Mo Town weanling colt tops Saturday sales at Keeneland November

A $185,000 weanling colt from the first crop of Mo Town led trade Saturday as the Keeneland November breeding stock sale moved into its Book 4 portion with a continued decline in prices, but an improved buyback rate.

Keeneland reported 265 horses sold in the session, the Book 4 opener and the sixth session of the sale overall, for a gross of $6,278,400. The session's average price was $23,692, while the median was $15,000. By comparison, the corresponding sixth session of the 2019 Keeneland November auction featured 259 horses sold for $7,577,200, an average of $29,256 and a median of $20,000.

After the greatest selectivity was shown in the upper portions of the marketplace, represented by Books 1 and 2, the buyback rate improved in the recently concluded Book 3 of the sale. It made another improvement as Book 4 opened. Saturday's buyback rate finished at an outstanding 16 percent, compared to 21 percent in 2019's sixth session.

The session-leading Mo Town colt was purchased by bloodstock agent Davant Latham, from the consignment of Alliance Sales, as agent. This is the first crop for Mo Town, winner of the Grade 1 Hollywood Derby on turf and the Grade 2 Remsen Stakes on dirt. Mo Town is by Uncle Mo, who has made an outstanding start as a sire-of-sires with Nyquist, Outwork, and Laoban among this year's leading freshman sires.

The Mo Town colt is out of the winning Broken Vow mare Mybrokenhome, a full sister to Grade 3-placed stakes winner Pool Winner. This is the immediate family of Grade 2 winner Venetian Harbor, and champion Safely Kept is this colt's fourth dam.

The session's highest-priced mare was Dane, who sold for $150,000 to H.F. Farm. The unraced Dansili mare, who was consigned as agent by Claiborne Farm, is carrying her first foal, to the cover of first-year stallion Demarchelier.

Dane is out of the Group 2-winning Sadler's Wells mare Peinture Rare, dam of three winners from four starters. Peinture Rare is a half-sister to three other stakes winners, led by Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winner and champion Peintre Celebre.

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