Midlantic sale 2-year-olds get rare catalog updates

Catalog updates for a juvenile sale entry are common when a family member does something notable on the track. Far less common are the horses who generate the key updates themselves.

A trio of horses in the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sale of 2-year-olds in training enter with at least one start already under their belts, giving them a distinct line in their résumés beyond what the rest will show during the under-tack show.

“It’s been a while” since a catalog horse has been a starter, said Paget Bennett, Fasig-Tipton’s Midlantic sales director. “We used to have horses that would have started come on to the grounds, but people kind of got away from it, or if they ran, they scratched.”

Two of the three juveniles are New York-breds who raced in their native state. Bennett said the draw of the state’s increasingly lucrative 2-year-old maiden purses can give a horse with a proven track record a leg up over unraced contemporaries, especially if he still has maiden conditions.

Bennett used Holy Gold, a runner-up at Belmont and Aqueduct, as an example of how running a horse prior to a late-season 2-year-old sale can be beneficial before and during the auction.

“This year, with the New York-bred maiden races that they’re offering, that horse has earned $40,000 for running second twice, so that certainly helps with sales expenses,” Bennett said. “She hasn’t lost her best friend” – her New York-bred maiden conditions.

Holy Gold, a Touch Gold filly, most recently finished second in a five-furlong maiden special weight at Belmont on May 4, earning a 62 Beyer Speed Figure. Her debut came at 4 1/2 furlongs, a distance that does not receive a Beyer. She is trained by James Ferraro as a homebred for Seacoast Thoroughbreds of New England.

The filly sells as Hip 592 and is consigned by Dean’s List as agent for the owner.

Also selling at the Midlantic sale is Escape to Vegas, who turned heads with a 4 3/4-length debut score in a May 11 maiden special weight at Belmont, earning a 59 Beyer in the five-furlong race. The Desert Party colt is owned by Robert Masiello and trained by Thomas Morley.

Escape to Vegas sells as Hip 181 out of the consignment of Kirkwood Stable, agent.

Outside of the New York circuit, Crane Thoroughbreds will handle, as agent, the Warrior’s Reward filly Makealittlelove, who finished second in her debut, a 4 1/2-furlong maiden special weight April 29 at Keeneland.

“She ran a real nice race, had the 1 hole even, and showed some bravery,” said consignor Clovis Crane. “She’s sound, and we’ll have her on display down here. We’re excited to show her to people.”

Three Diamonds Farm campaigns the filly, who is trained by Mike Maker and sells as Hip 467. Crane has been tied to Makealittlelove since purchasing her as agent for $30,000 out of the 2015 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic fall yearling sale.

“Our thought process was we’ve had a lot of offers on the filly, but let’s get fair market value on her and bring the market good stock,” Crane said about the decision to enter the filly in the sale. “Our job is to sell good horses, and we’re bringing a good horse to the market. Why leave money on the table when someone we might not even know is out there?”

The sale takes place May 23-24 in Timonium, Md., beginning each day at 10 a.m. Eastern.