TURF

    The connectios of Sweet Dani Girl weren’t discouraged after she faded to 10th three weeks ago in the Gr. III Honey Fox at Gulfstream Park after racing near the lead until the stretch.

    “She’d won her previous race (the Sunshine Filly and Mare Turf Stakes on Jan. 14 at Gulfstream) and she’s been training well, so we felt really good about running her in this race,” said John Williams of co-owner J & J Stables.

    Sweet Dani Girl led every step of the way under Castellano, turning in a 4-length victory over 43-1 shot Prudent Song. A 74-1 shot, the Bennett-trained Alexa’s Dream finished third in the 12-horse field. Sweet Dani Girl was the betting favorite, paying $6.80.

    The winner’s time for the mile-and-a-sixteenth on the grass was 1:40.87, .45 seconds off Speed Seeker’s 2016 stakes record. The victory was her fourth in eight starts and third in stakes competition.

    The 4-year-old Sweet Dani Girl is trained by Carlo Vaccarezza, the father of co-owner Nicholas Vaccarezza. The trainer bred her in partnership with J & J Stables. She is by Jess’s Dream out of My Sweet Dani Girl, by Scat Daddy.

    "She's a quality filly,” Carlo Vaccarezza said by telephone. “Three races back (in the Gr. II Eight Belles on May 6 at Churchill Downs) she bled and it broke my heart. John Williams and I decided to send her to Hill ‘n’ Dale Farm in Kentucky and give her as much time off as she needed. We always put the horse first, and we gave her all the time in the world to heal her lungs. She got to go and eat grass and just be a horse. We gave her an 8-month layoff, and when we brought her back, she won (the Sunshine Filly and Mare Turf). 

    "Javier rode that filly beautifully today. He did a perfect job. But she was ready. She was training really well at Palm Meadows, and I figured the turf course at Tampa would fit her perfectly.”

Monday, March 27, 2023
Dance to the Music wins Gr. III Desert Stormer . . .
    Red Baron’s Barn and Rancho Temescal’s Dance to the Music pressed the pace from the start of Saturday’s $100,000, Gr. III Desert Stormer Stakes at Santa Anita, took the lead a furlong from home and eased away to score by a length. It’s the first stakes victory for the 4-year-old filly by Macleans Music, sold for $575,000 by Paul Sharp, Agent, at the 2022 OBS Spring Sale after breezing an Under Tack eighth in :10 flat. Trained by Mark Glatt, she has compiled a 9-3-2-0 record and earned $229,080. 

   Stud Carmen Cristina’s Zydeceaux, never far from the front in Sunday’s $125,000 Ocala Breeders’ Sales Sophomore Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs, went after the leaders on the turn, took charge after straightening away in the stretch and was best by a length and a quarter at the wire. It’s the second stakes win for the 3-year-old Florida-bred son of Cajun Breeze, trained by Ramon Minguet, now 8-4-1-1 with $229,540 in earnings. He was for sold for $15,000 by Summerfield (Francis & Barbara Vanlangendonck), Agent, at the 2021 OBS October Yearling Sale.

    Intrepid Thoroughbreds’ Star Moment went right to the front in Saturday’s $100,000 Crescent City Stakes at the Fair Grounds and never looked back, cruising to a 4 1/2-length victory. It’s the first stakes win for the 3-year-old daughter of Star Guitar, now 4-2-0-0 with $91,530 in earnings for trainer Ron Faucheux. Consigned by Centofanti Thoroughbreds, Agent, to the 2022 OBS Spring Sale, she was sold for $110,000 after turning in an Under Tack eighth in :10 flat. 

    Flurry Racing Stables and Hoffman Family Racing’s Key of Life scored a front-running 2 1/2-length victory in Saturday’s $150,000 Purple Martin Stakes at Oaklawn Park. That’s two stakes wins for the 3-year-old daughter of Mo Town, a two-time OBS graduate sold by K P Sales, Agent, at the 2021 October Selected Yearling Sale, then purchased for $350,000 out of the Top Line Sales consignment at the 2022 Spring Sale after breezing an eighth in :9 4/5. Trained by Brad Cox, she’s now 7-4-0-3 and has earned $391,475. 

    Rocket Ship Racing’s Nosilverspoonshere picked up her first stakes win in Sunday’s $75,000 Shantel Lanerie Memorial Stakes at the Fair Grounds, coming from well off the pace, taking the lead in the final furlong and winning by a length. Trained by Tom Amoss, she’s now 7-4-1-0 and has earned $154,094. The 4-year-old daughter of Connect was purchased for $125,000 out of the Lucan Bloodstock consignment at the 2021 OBS Spring Sale after breezing an eighth in :10 1/5 at the Under Tack Show.
Saturday, March 25, 2023
Each of 6 races has a purse of $110,000 . . .
    OLDSMAR - Zydeceaux, who won the Pasco Stakes on Jan. 14 as the longest shot in the field, and Dreaming of Snow, a 38-1 shot winner of the Suncoast Stakes on Feb. 11, are among the top contenders for Sunday’s 20th annual Florida Cup Day at Tampa Bay Downs.

