Goldencents colt brings $150,000 at Fasig-Tipton California fall yearling sale

POMONA, Calif. - A California-bred colt by Goldencents was purchased for $150,000 at Thursday’s Fasig-Tipton California fall yearling sale in Pomona, becoming the most expensive horse of the one-day sale.

Six colts sold for $100,000 or more. The most expensive filly was by Mr. Big and sold for $75,000.

Overall, 137 horses sold for $3,667,800, an average of $26,772 and a median of $13,000, according to data released by Fasig-Tipton. There were 30 horses withdrawn, and 118 listed as not sold from a catalog of 285 yearlings. The buyback rate was 41 percent of the horses in the catalog.

:: DRF BREEDING LIVE: Real-time coverage of breeding and sales

Fasig-Tipton replaced Barretts as the sale company in Southern California this year after Barretts ceased operation at the end of 2018. Last year, there were two yearling sales in Southern California – a select sale in August and an open sale in October.

Combined, those two sales saw 163 horses sell for an average of $23,719. There were 142 horses listed as not sold at those sales, or 42 percent of the horses in the catalogs.

The most expensive horse of the 2018 sales was Body Heat, a colt by Unusual Heat purchased for $250,000 who has yet to race.

Square Deal, purchased for $230,000 at the 2018 August sale, won the $100,702 I’m Smokin Stakes for California-breds at Del Mar on Aug. 30.

Thursday, the colt by Goldencents was purchased by Steve Gasparelli’s Slugo Racing and will be trained by Mike Puype. The colt, consigned by Tom Bachman’s Fairview LLC, is out of the two-time stakes winner Bold Roberta, the dam of the stakes winner Bella Luma.

“He’s a beautiful horse,” Puype said. “I thought he’d (cost) a little more than that.”

Bold Roberta is the dam of the 2-year-old gelding Audace, by Minister Wild Cat, who is trained by Puype and was fifth in his debut at Del Mar in August. Despite the loss, Puype said he holds Audace in high regard.

California trainer Jeff Bonde paid $135,000 for a Hard Spun colt. Consigned by Andy Havens Bloodstock Agency Inc., agent, the colt is out of Pamona Ball, a stakes winner by Pleasantly Perfect who is the dam of stakes winners Snowy Winter in Ireland and Pamina at Woodbine.

“He vetted clean and is real athletic,” Bonde said of the Hard Spun colt. “I buy athletes. I thought I’d get him cheaper.”

Havens led all consignors, selling 26 horses for $581,200. Samantha Siegel was leading buyer, purchasing four horses for $335,005. Siegel paid $110,000 for a Square Eddie colt consigned by Fairview.

Fairview sold seven horses for $558,200, including four of the six that sold for $100,000 or more.

Thursday’s sale was the second auction of the year conducted in California by Kentucky-based Fasig-Tipton. The company held a 2-year-olds in-training sale at Santa Anita in early June.