Fasig-Tipton Returns to South Florida

by Jessica Martini 

Fasig-Tipton conducted its first-ever breeze show at Gulfstream Park on a sun-drenched day in South Florida Monday, with a packed grandstand and a festive atmosphere ahead of Wednesday's Florida 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale. 

“I thought we saw a lot of nice racehorses on the track today,” commented Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning, Jr. “It was a wonderful crowd in attendance. It's a lovely facility and a great setting. I had a number of people in attendance today tell me it was an enjoyable experience. People enjoyed watching the horses go. People enjoyed the atmosphere and people enjoyed seeing quality horses.” 

After three years away, the auction is returning to the Miami area and Browning said the destination is part of the sale's appeal. 

“I think this is something we've got to have in this business,” he said. “It's not just a business, there is an element of sport and we're trying to keep people involved in this business and keep them engaged and this is a beautiful setting and a beautiful atmosphere. I think everybody has a little bounce in their steps and enjoyed the day. Hopefully they will enjoy looking at horses tomorrow and enjoy buying a lot of good ones on Wednesday.” 

Over what was acknowledged to be a deep main track, a colt by Uncle Mo (hip 58) turned in the day's fastest furlong breeze of :10 flat. The bay colt is out of Naughty Mambo (Kingmambo), a half-sister to Canadian champion and Grade I winner Negligee (Northern Afleet). He is consigned by McKathan Bros., agent and was purchased for $120,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale. 

“He is a perfect 2-year-old–he is just like his dad,” J.B. McKathan said. “He has been really precocious and fast from the very beginning. We weren't surprised that he went the fastest–we would have been disappointed if he didn't. He's been really fast at the farm. He's a very straightforward horse, really sound.” 

McKathan admitted he felt lucky to be able to purchase the colt last September. 

“It's hard to buy Uncle Mos,” he said before adding of the colt as a yearling, “He was just our type of horse– athletic, good-walking, balanced with a nice big old butt and a nice long, sloping shoulder and nice neck–just the things that we liked.” 

The April foaled only improved over the winter. 

“He grew up quite a bit,” McKathan confirmed. “He got taller. He's not a little horse.” 

Some of the bigger horses working Monday seemed to have trouble getting going over the deep track, but McKathan was happy with the performance of both horses he sent out to work. 

“I'm always worried when you come to a new venue,” he admitted. “You never know what is going to happen. We have a big Pioneerof the Nile colt (hip 34), he went in the last go, and I was really worried about him. And he worked in :10 2/5, but he galloped out as good as anything and he is a big, two-turn rangy colt.” 

McKathan added, “I watched from the seven-eighths pole and the track was tiring, but our horses were really fit and that really helps. It was kind of deep out there, but hopefully that will be kind to the horses.” 

The furlong time of :10 flat was equaled by a son of Kitten's Joy. Consigned by King's Equine, hip 53 was one of four horses to work over the turf. He is the second foal out of multiple stakes winner Mother Russia (Mayakovsky). 
Ciaran Dunne's Wavertree Stables was one of the busier consignors on the grounds Monday. Wavertree sent out 12 juveniles to work Monday. 

“The conditions were tough from start to finish,” Dunne said. “I think every one of us realized as soon as we got here and galloped one horse, it wasn't the Gulfstream we were expecting. The track was deeper and heavier than we would have assumed, but I think it played fair all day. I'm not sure there was much difference–maybe the horses later in the last set were at a hint of a disadvantage, but it wasn't terrible. By and large, what it did was separate the good horses out.” 

Among Wavertree's fastest workers was hip 29, a colt by Eskendereya who worked in :10 1/5; and hip 80, a filly by Scat Daddy, who also worked in :10 1/5. 

Dunne acknowledged the Florida sale is a place to show off the best juveniles on offer. 

“They weren't here to fill stalls,” he said of the Wavertree draft. “They could have gone anywhere we wanted them to go and we thought this would be the premier 2-year-old sale of the year. We thought this would be the boutique sale and the place to show off the fancy ones and that's what we brought here.” 

Adena Springs Gallops On 

Frank Stronach's Adena Springs was well-represented at Monday's breeze show as the Florida sale makes its debut at The Stronach Group's Gulfstream Park. Of the 175 horses in the catalogue, a full 45 are consigned by Adena Springs. The entire draft galloped Monday. 

“We've been more commercial the last couple of years and, obviously, this looks like a great venue and coming back to the home team,” said Adena's Jack Brothers. “Fasig-Tipton is a great niche in this market and this is a place where we think we belong.” 

Of the decision to forego breezing the juveniles Monday, Brothers said, “It's been Frank's philosophy from the beginning not to push the 2-year-olds along. Truthfully, at the end of the day, our horses will get to the races at the same rate as these others. [Buyers] can go on with them and have full disclosure with our vet reports–everything is at the barn. These are horses that people can pluck out of the sale and just march on with. They have a great foundation on all of them.” 

Brothers said he received plenty of positive responses to the gallops. 

“The reception has been excellent,” he said. “We had a lot of favorable comments and a lot of feedback between the breaks letting us know how pleased they were with the condition of the horses and the way they presented themselves.”

Brothers added that Adena's horses generally tend to be later-developing athletes. 

“I think our horses tend to be end-user horses,” he said. “Most of them have Classic pedigrees. I think that is part of our program and our stallion roster kind of suggests later-developing horses.”