    The six Florida Cup races, each offering purse money of $110,000, have drawn a total of 53 entries. Post time for the first of Sunday’s 12 races is 12:20 p.m., with the Florida Cup portion of the program starting with the fifth race, the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Sophomore for 3-year-olds sprinting 7 furlongs on the main track.

    Top jockeys Irad Ortiz,Jr., Javier Castellano, Paco Lopez and Chantal Sutherland are making the trip from Gulfstream Park to compete, adding extra layers of excitement and intrigue to the event. Castellano won a record four Florida Cup races in 2018.

    Zydeceaux, a gelding owned by Stud Carmen Cristina and trained by Ramon Minguet, is 8-5 in the morning line for the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Sophomore – no surprise, given that his Pasco victory was also at 7 furlongs against open company. Jockey Samuel Marin will attempt to recapture the Pasco magic after a subsequent fifth-place finish in the Gr. III Sam F. Davis Stakes and a ninth in the Gr. III Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby.

    The 2-1 second choice in the six-horse field is Dangerous Ride, who has made all but one of his 10 career starts at Gulfstream Park. The stakes-winning colt is trained by Carlos David and will be ridden by Antonio Gallardo.

    Next up Sunday is the Grey Goose Turf Classic, for horses 4-years-old-and-upward at a mile-and-an-eighth on the turf. The 9-5 morning-line choice in the field of nine is Me and Mr. C, a 6-year-old gelding who won the race in 2021. Irad Ortiz Jr.., has the mount for trainer Mike Maker.

    Co-second choice at 3-1 is trainer Tim Padilla’s 6-year-old gelding Drama Chorus, who won last year’s Grey Goose Turf Classic at odds of 11-1. Regular rider Alonso Quinonez is back in the saddle.

    Sunday’s seventh race is the 7-furlong Stonehedge Farm South Sophomore Fillies for 3-year-old distaffers on the main track. Dreaming of Snow, whose Suncoast Stakes triumph came at the expense of Champion 2-Year-Old Filly Wonder Wheel, is the 4-1 second choice on the morning line in the eight-horse field.

    The even-money favorite for the race is the Todd Pletcher-trained Munnys Gold, who has wowed ’em in her two career starts: a 14 ½-length victory last June at Monmouth and a 6 ¼-length victory in January at Gulfstream. Ortiz liked Munnys Gold enough that day to accept Sunday’s assignment.

    The eighth race, the Equistaff Sophomore Turf for 3-year-olds at a mile-and-a-sixteenth on the grass, has attracted eight colts and geldings, with trainer Mark Casse’s colt Boppy O the even-money morning-line selection. Six of Boppy O’s seven starts have come against stakes competition, with a victory in last year’s Gr. III With Anticipation Stakes at Saratoga stamping him as a potentially elite runner. Castellano will be the rider.

    Second choice at 3-1 is the Kelsey Danner-trained colt Anamnestic, a potential tongue-twister for track announcer Jason Beem. Jockey Hector Rafael Diaz Jr., hopes to give Beem some practice.

    Sunday’s ninth race, the NYRABETS Sprint, produced the still-standing 6-furlong track record of 1:08.67 in 2012 when a devilishly fast 4-year-old filly named It’s Me Mom stuck it to the boys. With no fillies to contend with, two from the barn of trainer Jorge Delgado seem best suited to take a crack at a new mark, but it’s doubtful either will have an easy time of it in the nine-horse field.

    Delgado’s 4-year-old colt Lightening Larry, who will be ridden by Emisael Jaramillo, is the 5-2 morning-line favorite. Last year’s Gr. III Chick Lang Stakes winner at Pimlico won the Sunshine Sprint Stakes at Gulfstream in January.

    Lightening Larry’s stablemate, 5-year-old gelding Willy Boi, enjoyed stakes success last summer in the Gr. III Smile Sprint Invitational at Gulfstream, followed by a third in the Gr. I Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap at Saratoga. He’ll seek to regain that form under Sutherland.

    The final Florida Cup race is the Pleasant Acres Stallions Distaff Turf for fillies and mares 3-and-upward at a distance of a mile-and-a-sixteenth on the grass. An overflow field of 13 has been named, with 4-year-old Dreamster in need of a scratch to get into the race.

