Final numbers mixed at Fasig-Tipton

Fasig-Tipton Midlantic's two-day December mixed sale in Timonium, Md., ended Monday with mixed results as gross and average fell but median gained.

The auction sold 287 horses for $2,056,500, a decline of 23 percent from last year's sale, when 338 horses sold. The 2007 average price dropped 10 percent, from $7,924 to $7,166. But median price rose by 9 percent, climbing from $3,200 to $3,500. The buy-back rate also increased from last season's 34 percent to 39 percent.

The sale topper was Hip No. 334, a weanling Golden Missile colt out of the Wild Zone mare Precious Queenie. Thomas J. Gallo III, agent, sold the colt on Monday to Strait Draw Stables. The chestnut colt is a three-quarter brother to multiple winner Not on My Turf.