FASIG-TIPTON hosted the latest edition of The November Sale, the company’s flagship auction of top-quality breeding stock, racemares and foals, on Sunday at Newtown Paddocks in Lexington.

For the second consecutive year, the sale grossed more than $100 million, with 31 lots selling for a million dollars or more; 10 horses sold for $2,000,000 or more. While the aggregate came close to last year’s record total, the average and median both decreased, by 14% and 17% respectively. A total of 160 lots changed hands, while 71 failed to do so. There was a significant Irish involvement, with the buyers’ bench led by MV Magnier, who spent $17.9 million on four lots.

Eclipse champion Gamine was sold carrying her first foal by Quality Road, and she topped the sale when selling for $7,000,000 to Coolmore, from the consignment of Hill ‘n’ Dale at Xalapa.

A five-year-old daughter of three-time leading sire, and 2022 champion sire-elect Into Mischief, Gamine set records on and off the track. In 2019, Gamine she became the most expensive two-year-old sold at public auction in Maryland when realising $1,800,000 at the Midlantic Two-Year-Old Sale.

Track record

Eighteen months later, she blazed a new track record in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint, winning by more than six lengths. A nine-time winner in 11 starts, Gamine scored seven times in graded stakes company, including a near 19-length victory in the Grade 1 Acorn Stakes on her stakes debut at three, a seven-length win in the Grade 1 Test Stakes, and victories in two Grade 1s last year at four. She earned $1,771,500 and was crowned Eclipse champion female sprinter in 2020.

“It’s kind of a magical night,” said Fasig-Tipton president Boyd Browning. “Last year, we surpassed $100 million in gross for the first time, and it was one of those goals you dreamt about but you didn’t think was realistic to accomplish. We were fortunate enough to do it last year and we did it again this year. It was another remarkable sale.”

A pair of racing and broodmare prospects sold for $5,000,000 each. The first through the ring was the fastest ever Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks winner Shedaresthedevil, who sold to Whisper Hill Farm who were buying out partners. Hunter Valley Farm consigned the five-year-old daughter of Daredevil whose 10 victories also include the Grade 1 La Troienne Stakes, Grade 1 Clement L. Hirsch Stakes, and five other graded stakes.

Shedaresthedevil earned $2,777,458 and also sold for $5 million last year.

Another selling for $5,000,000 was the Irish-bred Group 1 winner Campanelle, another purchased by MV Magnier. She was sold by Eaton Sales, agent for Stonestreet Stables. The four-year-old daughter of Kodiac won the Group 1 Prix Morny in France at two after landing the Group 2 Queen Mary Stakes at Royal Ascot. Last year she returned victorious at Royal Ascot in the Group 1 Commonwealth Cup. A group/graded winner in three countries, Campanelle has won six times for earnings of $1,070,417.

Top five

Another pair of Grade 1 winners sold for $4,000,000 each to round out the session’s top five prices.

For that sum Narvick International secured the dual Group/Grade 1 winner Blue Stripe from the consignment of Taylor Made Sales Agency. A Group 1 winner at three in her native Argentina, the five-year-old daughter of Equal Stripes won the Grade 1 Clement L. Hirsch Stakes at Del Mar in August and came up a nose short in a valiant effort in the weekend’s Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Distaff.

MV Magnier purchased Bellafina, in foal to Tiz The Law, for $4,000,000 from Eaton Sales, buying out their partner Kaleem Shah. The six-year-old daughter of Quality Road was a multiple Grade 1 winner at two and carried her form at three, winning the Grade 1 Santa Anita Oaks by nearly six lengths, earning more than $1,600,000.

Bellafina was represented earlier in the session when her first foal, a filly by Uncle Mo, sold for $1.35 million to top the foal portion of the sale. Paramount Bloodstock purchased the February foal, bred in partnership and also from the consignment of Eaton Sales. It was the second highest ever paid for a weanling in the history of The November Sale.

“The excitement and the energy were palpable,” said Browning. “It was a great environment to sell some really quality horses. It was absolutely a reflection of the quality horses we’re given the opportunity to sell. It was a fantastic horse sale tonight. We couldn’t be any more appreciative of the support and trust that people give us.”

Weanling fillies are all the rage

SIX foals brought $500,000 or more in the opening section of the sale, four of them being fillies. The Uncle Mo daughter of Bellafina headed the trade in foals, making exactly twice the price of the second-best on the night. That was the $675,000 paid by AAA Thoroughbreds for a daughter of Gun Runner, and the sire was responsible for half of the top six foals sold.

Bred in Kentucky by Newstead Corporation, the filly is a half-sister to the multiple graded stakes winner Tenfold, and she is out of the Tapit mare Temptress. Randy Hartley purchased the filly on behalf of a partnership and she will likely be reoffered next year. Hartley sold Gun Runner’s dual Grade 1-winning son Taiba as a two-year-old. The colt was third to Flightline at the weekend.

Breeder Mark Erlandson purchased the mare Mama Yay, a daughter of Mineshaft, for just $20,000 in 2020, in foal to Arrogate. The foal was born dead, and Erlandson covered the dam by Gun Runner. The resulting filly was bought on the telephone by Dell Ennis for $625,000. Last month the foal’s half-sister was Grade 2-placed, and the weekend’s Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Sprint winner Elite Power is closely related.

Irish-breds find favour

TALLY-HO Stud-bred Campanelle was one of the stars of the night, but she was not alone.

The Nicky Hartery-bred Going Global, a Grade 1 winner in the USA, was the sole purchase on the night by BBA Ireland, and they paid $2,500,000 online for the four-year-old daughter of Mehmas. She recently won the Grade 2 Goldikova Stakes at Santa Anita for the second time, having earlier been placed in the Grade 1 Gamely Stakes. Going Global has won 10 of her 17 starts, with $1,137,292 in earnings.

Purchased for €15,500 from The Castlebridge Consignment’s draft to the 2019 Goff’s Sportsman’s Yearling Sale, Going Global originally raced in Ireland, winning her maiden on the last of her four starts before being sold privately. She went on to win last year’s Grade 1 Del Mar Oaks and has only once finished outside the top three in 13 starts in California.

Bred by Kevin and Meta Cullen at their Middlelane Farm, the Australia four-year-old filly Ocean Road sold for 140,000gns as a foal, helped by being a half-sister to the Grade 1 winner Wigmore Hall. Now a Grade 1 winner herself of this year’s Gamely Stakes, she heads to Japan following her sale for $1,650,000 to JS Company.