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| Sumita Pawar |
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The Fasig-Tipton July Selected Horses of Racing Age Sale concluded with impressive outcomes, surpassing the statistics of 2022 and selling three horses for US$500,000 or higher. Among the top sellers was Crypto Mo, the Iowa Oaks Group Three winner, who added a significant half-million dollars to the day's success as the final horse to go through the ring.
"It was a terrific afternoon of sales; the horses of racing age marketplace was dynamite today," Fasig-Tipton's president and CEO Boyd Browning Jr. said. "Buyers, sellers, and officials in attendance today were likely surprised at how robust the market was. The bidding was consistent from start to finish; the first horse through the ring was one of the most vetted horses on the sales grounds, and the final horse through was only entered Sunday morning."
Seizing The Opportunity: Selling Crypto Mo's Victory
Taking advantage of the increased liquidity offered by a sale of this magnitude, the owners of Crypto Mo made the decision on July 8 to capitalize on her victory in the 1 1/16-mile race by selling her.
The chestnut filly by Mohaymen presented herself flawlessly on Monday at the sales venue, with Taylor Made Sales Agency as the consignor. As she entered the sales ring, the bidding quickly escalated to US$500,000, with the managing partners of Hunter Valley Farm emerging as the successful buyers.
"We bought this filly for ourselves and Qatar Racing, she will head to Brad Cox," said Adrian Regan, who runs Hunter Valley Farm with Fergus Galvin. "She won very well Saturday night; she's a filly on the up. She has a beautiful physical and was classy here in the back ring, never turned a hair. She's definitely improving; hopefully, it goes bigger and better on the horizon for her."
After having a limited number of races as a 2YO, she secured her first victory at Prairie Meadows on her second attempt, winning by a comfortable margin of three lengths. In the current year, she competed twice before triumphing in the Panthers Stakes. Following a gap of almost a month, she once again emerged victorious in the Iowa Oaks, showcasing her prowess on her familiar track.
"With this filly, we were trying to stair step her up," trainer and co-owner Travis Murphy said. "We thought she had a lot of speed in her first race and won easily. She had some 2YO aches and pains, so we turned her out and wanted to save her to make a good solid 3YO campaign. We legged her up at Oaklawn and put her in a race, she was passing horses at the end, but I wasn't ready to stretch her out yet. We had the idea to stretch her out in the 1 1/16th, and the rest is history."
At the 2021 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, trainer Murphy purchased the filly from her breeder/consignor Buck Pond Farm for US$20,000. The filly then raced under the ownership of Murphy, Brandon Valentini's Triple V Racing, and Matt Trent. During her career, Crypto Mo was ridden by Murphy's wife Cindy, who achieved her 2,000th win as a jockey while riding the filly.
According to Fasig-Tipton, a total of 142 horses were sold out of the 170 that went through the ring at the July Selected Horses of Racing Age Sale. The gross receipts for the sale amounted to US$13,982,000, which was a 29.3% increase compared to the previous year. The average price of a horse sold was $98,465, representing a 17.5% increase, and the median price was A$62,500, showing a 7.8% increase from last year. Additionally, 28 horses did not meet their reserve price, resulting in an RNA rate of 16.5%.
In the previous year, a total of 159 horses were available for sale during a single session, and out of those, 129 horses were successfully sold, generating a gross amount of US$10,814,000. The average price for a sold horse was US$83,829, while the median price stood at US$58,000. However, there were 30 horses that did not meet their reserve price, resulting in an RNA rate of 18.9%.
"It's been a terrific sale for us tonight, probably our best July sale ever," Brad Weisbord of ELiTE said. "Fasig-Tipton does a great job of getting the buyers here. I want to give a special shout-out to both Chad Brown and Jonathan Thomas because they are great conditioners of racehorses and manage their clients very well."