Freshman class appears competitive

The 2023 freshman sire class – those who will have their first runners this season – could turn out to be a very deep group.

Grade 1 winners Omaha Beach, from the family of blue hen Take Charge Lady, and Audible, by leading sire Into Mischief, both recorded six-figure average prices for their first crop of yearlings in 2022. They were followed, in order, by Eclipse Award champions Mitole and Vino Rosso.

However, a closer examination of the commercial statistics for this class of stallions uncovers some additional names, giving the impression that this may be a competitive class – especially because, at this stage, young horses can change rapidly. With the 2-year-old sale season on the horizon, later-blooming horses could come to the forefront for breakout commercial performances for their young sires, especially as under-tack shows will play a crucial role.

Among Kentucky’s freshman sires with published stud fees, the biggest returns on investment from the advertised stud fee in the year of conception to yearling average price were posted by Maximus Mischief, Audible, and Flameaway, in that order.

Grade 2-winning juvenile Maximus Mischief, who stands at Spendthrift Farm, and Audible, who stands at WinStar Farm, are both by Into Mischief, who has found success with sons Goldencents and Practical Joke at stud, and whose pipeline is loaded as he continues to dominate the North American sire list.

“For me, it’s Audible,” breeder and consignor Carrie Brogden of Machmer Hall said of this year’s freshman class. Machmer Hall brought eight yearlings by Audible to the ring in 2022, and Brogden said the sire’s foals “can walk, they’re middle-sized, they’re correct, they’ve got great brains. . . . For me, personally, it would be Audible.

“My only worry about Into Mischief is that they’re too good. There’s gonna be too many [sons]. . . . But the good thing about that whole line is it throws correct, and good-vetting [offspring].”

Audible’s yearlings sold for 5.7 times his introductory stud fee, while Maximus Mischief’s yearling average was 7.3 times his fee as part of a strong class for Spendthrift, which also debuted Coal Front, Mitole, Omaha Beach, and Vino Rosso last season.

Meanwhile, Flameaway’s yearling average was 5.8 times his introductory fee at Darby Dan Farm. A graded stakes winner on both dirt and turf, Flameaway is also from a popular sireline, as he is by the late Scat Daddy – whose first son to stud, No Nay Never, has been a smashing success in Europe, and whose Triple Crown-winning son Justify was among last year’s leading freshman sires.

Flameaway, who raced for John and Debby Oxley, was represented by one yearling chosen for last summer’s boutique Fasig-Tipton Saratoga selected yearling sale, a strong endorsement of the conformation and other traits passed on to that colt by his sire. The yearling sold for a healthy $425,000 to trainer Kenny McPeek, as agent for Harold Lerner.

“We love Flameaway,” John Oxley said. “The foal crops that we’re getting by Flameaway are outstanding. They just seem to be better than any of the other stallions we’ve used, by and large.”

Among current Kentucky freshmen who have had both weanlings and yearlings sell at public auction, the biggest year-to-year jump in weanling-to-yearling average was seen by Grade 1 winner Leofric. The stallion stood his first two seasons at Rockridge Stud in New York before moving to Darby Dan as the property of a syndicate beginning with the 2022 season.

“There’s a lot to like about Leofric,” Darby Dan stallion director Ryan Norton said. “He has a stallion’s pedigree, and his first foals are outstanding. Being a Grade 1 winner by Candy Ride, it makes a lot of sense to bring him to Kentucky now to give him every opportunity to succeed as a stallion.”

The vote of confidence likely improved the prospects for Leofric’s offspring. His 2022 yearling average was a modest $24,081, but that represented a 150 percent increase from his weanling average.

The next-biggest year-to-year jumps in sale average in this class were posted by graded stakes winners Coal Front and Enticed. Coal Front, who stands at Spendthrift, saw his yearling average rise 96 percent from his weanling average. Darley homebred Enticed’s average price rose 79 percent.