Plenty of stars on offer at Fasig-Tipton sale

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Daylight Savings Time ends on Nov. 2, meaning the sun will set fairly early in Kentucky on the evening of Monday, Nov. 3.

No matter, the stars will light up the night.

The single-session Fasig-Tipton Kentucky fall selected mixed sale, colloquially known as the “Night of the Stars,” begins at 4 p.m. at the company’s Newtown Paddocks in Lexington. The elite catalog is designed to feature “the sport’s finest bloodstock,” in the words of Fasig-Tipton president Boyd Browning Jr.

“This year’s catalog once again lives up to those lofty standards,” Browning added. “It’s a sale not to be missed by the sport’s leading collectors of top-quality bloodstock.”

There were 210 initial entrants in the catalog, which has and will continue to grow. As of Oct. 24, 13 horses had been supplemented to the catalog, and Fasig-Tipton was to continue to review supplemental nominations through the lead-up to the sale.

The Fasig-Tipton November sale gets a reflected glow from the Breeders’ Cup, with some racing and broodmare prospects traveling directly from the races to the sale grounds – although owners retain the right to withdraw offerings depending on their performance or other factors. Currently cataloged are Grade 1 winners Clicquot, Dorth Vader, and Seismic Beauty, all expected to square off in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff. Grade 1 winner Ag Bullet and graded stakes winner Shisospicy are expected from the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint. Also entered in this sale are Breeders' Cup entries Zeitlos, in the Filly and Mare Sprint, and Be Your Best, in the Filly and Mare Turf.

Broodmares on offer include Streak of Luck, the dam of Juvenile favorite Ted Noffey; Serra Do Mar, the dam of defending Dirt Mile winner Full Serrano; and the dams of Intrepido (Juvenile), She Feels Pretty (Filly and Mare Turf), and Shisospicy.

Overshadowing all of those producers, though, could be Puca – a rare offering as the reigning Kentucky Broodmare of the Year. Already the dam of 2023 Kentucky Derby winner Mage and 2024 Belmont Stakes winner Dornoch, as well as stakes-placed Gunning, Puca continued to burnish her résumé this year with Baeza. The multiple classic-placed colt finally scored his Grade 1 in the Pennsylvania Derby and could raise his dam’s stock even higher as he runs in the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

It would be impossible to list all of the graded stakes performers and producers in this catalog. Looking strictly at the highest levels of the sport, Eclipse Award champion Just F Y I, carrying her first foal, by leading sire Into Mischief, is among the top performers set to be on offer. She leads Grade/Group 1 winners Ballado’s Beach, Be Your Best, Brightwork, Candied, Champagne Rose, Edict, Iscreamyouscream, Positano Sunset, Power Squeeze, Randomized, Sacred Wish, Separationofpowers, and Tenma, plus Canadian champions Elysian Field and Millie Girl and South African champion Bless My Stars. The catalog also includes the dams of Grade 1 winners Brightwork, Chocolate Gelato, Raging Torrent, Speaking Scout, and Velocity.

While the racing and broodmare prospects and proven mares bring the most sparkle, the sale also includes a smaller selection of weanlings, many of whom have shining pages in their own right. That group includes a Breeders’ Cup connection in a half-sister to She Feels Pretty.

The weanlings on offer also include a half-brother to Horse of the Year Knicks Go, half-siblings to Grade/Group 1 winners Raging Torrent and Sioux Nation, and a filly out of Grade 1 winner Sippican Harbor.

The Fasig-Tipton November sale is always well-supported by international buyers. Last year’s sale topper was Grade 1 winner McKulick, purchased for $6 million by Narvick International, on behalf of Grand Stud of Japan. Group 1 winner Ramatuelle sold for $5.1 million to the international Coolmore group and headed to Ireland, while Moira, fresh off her win in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf, was purchased for $4.3 million by Australian interests. Moira, last year’s Eclipse Award champion female turf horse, raced in Australia this year before recently being retired.

Overall, last year’s Fasig-Tipton November sale had 25 horses sell for $1 million or more. The sale finished with 172 horses sold for a gross of $93,948,500, following three consecutive years in which the sale topped $100 million. Last year’s average was $546,212, and the median was $250,000.

:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.