$1.5M Storm Cat filly sold at robust first session

Fasig-Tiptons Saratoga select yearling sale kicked off Monday night with increases in average and median and a $1.5 million session-topping Storm Cat filly.

Barry Irwin of Team Valor bought the session-topper, a bay half-sister to Grade 1 winner Lils Lad and a full sister to Group 3 winner Cherokee and to stakes-winner Art Museum. Hill n Dale Sales Agency, agent, sold the filly, a daughter of Grade 3 winner Totemic.

Shes got the most awesome body, shes so athletic, Irwin said. Shes got everything you want.

Irwin said he thought he had no shot to get the filly but considered her one of the best fillies he had ever seen.

I really wanted to go to $1.2 million or $1.3 million, but the way I looked at it was, where are you going to get another horse like this? he said.

The nights top colt was a $1.2 million son of A.P. Indy and Pyramid Lake that Hunter Valley Farm, agent, sold to Will Farish. Farish stands A.P. Indy at his Lanes End Farm in Versailles, Ky.

The sale defied fears over the nations general economy, though its gross declined nine percent on a smaller catalog. The session, the first of two, sold 60 yearlings for $18,160,000, down from the $19,867,000 for 76 yearlings sold at last years opener. Average rose 16 percent, from $261,408 to $302,667, and median gained 13 percent, rising from $235,000 to $207,500.

The auctions buyback figures increased from 22 percent last year to 29 percent this season in an indication that sellers found the market somewhat soft. But Fasig-Tipton officials were pleased overall with the opening-night performance, given the nations overall economic situation.

I think it was pretty much like we expected, Fasig-Tipton president Walt Robertson said. We had a few more not-solds than wed have liked to have, but when you have them about 30 percent, thats fine. Nobody said this thing was easy.