Denali Sells Pair of Colts for $400,000 at F-T October

Denali Stud consigned a pair of $400,000 colts during the first day of the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky October Yearling Sale Oct. 20 in Lexington. Early on in the day, Gerard Butler signed for Hip 48, a son of Gun Runner out of multiple graded stakes winner Lady Apple; halfway through the session, Pedro Lanz, agent for KAS Stables, secured a colt (Hip 198) by 2022 Horse of the Year Flightline. Hip 48 was bred in Kentucky by Three Chimneys Farm and Phoenix Thoroughbreds. Butler bought out the partnership on behalf of Brookdale Racing. The colt hails from a strong female family, being out of millionaire Lady Apple, who is out of the graded stakes-placed mare Miss Mary Apples. Lady Apple is also a half sister to graded stakes winner American Apple, and stakes winners Dr. Diamonds Prize and Miss Red Delicious, who is a graded stakes producer. "That was a good result," said Denali Stud's Conrad Bandoroff. "That mare's foals are always kind of late bloomers. So, we kind of pointed to this sale all along, and it was a plan that really came to fruition. "The horses really did well in the last 30-45 days of prep, and as I said, we really targeted this sale. I think over the last few years, it's really shown that if you bring a nice horse here, there's a really good market for it, and especially if you bring a fresh horse here that hasn't been exposed to the market before, and has a clean sale history. There's never enough good horses in any sale, but certainly, if you have a nice horse here, people are looking for them. We were really pleased with that result." Gun Runner's progeny has been in high demand all season, highlighted by 12 seven-figure sales during the Keeneland September Yearling Sale. He is the sire of 15 millionaires, 11 grade 1 winners—three of them coming in 2025—headed by 2024 champion 3-year-old male and Whitney Stakes (G1) winner Sierra Leone. Gun Runner will stand for an advertised fee of $250,000 for the 2026 season at Three Chimneys Farm near Midway, Ky. "To get a Gun Runner at that level, at that price—his averages are an awful lot more," Gerard Butler said. "He ticked all our boxes, vetted very good." Brookdale Racing was a part owner in 2024 Horse of the Year Thorpedo Anna, before selling their share in the 4-year-old filly this summer to John Sikura's Hill 'n' Dale Equine Holdings. A 20% share in the Fast Anna filly, herself a graduate of the October sale, will be auctioned at the Keeneland Championship Sale Oct. 29 at Del Mar. "If another one comes along like her, my gosh," Butler said. "What a phenomenal mare, what a great story." Flightline Colt to KAS Stables Hip 198, a colt from the first crop of Flightline, sold to Lanz, agent for KAS Stables, and was consigned by Denali Stud, agent for the Complete Dispersal of Woodford Thoroughbreds (Phase 1). The Kentucky-bred colt is the second foal of the graded stakes-placed mare Message. The bay colt went through the ring once before—at Fasig-Tipton's The Saratoga Sale in August where he failed to meet his reserve, bringing a final bid of $475,000. "He obviously didn't get it done in Saratoga," Bandoroff said. "He's a two-turn horse, and he's done nothing but improve with the time. He's been a big fish in a smaller pond here. From August, until now, he's really just come on and improved really nicely. He's a beautiful, strapping colt. He went over really well. He had a ton of activity, and was vetted by really good people. This is the result we were looking for in Saratoga." "I saw the horse in Saratoga," Lanz said. "The horse has grown a lot since. We were trying to bid on some Flightlines before, and we got this. "This horse is out of a very fast mare. I was watching the information about Message, the mare, and she was a very good filly, two-turn filly for sure." Lanz said it was a a bit of a last-minute decision to bid on the horse, and was undecided at this time if the colt would remain in the United States. "The target is small, but when you hit the center target, you're going to get well rewarded," Bandoroff said. "You have to be realistic; if you have realistic expectations, then hopefully you can get your horses sold. It's a little bit of feast or famine, but when they land on your horse, it's fun. If you miss by an inch, you might as well miss by a mile. It's hyperselective, but when it's good, it's really good."