CTBA Northern California sale down across board

The California Thoroughbred Breeders Association’s Northern California yearling and horses of racing age sale closed on Tuesday with declines across the board, and was topped by a $70,000 Smiling Tiger filly.

The auction closed with 95 yearlings sold for revenues of $652,500, down 31 percent from last year’s yearling portion, when 128 horses brought $947,400.

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The average sale price fell 2 percent to $6,868 from $7,042, while the median declined 22 percent to $3,000 from $3,850. This year’s buyback rate finished at 23 percent compared with 33 percent last year.

Among the racing-age offerings, three horses brought a combined $4,000, compared to eight sold in 2016 for $80,800.

Del Secco DCS Inc. purchased the sale-topper, a $70,000 filly from the second crop of Smiling Tiger.

The bay filly is out of the placed Cee’s Tizzy mare Mulberry Lane, who is the dam of one winner from two runners. She is the most expensive yearling to sell at auction out of Mulberry Lane, surpassing the $20,000 Lucky Pulpit filly Divine Spark, who later sold for $150,000.

Further down the page of the Smiling Tiger filly is Grade 2-placed stakes winner Aspen Gal, and stakes winners Talk the Walk and Uptown Girl.

The sale-topper was bred in California and consigned by Harris Farms, which also bred Mulberry Lane. Harris Farms, located in Coalinga, Calif., also stands Smiling Tiger.

Del Secco DCS Inc. also bought the sale’s second-most-expensive horse, a $50,000 Lucky Pulpit colt.