    Four-year-old Sweet Dani Girl, a two-time stakes-winner from the barn of Carlo Vaccarezza, is the 5-2 morning-line favorite. Castellano will be in the saddle. The 4-1 second choice is trainer Patrick Biancone’s 5-year-old Mona Stella, who finished third in last year’s running and will be ridden by Lopez.
Friday, March 24, 2023
Turf Writer Jim Freer dies . . .
    HALLANDALE BEACH - Post positions will be drawn and odds determined tomorrow for the $1 million Curlin Florida Derby at Gulfstream Park.

    The draw will be shown live at approximately 12:15 p.m. at GulfstreamPark.com.


    The 1 1/8-mile event, one that has produced a remarkable 58 Triple Crown event winners and 24 Kentucky Derby  winners, will feature champion and Derby favorite Forte. Owned by Repole Stable and St. Elias Stable, trained by Todd Pletcher and ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr., Forte was an impressive winner March 4 of the Fountain of Youth and is the early Kentucky Derby favorite. The colt has won five of six starts. He concluded his 2-year-old season with a victory in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.

    Forte’s opposition is expected to include Cyclone Mischief, third in the Fountain of Youth, Remsen winner Dubyuhnell; West Coast Cowboy third in the Holy Bull; and Mage, fourth in the Fountain of Youth.

TRF Celebrates - Gulfstream Park will help the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation (TRF) celebrate 40 years Saturday with a race named in its honor.

     The TRF is celebrating four decades of saving horses and changing lives. As the oldest Thoroughbred rescue in the country, the TRF provides lifelong sanctuary to retired Thoroughbreds throughout their lifetime. It’s also known for its pioneering TRF Second Chances program and runs life-changing programs teaching life and vocational skills at eight correctional facilities across the U.S., including one juvenile justice facility. These programs have made significant impacts on equine and human life.

Turf Writer Jim Freer Dies - Longtime turf writer Jim Freer, who covered Florida horse racing for several decades, passed away March 17 of complications from Parkinson’s Disease. He was 74.

    Freer, who was passionate about the sport and business of racing, particularly Florida Thoroughbred racing, wrote for the BloodHorse, Miami Herald, South Florida Business Journal and, most recently, was founder of HorseRacingFLA.com. Jim loved attending the races, meeting owners, trainers, jockeys and executives, and was always thinking of ways to publicize the sport.

    Freer grew up in upstate New York. He received a bachelor’s degree in history from Holy Cross and a master’s degree in journalism from Georgetown. A celebration of Jim’s life will be held soon at Gulfstream Park. For more information contact Barry Unterbrink at [email protected]

Dubai Races at Gulfstream - The Silks room will open at 7:45 a.m. Saturday so fans can watch and wager on the Dubai World Cup.

    Sibelius, winner of Gulfstream’s Mr. Prospector and based at Palm Meadows Training Center, runs in the $2 million Golden Shaheen for trainer Jeremiah O’Dwyer. Super Corinto, based at Gulfstream with trainer Amador Sanchez, runs in the $12 million World Cup, and jockey and South Florida native Tyler Gaffalione has several mounts on the day including Gunite in the Golden Shaheen, Cazadero in the $1.5 million Al Quoz Sprint, and Isolate in the $1 million Godolphin Mile.
Thursday, March 23, 2023
Tom McCrocklin consigns $1 million filly . . .

    Hip No. 558, a daughter of Munnings consigned by Tom McCrocklin, Agent, was sold to Donato Lanni for Frank Fletcher Racing Operations for $1 million to top the third and final session of the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company’s 2023 March Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training. The bay filly, whose quarter in :20 4/5 was the co-fastest at the distance at Thursday’s Under Tack session, is out of In Full Compliance, by Smart Strike, a half-sister to stakes-placed Devon Rock from the family of champion La Chaposa (PER).

    Hip No. 626, a son of Practical Joke consigned by Wavertree Stables (Ciaran Dunne), Agent, was purchased for $925,000 by Speedway Stables. The bay colt, who breezed an eighth in :9 4/5 on Friday, is out of Louisiana Voodoo by Big Brown, a half-sister to graded stakes-placed stakes-winner Givemeaminit.

    Hip No. 600, a daughter of Twirling Candy consigned by Wavertree Stables (Ciaran Dunne), Agent, was purchased by Hideyuki Mori for $900,000. The dark bay or brown filly, who breezed an eighth in :9 4/5 on Thursday, is out of stakes- winner Laudation, by Congrats, a daughter of graded stakes-winner Rite Moment.

    CSLR Racing Partners went to $700,000 for Hip No. 806, a son of Justify consigned by Niall Brennan Stables, Agent. The chestnut colt, who breezed an eighth on Friday in :9 4/5, is a half-brother to graded stakes-placed stakes-winner Freedom Flyer, winner of the recent Wishing Well stakes at Santa Anita, out of Rebuke, by Carson City.

