Midnight Storm Colt Tops OBS October Selected Yearlings

A colt by freshman sire Midnight Storm   topped the Oct. 12 selected yearlings session, the first day of the Ocala Breeders' Sales October Yearling Sale, going for $170,000 to Elusive Thoroughbreds.

Consigned as Hip 67 by Abbie Road Farm (Lisa McGreevy) as agent, the Pennsylvania-bred colt is out of the stakes-winning Unbridled Energy  mare Sterling Madame . She has produced two winners from two starters in Sterling Miss (Mutadda ) and She's Dancing (War Dancer  ), a 3-year-old filly who broke her maiden in August at Delaware Park.

Bred by Mary Katherine Haire, the colt initially went through the Taylor Made Sales Agency consignment at the 2020 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale, selling for $27,000 to Alejandro Chavez.

Sterling Madame is a half sister to the dam of Mocito Rojo , a multiple grade 3 winner and an earner of $884,063. Hip 67's third dam, La Madame , was champion 2-year-old filly and a group 1 winner in her native Chile. Stateside on the Santa Anita Park turf, La Madame was second in the Las Cienegas Handicap (G3T) and third in the Santa Ana Handicap (G2T).

The session topper was one of three purchases by Elusive Thoroughbreds Tuesday. Elusive's first purchase came early with Hip 4, a son of Florida stallion Khozan   out of the Wildcat Heir  mare, Karen's Wildcat. The colt sold for $125,000, the co-second top price of the day. The dam has produced four winners from four runners and has a 2-year-old son of Khozan named Kozy's Wildcat with recent published works at Delaware Park. The bay colt was consigned by Beth Bayer, agent, and bred in Florida by Stonehedge. Originally the colt was sold by Summerfield at this year's OBS Winter Mixed Sale, selling for $22,000 to Larry Mejias.

Elusive also went to $28,000 for Hip 62, a filly from the first crop of Tunwoo consigned by Stuart Morris, agent. Bred in Florida by Tanma Corp., the filly is out of the Drewman mare Soiree Stunner. Elusive spent a total of $323,000 for the trio of yearlings.

Also selling for $125,000 Tuesday was Hip 121, a colt consigned by Francis and Barbara Vanlangendonck's Summerfield, agent, and bought by Finisterre Racing. The son of Kantharos   was bred in Florida by Rustlewood Farm out of the Holy Bull mare Gospel Girl, the dam of 2019 Fall Highweight Handicap (G3) winner Happy Farm . The stake-winning second dam, Blue Begonia, is a full sister to grade 2 scorer Biding Time .

Nine yearlings were purchased for six figures in this year's selected session, compared to seven in 2020.

Showing marked improvement from last year when the sales calendars and results were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions, the selected yearling sale saw 99 of the 134 hips offered sell through the ring for a total of $4,498,500, compared with 86 yearlings bringing $3,397,000 a year ago. The average price was $45,439, compared with $39,500 last year, while the median price was $32,000, compared with $28,000 in 2020. The buyback percentage for the 35 yearlings that failed to meet their reserve was 26.1%; it was 36.3% a year ago. 

The OBS October sale concludes Wednesday with the open yearlings portion of the auction (Hips 201-598, including supplemental entries), beginning at 11:00 a.m. ET.