Fasig-Tipton

John Ortiz had high hopes for Brightwork long before she set foot in his barn. His father, Carlos Ortiz, had broken the daughter of Outwork in Ocala and told him the filly was a standout mentally, taking everything that was asked of her and doing it effortlessly. But what surprised Ortiz, when Brightwork stepped off the van at Keeneland, was how striking the filly was physically as well. "She walked in like she owned the place," Ortiz recalled. "You'd confuse her for a colt early on. She was really stout,...

A memorial service honoring veteran horseman Al Pike will be held at 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 19 at the Fasig-Tipton sales pavilion in Lexington, Kentucky. A reception will follow. Pike, a perennial leading 2-year-old consignor and pinhooker, passed away on July 26, 2025 at the age of 70 after a battle with cancer. Those wishing to speak in memory of Pike at the service are asked to contact Mark Toothaker at 859-421-0151.

5th-BAQ, $85K, Msw, 2yo, 1m, 3:21 p.m. ET. Bred by Summer Wind, PALADIN (Gun Runner) easily was knighted as a top-twelve price during the 2024 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Select Yearling sale when the chestnut was hammered down for $1.9-million. The ownership group of Mrs. John Magnier, Peter Brant, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith, Brook Smith and Jane Lyon, who stayed in for a piece, sent the colt to trainer Chad Brown. Out of unraced Secret Sigh (Tapit), the first-time starter is a half-brother to a colt by Into Mischief--taken home by Case...

Matt Dorman went from zero to 60 when starting his broodmare band with the purchase of 20 mares in 2020, but five years later, the native Marylander is happy to take a long-term approach to building his Determined Stud breeding operation. Dorman made his first in-person trip to the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale last week and came home with eight yearlings--all fillies who, hopefully, will race for the operation before joining the broodmare band. "We really wanted to get some of the sire power that exists in Europe," Dorman said....

The Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Fall Mixed Sale, not to be outdone by its yearling sale counterpart which broke records in August, set its own highwater marks for gross, average, median and top-priced lot Tuesday in upstate New York. During the one-session auction, 133 horses grossed $6,177,500, for an average of $46,447 and a median of $22,000. The average jumped 74.2% from last year's figure of $26,663 and the median rose 46.7% from $15,000 in 2024. With 73 horses reported not sold, the buy-back rate was 35.4%. It was 40.8% a year...

Bidding returns to the Humphrey S. Finney Pavilion in upstate New York for the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Fall Mixed Sale, which begins Tuesday at 10 a.m. A total of 281 horses, including weanlings, broodmares, and broodmare prospects, have been catalogued for the one-session auction. Lili Kobielski saw plenty to be optimistic about as she oversaw her The New Hill Farm consignment at barn seven Monday. "The activity has been wonderful," she said. "We have been non-stop yesterday and today. We've seen some new faces today that I think just got in....

Bidding on Fasig-Tipton's digital platform opened Friday, Oct. 10 and will close Thursday, Oct. 16 at 6 p.m. ET for the Fall Flash Sale, a boutique two-entry auction offering a pair of fillies who have recently won Breeders' Cup prep races, the auction company said in a press release on Friday. The two offerings are: Iron Orchard (Hip 1): Undefeated 2-year-old daughter of Authentic won the GI Frizette Stakes, a Breeders' Cup "Dirt Dozen" race, this past Saturday to stamp herself among the leading contenders for the GI NetJets Breeders'...

Calvin Nguyen always figured that he and his brother Joey Tran had found their once-in-a-lifetime horse right out of the gate. In 1999, they claimed their very first runner for $32,000. Freedom Crest turned that gamble into a 13-race in-the-money streak, climbing his way into graded company and making it to the 2001 Breeders' Cup Classic. But two decades later, a filly who was never supposed to run in their silks has proven that she is worth her weight in silver—literally. The grey Twirling Candy filly named Ag Bullet has...

Steve Venosa's SGV Thoroughbreds, a regular consignor on the 2-year-olds in training sales circuit, made its debut on the digital auction scene and came away with the sale-topper at the Fasig-Tipton October Digital Sale which closed Wednesday. Venosa and partners sold the broodmare Stifled Heiress (Munnings) (hip 242) for $470,000 to Bryant Prentice's Pursuit of Success, LLC. The 9-year-old mare, who sold in foal to Leinster, came into the virtual sales ring with a big update after her 3-year-old son Mad House (Vekoma) won the GII Gallant Bob Stakes at...

References on the subject of time are legion. "Time is of the essence." "A stitch in time saves nine." The Rolling Stones sang in 1974, "And time waits for no one." Speaking of endgames there is, "No amount of money ever bought a second of time"--you can use that Tony Stark nugget if you want. In the world of Thoroughbred auctions, everyone from the consignors to the bidders are always racing against the clock. Of course, there is plenty of innovation out there to assist before a decision needs to...

The Fasig-Tipton October Digital sale closed Wednesday evening with broodmare Stifled Heiress (Munnings) as the topper when she was taken home for $470,000 and 240 horses sold for $4,947,500, according to a press release from the auction company on Wednesday. Offering horses of racing age, racing/broodmare prospects, broodmares, yearlings, and weanlings, the online sale closed over two days with Stifled Heiress (hip 242), who is in foal to Leinster, going to Pursuit of Success LLC from the consignment of SGV Thoroughbreds, agent. The daughter of Munnings is already the dam...

Last year's GI Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan (Goldencents--Ma'am, by Colonel John), who is expected to start next in the Nov. 1 GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile, will begin his stud career next year at Airdrie Stud at an introductory fee of $15,000. In addition to the 2024 Derby, Mystik Dan also won this year's GII Lukas Classic Stakes and GIII Blame Stakes. He was runner-up in last year's GI Preakness Stakes and third in the GI Arkansas Derby, and heads to the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile as one of...