Half-brother to Justify a high-ticket buyback

It’s rare to find a breeder and consignor smiling after the most high-profile horse from their consignment is a high-ticket buyback. But Tanya Gunther, who operates Glennwood Farm with her father, John Gunther, didn’t seem too perturbed as she stood outside the barn Tuesday evening at Keeneland.

“Well, he’s coming home,” Tanya Gunther said.

‘He’ is the half-brother to Triple Crown winner Justify, who failed to meet his reserve with a high bid of $1.75 million at the Keeneland September yearling sale. The Will Take Charge colt was the first half-sibling to a Triple Crown winner offered at public auction as a yearling since Seattle Dancer, a half-brother to Seattle Slew by British Triple Crown winner and leading sire Nijinsky II, sold for a record $13.1 million to the BBA of England at the 1985 Keeneland July selected yearling sale. Justify, by the late Scat Daddy, sold for $500,000 at the 2016 Keeneland September sale to WinStar Farm and China Horse Club.

Gunther said Justify’s half-brother had a reserve of $1.799 million.

“Where the live money stopped, I don’t know,” Gunther said. “I always watch the horse in the ring and see how that’s going. ... He went up there like a champion, handled it all very well, and I think that’s a very good sign.”

Justify is out of the Grade 3-placed Ghostzapper mare Stage Magic, whom the Gunthers campaigned as a homebred. The mare is also the dam of The Lieutenant, a Grade 3 winner and Grade 2-placed this year.

While the female side of the family is on the rise, Gunther believes that the market took a cautious approach to young sire Will Take Charge, still unproven on the racetrack, resulting in the buyback. Will Take Charge – a late-blooming runner himself – has three winners from 15 first-crop starters. His yearling average sits at $167,207.

Gunther acknowledged that she hadn’t expected Will Take Charge’s 2-year-olds to be precocious.

“He was a very good racehorse, nice, big, scopey horse, great female family, good physical cross for the mare, and we liked the cross,” Gunther said of pairing Stage Magic with Will Take Charge. “We thought he was one of the most promising new stallions to retire that year and thought it would be a good match for the mare.

“I think mostly the stallion being unproven, it’s a little bit tricky.”

Justify’s half-brother will be broken at Glennwood this fall.

“I know our team will be very happy to be breaking him on the farm,” Gunther said. “The guy that normally rides for us on the farm is probably very excited to get on his back for the first time.”

Meanwhile, Stage Magic delivered a Pioneerof the Nile colt this year, is in foal to Quality Road, and will be bred back to Curlin.