Another Sale Topper for Pope
Whisper Hill Farm’s Mandy Pope added another collector’s item to her broodmare band yesterday after outlasting Moyglare Stud for the $3.9 million Aloof (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), a group-winning daughter of champion Airwave (GB) selling in foal to War Front.
That’s the top price paid for a horse at Keeneland November and marks the third time in the past three years that Pope has secured a sales topper at the November sales. Pope landed the $10 million Havre de Grace (Saint Liam) at Fasig-Tipton in 2012 and purchased the sales-topping Betterbetterbetter (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) for $5.2 million at Fasig a year ago.
Aloof actually has plenty in common with Betterbetterbetter. Both are Irish group performers by maybe the world’s best
sire who were campaigned by the Coolmore principals. Both hail from impeccable families. And both were offered in foal to War Front. Paramount Sales sold Aloof as Hip 246.
Standing out back alongside advisor Wayne Sweezy, who boards her mares at his Timber Town Stable, Pope dug in gamely in a tough battle that boiled down to her and Moyglare’s Fiona Craig.
In training with David Wachman, Aloof won last year’s G3 Lavarack Fillies S. at Gowran and, through her career, placed in six other stakes events. Her dam Airwave was one of the best of her generation, winning the G1 Cheveley Park S. in a championship season at two and, as a 3-year-old of 2003, placed in the G1 Golden Jubilee S., G1 Sprint Cup and G1
Darley July Cup, earning her top sprint honors.
Airwave’s been good in the breeding shed, too. In addition to Aloof, her offspring include SW Orator (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and SW & GSP Meow (Storm Cat).
“We’re getting a little of the European flare going, expanding our boundaries,” Pope laughed after signing the winning slip, adding that she hoped that expansion would help the marketability of foals from her operation.
Pope, who indicated Aloof will visit War Front again next spring, said the price was nearly double what she expected to pay.
“I thought $2 million, so about twice what I hoped she’d go for,” she said. “But I really wanted this one. Galileo is the best stallion out there, along with Tapit, and being in foal to War Front, you couldn’t ask for more. Plus she was beautiful and leggy, which I think will help the War Front a bit–they tend to be a little plain. I hope she has a pretty War Front. She better!”
Paramount’s Pat Costello agreed with Pope that the price was more than expected. “There were two strong bidders, and both of them loved her,” he said. “She was a queen all week, and we knew she’d sell well. That was a little beyond our expectations, but that’s what the market said she was worth. She’s a big scopey mare, and what she did on the racetrack was a bonus. Plus she’s in foal to War Front, who’s one of the hottest sires in the world.”
Aloof will now head to Timber Town, where she’ll join Pope’s other luminaries. Pope offered an update on her stars, which in addition to Havre de Grace and Betterbetterbetter, included the $4.2 million Plum Pretty (Medaglia d’Oro) and the $3.1 million Groupie Doll (Bowman’s Band).
“Both Havre de Grace and Plum Pretty are in foal to War Front,” she said. “Havre de Grace is carrying a colt and Plum Pretty a filly. Last year, Havre de Grace had a Tapit filly who’s now at my farm [in Florida], and she’s outstanding, as you would expect. Plum Pretty has a very nice [weanling] Distorted Humor colt. Havre de Grace is going back to Tapit. Plum Pretty’s probably going to go back to War Front, but after buying this mare, I may switch things around a little bit, since there’s mare’s definitely going back to War Front.”
Of the two-time GI Breeders’ Cup F/M Sprint heroine, Pope said, “Groupie’s doing great. She’s got a nice shine on her coat, and she’s very happy. I’m glad we did stop on her when we did. She was getting a little arthritis in her knee, which is fairly evident at this point.”
Pope didn’t sign for a horse at Fasig-Tipton November Monday night and was making her first buy at Keeneland.