Pinhookers and 2-year-old consignors Randy Hartley and Dean DeRenzo returned to a family that has rewarded them with success Nov. 5 during the third session of the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale, purchasing a colt out of the unraced Bodemeister mare Mezinka for $700,000.
Their purchase of Hip 942, as agent for Tom Durant, marked the third time they have acquired a horse out of the mare. The others, Harlocap and Top Selection, were successful pinhooks that generated substantial financial returns when resold as juveniles through the Hartley/DeRenzo Thoroughbreds consignment. Harlocap, one of three winners from five foals of racing age out of the dam, became graded stakes-placed and made $285,253.
Blandford Stud consigned the Garrenross Unlimited Company and Grouseridge-bred colt, who was foaled in Kentucky.
Hartley and DeRenzo dug deep to secure Hip 942, attracted not only by the strength of his female family, but also by his sire Life Is Good , the third-leading freshman sire in North America. The stallion will stand for $125,000 next year at WinStar Farm near Versailles, Ky.
"He was my pick as a freshman sire," DeRenzo said. "With a grade 1 (winner) in his first crop, he's really going to go the right way on that, and he was an amazing racehorse all the way through.
"So we kind of stayed with that great pedigree. The mare is a half sister to Pioneerof the Nile—just really blue blood all the way through. So we're excited about it."
DeRenzo said the plan is to pinhook Hip 942.
Hartley and DeRenzo have enjoyed considerable success doing so with Durant, a highly successful automobile dealer from Texas. They garnered headlines earlier this year when they sold a son of Flightline for a record-breaking $10.5 million at the Ocala Breeders' Sales Spring 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale.
That colt, now named Zedan, remains unraced for owner Zedan Racing Stables and Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert. He similarly was acquired as a weanling, purchased for $575,000 during the 2024 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale.
"(Durant) just called (and was) like, 'Did you get it?' I'm like, 'Yes, sir.' It's exciting," Hartley said. "He's good for the game, and you know, he loves it. It'll be fun. We'll see what happens."
