Justify Filly Sells to Speedway for OBS June Record $1.4 Million

Marette Farrell outbattled Donato Lanni in a war of phone bids at opposite ends of the pavilion to acquire a filly by Justify (hip 428) for an OBS June record $1.4 million on behalf of Peter Fluor and K.C. Weiner's Speedway Stable. Farrell did her bidding on the phone with OBS's Andrew Fernung sitting in the back of the pavilion, while Lanni was on the phone with Wade Cunningham in the auction stand. Justin Holmberg, sitting directly next to Cunningham, egged his fellow auctioneer on several times during the bidding, but eventually there was no answer to Farrell's final, record-setting bid.

“She was absolutely amazing,” Farrell said of the filly. “As soon as I saw the breeze, all I wanted to do was go back to the barn to see her. And so many times you are disappointed when you see a phenomenal breeze like that. But when I went to the barn, she was everything I could have hoped for. She had size, muscle, presence, a great sense of mind.”

The gray filly is out of stakes winner Harbingerofthings (Rockport Harbor) and is a half-sister to graded winner and Grade I-placed Tell Your Daddy (Scat Daddy) and to graded winner Dynadrive (Temple City).

“She is by a phenomenal sire in Justify who we are real believers in,” Farrell said. “Peter Fluor loves Justify, so that was an added plus. And of course, she is a half to a Grade I-placed filly and a couple of other really good horses. It's Mindframe's extended family. Speedway Stable has a broodmare band now and these are the kind of fillies we want to add to the band. The ones that have brilliance.”

Consigned by Hoppel, the filly is the first to sell for seven figures at the OBS June sale. The auction's previous high-priced record was set last year when a filly by Curlin–Mufajaah (Tapit) sold for $975,000.

“I hated that we had to pay that much money,” Farrell admitted. “I knew she would be close to seven figures, but you can't walk away from a filly that is as phenomenal as her. Good horses come from everywhere. Peter and K.C. know that and they know when I make a call, I really believe in this horse and I've done my homework. And I truly believe that's a special horse. They want what we believe might possibly be the best and to me she was the best.”

Farrell also credited her team for getting that homework done.

“I am so lucky to have a great team of people around me like Tescha Von Bluecher, Zoe Cadman, and Ashley Castrenze,” she said. “We work hard, but we also have a lot of laughs together.”

With Justify Filly, Hoppel Doubles Up on Million-Dollar Babies

Consignor Jesse Hoppel had his first seven-figure result when he sold a colt by Mo Town for $1.05 million at the OBS March sale and he was quick to add a second when selling a filly by Justify for $1.4 million at the OBS June sale Wednesday.

“We got really fortunate,” Hoppel said. “We are grateful that everyone believes in us enough to bid on our horses like that. She exceeded our expectations by far. She is a really nice filly. She's got a really nice family. Hopefully she is a raving success on the racetrack and goes on to be a good broodmare. All of those things I think are possible with that filly.”

The filly, who worked a quarter-mile in :20 4/5 in last week's under-tack preview, was targeted at the June sale after a setback earlier in the year.

“She was turned out with a bunch of fillies in a big field, just being a horse,” Hoppel said. “We raise horses natural, have them turned out and let them be a horse. Sometimes they come in with bumps and bruises. That's the risk you run. She had a big lump on her shin. What happened? I don't know. None of the fillies would say. To this day, she retains a slight profile on that shin. That's just the way the body reacts. It set me back. She would have been here in April or March and it set us back a little ways. She came out of it really well. She looks to be a great racehorse. And now she's doing great.”

Of the set back, Hoppel admitted, “It was a blessing in disguise. Sometimes it feels like you are being dealt a blow, but you're just setting up for a punch. It worked out like that.”

Hoppel and his father Pat purchased the filly for $100,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale.

“We go after a lot of horses,” Hoppel said. “And sometimes they fall through the cracks. And that filly at Keeneland, she fell through the cracks. We were fortunate today.”