Gainesway again played a big part in a sale’s results this month at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale.
Gainesway’s consignment had the second highest gross of any consignor with less than half the horses of the top consignor and its $318,832 average for 125 sold was also the highest of any consignor with more than 25 yearlings sold.
That group was led by the fourth most expensive yearlings of the sale with a pair of Gainesway yearlings sold for $1.5 million.
Selling on the first day of the sale, a Gun Runner Filly out of Dream Dancing sold to Douglas Scharbauer wasn’t just the most expensive filly of the first session but also of the sale. The filly had a big update before the sale when her juvenile half-sister Dreamway easily won the Colleen S. as one of two winners from two to race out of their dam.
That dam is TAPIT’s Grade 1 winning daughter Dream Dancing, who not only is a granddaughter of champion Beautiful Pleasure but also one of four stakes performers out of To Dream About. Among the other stakes performers is her Grade 3-placed full brother Dream Maker and three-quarter stakes performing siblings Awesome Sky and Sky Dreamer. Sky Dreamer is also the dam of Grade 2 winner Kimbear.
In addition to being a top racemare, Beautiful Pleasure also produced the Grade 1-placed Dr. Pleasure.
“We thought that she was a really nice filly. We were pleasantly surprised that she was able to bring over $1 million,” said Gainesway’s Brian Graves. “We thought that she was always that caliber, but it’s nice when a few people hook up and it goes a little higher. In fairness, she’s out of a young Grade I winner with a huge family and she looked the part. The Oxleys have done it again and they’re infamous for showing up on the track, like with Sierra Leone and all the other good horses they’ve bred, so when it all matches up, it’s nice to see them break through.”
Gainesway also had the most expensive filly of the second session when its $1.5 million filly was purchased by David Lanigan and T Durcan as agent for Cindy Heider.
It wasn’t a surprise the Into Mischief filly was in high demand with her Grade 1 winning dam Shared Account also producing Grade 1 winner Sharing and stakes winner Riley’s Choice. This family is incredibly active with Shared Account’s half-sister Sparkle Blue still winning graded stakes in 2024. Their dam Silk N’ Sapphire is also the dam of stakes winner Colonial Flag and Grade 3-placed Mark of Success.
Another one of Shared Account’s half-siblings has found success with Into Mischief as well with her Into Mischief daughter Twenty Carat winning a Grade 3.
“She’s strong, she looks like she could do both turf or dirt,” said Lanigan. “She is just a really nice and well-balanced filly. Everyone really liked her.”
Gainesway also had the fourth most expensive filly of the second session when Windancer Farm Holdings purchased a Gun Runner filly for $1.05 million.
Bred by and offered on behalf of Stonestreet, the filly is a full sister to dual Grade 1 winner Cyberknife. She is also a half-sister to TAPIT’s stakes placed Tapit Shoes as two of three winners from four to run out of multiple stakes winner Awesome Flower.
This family is successful for multiple generations with Awesome Flower’s dam Formalities Aside a half-sister to Grade 1 winner Well Armed in addition to producing Grade 3 placed First Mondays and stakes placed if Not For Her.
Formalities Aside is also the granddam of multiple stakes winner and Grade 3-placed Monday Morning QB and Grade 3-placed Asawer.
The most expensive colt offered by Gainesway was a $1-million Maxfield colt purchased by M V Magnier.
From the first crop of multiple Grade 1 winner Maxfield, the April-born colt is a half-brother to last year’s Eclipse Champion Turf Male Up To The Mark and one other winner from three to race out of Belle’s Finale. Out of Grade 1 winner Capote Belle, Belle’s Finale is a full sister to stakes winner Zapper Belle. Zapper Belle has produced three winners from three to race, including the stakes winning Kabella.
Belle’s Finale’s other siblings include the dam of multiple Grade 2 winner and Grade 1-placed Catapult and stakes winner Ha Ha Tonka – who produced multiple stakes winner She’sonthewarpath. In all, just under this colt’s first two dams are seven stakes winners with three winning graded stakes.
Gainesway saw 24 yearlings sell for over $500,000 with its four million-dollar yearlings tied for the most of any consignor. The consignment also had the top three priced horses of Session 5 – including the most expensive horse of Book 3 – and the most expensive yearling of the seventh session.
Gainesway’s average of $339,988 this yearling sales season for 165 sold is the most of any consignor with 10 or more sold according to Blood-Horse with its $220,000 median the best of any consignor with more than 25 sold. Its $56.098 million gross is also the second highest of any consignor in 2024.