Day 3 of the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale got off to a running start when the fourth horse to go through the ring, Taylor Swifter (Hip 624), sold for $700,000 to Pursuit of Success. The daughter of 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah was offered in foal to 2022 Horse of the Year Flightline by Gainesway, agent.
"She's a very nice physical, " said Archie St. George, who signed the ticket on behalf of Bryant Prentice's Pursuit of Success. "She is by American Pharaoh, who looks to be possibly a very good broodmare sire. She's in foal to an exciting stallion, Flightline. The team and Mr. Prentice, Bill Oppenheim, and everyone seemed to like the mare. There's a lot of upsides to her and there's a half brother that potentially could run."
Taylor Swifter was bred in Kentucky by Albaugh Family Stables and is out of the graded stakes-placed Medaglia d'Oro mare Taylor S, who is a daughter of blue hen Miss Macy Sue, the dam of Liam's Map and Not This Time . Taylor S has produced three foals to race, two winners including Taylor's Version, a 3-year-old colt by Into Mischief who won an allowance race in September at Churchill Downs for trainer Dale Romans and owner Albaugh Family Stables.
"It's a big pedigree with stallions on there, Not This Time and Liam's Map," St. George said. "Hopefully, Mr. Prentice has some luck with her, but it's all credit to him, Bill, and everyone else. She will go back to us now and hopefully we'll have a Flightline colt, and they can run."
Graded stakes winner Apple Picker (Hip 678), a 5-year-old daughter of Connect , fetched the second-highest price of the day at $650,000. She was consigned as a broodmare prospect by ELiTE, agent, and purchased under the name Family and Friends. She was bred by Michael Dubb out of the Yes It's True mare Silent Fright, who is a half sister to multiple graded stakes winner Grand Adventure.
The weanling market proved strong once again, topped by a Nyquist colt (Hip 830) that brought $600,000 from Clover Leaf Bloodstock, who was the leading buyer of the day with five purchases totaling $1.23 million. Four of the five purchases were weanlings.
Hip 830 is the third foal out of the Honor Code mare Intense Honor, who is a half sister to graded stakes winners Money Multiplier and Intense Holiday. He was bred in Kentucky by Viking Breeding.
"It's obviously a very strong weanling market, but the mares, they're still holding it, they're the flag-bearers of the last few days," said Keeneland vice president of sales Tony Lacy. "I can't say it's been exactly the same the last few years, I think there's been a little bit of softness in spots, but as long as they're not overly exposed, there is a market for them, and they're gaining a return."
Cormac Breathnach, senior director of sales operations at Keeneland, said the strong yearling market has an effect on both the weanling and broodmare market.
"I think the yearling market does help the mare market as well (as the weanling market), in the sense that it gives people confidence to buy a mare with a good cover," Breathnach said. "I think that some people are buying weanlings that weren't as successful buying yearlings this year as they might've wanted to be. So, they're supplementing with weanlings.
"By the same token, there might be some people that are buying them in utero as well. So, it's a good trickle-down effect. Clearly, the yearling market is the biggest driver of the commercial marketplace, and I think both angles get helped for sure, but the weanling market is maybe the direct beneficiary. The weanling market was sensational again today."
At the end of the third session, 251 horses had changed hands for gross receipts of $46,167,000, including post-ring sales, up 29% from last year's gross of $35,918,500 during the corresponding session, where 240 horses sold. The average price was $183,392, with a median of $160,000; up 23% and 33%, respectively. Sixty-five horses failed to meet their reserve, resulting in an RNA rate of 21%.
Gainesway led all consignors selling a total of 36 horses for $7,512,000, including the session topper Taylor Swifter.
"We had 239 sales through the ring today to 179 different buyers," Breathnach said. "We're maintaining yesterday's ratio. We're into Day 3 and it's supported by the depth of the buyer base. The top 20 weanlings sold today were by 19 different stallions and bought by 19 different buyers. That's the type of stuff you dream of."
Book 3 begins Nov. 7 at 10:00 a.m. ET with hips 1021-1442 set to head to the ring. As of Thursday evening, Keeneland had reported 75 outs.
