In-foal mares topped buyers’ shopping lists and, as expected, the sales sheets. Through the first two days of Book 1, the current sale-topper is Unrivaled Belle, who sold in foal to Gainesway’s leading sire Tapit.
When the dollars stopped flying at the Nov. 7 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky November breeding stock sale, which saw gross, average, and median climb well beyond last year’s figures, a mare in foal to leading sire Tapit topped the auction.
John Oxley’s Noble Bird parlayed his 1½-length victory in the Oct. 1 Lukas Classic Stakes at Churchill Downs into a 5¾-length rout in the Fayette Stakes (G2) on the Oct. 29 closing card of Keeneland’s fall meet.
Sincil Bank, a 2-year-old son of Hat Trick, sold for 270,000 guineas ($346,749) Oct. 24 to be the joint session-topper on Day 1 of the Tattersalls autumn horses in training sale in Newmarket. The colt was acquired by the SackvilleDonald agency on behalf of Hong Kong interests.
First-crop sire To Honor and Serve was represented by his seventh winner Oct. 19 when Conrad Farms’ homebred colt State of Honor romped by 4¾ lengths in a seven-furlong maiden special weight at Woodbine.
Gainesway’s two-time champion sire Tapit took another giant step toward a third consecutive leading sire title Oct. 15 when 3-year-old filly Time and Motion became his 21st worldwide Grade 1 winner in the $500,000 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Stakes (G1) at Keeneland.
Gainesway’s freshman sire To Honor and Serve racked up his sixth juvenile winner Oct. 15 when his son Salute With Honor won a Gulfstream Park West maiden special weight in his debut.
Gainesway’s freshman sire Tapizar got his second Japanese maiden winner and 10th overall winner Oct. 15 when his 2-year-old daughter Mrs Watanabe won her career debut over 1400m at Tokyo Racecourse.
Live Oak Plantation’s 2-year-old Tapit colt Golden Hawk went wire to wire in the Oct. 9 Grey Stakes (G3) over Woodbine’s Tapeta surface and posted a 5¼-length victory.
Gainesway sales graduate Practical Joke overcame an awkward start in the Oct. 8 Champagne Stakes (G1) to run down front-running favorite Syndergaard in the final strides at Belmont Park. Practical Joke completed the mile in 1:34.68.