    Hip No. 752, a daughter of Omaha Beach consigned by Wavertree Stables (Ciaran Dunne), Agent, went to Kerri Radcliffe, Agent, for $690,000. The bay filly, who worked an eighth in :9 4/5 on Friday, is out of stakes-winner Pacific Heat, by Unusual Heat, a half-sister to graded stakes-placed stakes-winner Long Hot Summer.

    Hip No. 598, a son of Munnings consigned by Eddie Woods, Agent, went to OXO Equine LLC for $685,000. The bay colt, who breezed an eighth in :9 4/5, is a half-brother to stakes- winner Opus Forty Two out of Laquesta by Lemon Drop Kid.

    Hip No 574, a son of Constitution consigned by Sequel Bloodstock, Agent, went to Lauren Carlisle, Agent, for $675,000. The chestnut colt, who breezed an Under Tack eighth in :10 flat, is out of graded stakes-placed Jungle Tale, by Lion Heart, a daughter of graded stakes-placed stakes-winner Mary Kies.

    Hip No. 612, a son of Constitution consigned by Pike Racing, Agent, was sold for $625,000 to Boardshorts Racing. The dark bay or brown colt, who breezed an eighth in :10 1/5, is out of Gr. I stakes-placed OBS graduate Libby’s Tail, by Tiz Wonderful, a daughter of stakes-winner Christmas Lily.

    West Bloodstock, Agent for Repole Stable, went to $600,000 for Hip No. 742, a son of Dialed In consigned by Eddie Woods, Agent. The bay colt, who breezed an eighth in :9 4/5, is out of stakes-placed One More Wild Ride, by Wildcat Heir.

    Hip No. 639, a son of OBS graduate and leading sire Into Mischief consigned by Wavertree Stables (Ciaran Dunne), Agent, was sold to Ben McElroy, Agent for AMO Racing for $550,000. The bay colt, who worked an Under Tack eighth in :10 flat, is out of Madame Orbe, by Orb, a half-sister to Gr. I stakes-winner Divisidero.

    Hip No. 611, a daughter of Girvin consigned by Randy Miles, Agent, went to Champion Equine for $500,000. The dark bay or brown filly, who worked an eighth in :10 flat, is out of Libby Knows, by Mark Valeski, a half-sister to graded stakes- placed stakes-winner Fuerteventura.

    Hip No. 698, a daughter of American Pharoah consigned by de Meric Sales, Agent, was purchased by Gayle Van Leer, Agent, for $475,000. The bay filly, who breezed an eighth in :10 flat, is out of graded stakes-placed More Fun Again, by Arch, a half-sister to graded stakes-winner Speaktomeofsummer.

    Mike Maker went to $450,000 for Hip No. 581, a son of Ghostzapper consigned by Top Line Sales, Agent. The dark bay or brown colt, who breezed an eighth in :10 flat on Thursday, is out of stakes-winner Katie’s Kiss, by OBS March graduate Kantharos, a half-sister to stakes-winner Stonestreet Song.

    Hip No. 678, a son of Into Mischief consigned by de Meric Sales, Agent, was sold to Boardshorts Racing for $450,000. The bay colt, who breezed an Under Tack eighth in :10 flat, is out of graded stakes-placed stakes-winner Miss Southern Miss, by More Than Ready, a daughter of stakes-winner Miss Atlantic City.

    Katsumi Yoshida went to $450,000 for Hip No. 830, a son of Street Boss consigned by Julie Davies, Agent. The gray or roan colt, who breezed an eighth in :10 flat, is out of Rubindy, by Bernardini, a half-sister to graded stakes-winner Red Ruby.

    Hip No. 650, a son of Violence consigned by Golden Rock Thoroughbreds, Agent, was sold to Novogratz Racing Stables for $410,000. The dark bay or brown colt, who turned in an Under Tack quarter in :21 flat, is out of Maritimeconnection, by Lookin At Lucky, a half-sister to graded stakes-winner Passion for Action.

    Hip No. 727, Gun Song, a chestnut filly by Gun Runner, was sold to Taproot for Lee Lewis for $400,000. Consigned by de Meric Sales, Agent, she’s out of graded stakes-winner Nicole H, by Mr. Greeley, a half-sister to stakes-placed Tap Attack.

    For the session, 150 horses sold for a total of $23,945,000. The average price was $159,633, the median $80,000 and the buyback percentage was 19.4%. There was no corresponding session in 2022.

   For the entire sale, 460 horses grossed $71,110,500 for three sessions compared with 374 bringing $49,371,633 in two sessions in 2022. The average price was $154,588 compared with $132,008 last year and the median price was $75,000, unchanged from 2022. The buyback percentage was 21.4%; it was 12.2% in 2022.