Nyquist Filly Tops First-Crop Weanlings at $260,000

The November Sale at Fasig-Tipton gave the commercial market its initial look Nov. 4 at the first weanlings by sires that entered stud in 2017.

Only four of those sires were represented by two or more offered—Ashford Stud's Air Force Blue , Spendthrift Farm's Brody's Cause , and Darley's Frosted  and Nyquist . 

In this limited offering, Nyquist took center stage with two sold for an average of $195,000, and his top weanling bringing the highest price among the first-year foals at $260,000. Dr. Christoph Berglar bred the top-selling filly under the name of Narola and offered her through his Stonereath Stud consignment. Out of the Malibu Moon  stakes winner Martha's Moon, the filly consigned as Hip 111 was bought by agents Jason Litt and Alex Solis II. Martha's Moon is out of multiple group winner Smolensk (by Danzig), making her a half sister to grade 1-placed, graded stakes winner Can the Man . The filly's third dam is Blush With Pride, the granddam of champion Rags to Riches.

Nyquist's second weanling, also a filly and offered as Hip 112, was consigned by Valkyre Stud, agent, and sold to Beryl Stokes Jr. for $130,000. Bred by Madeline Auerbach and Barry Abrams, the filly is out of the unraced Unusual Heat mare Miracle Heat, who is a full sister to grade 1 winners Unusual Suspect and Golden Doc A.

Eight of the 17 first-crop weanlings offered brought six-figure prices.

Weanlings by Frosted and Taylor Made Stallions' two-time Horse of the Year California Chrome  brought the night's second-highest price among first-crop foals at $160,000. 

Alfred Nuckols Jr.'s Hurstland Farm offered the Frosted colt (Hip 88), which was bred by Brant Laue, and sold him in a private sale to Peter Pugh, agent for Cherry Knoll Farm. The colt is out of the graded stakes-winning Pleasant Tap mare Glorious View. Taylor Made consigned the California Chrome filly (Hip 20) that TB Thoroughbreds bought. The filly was bred in Kentucky by Springland Farm and Prime Bloodstock.

Among the first-year covering sire ranks, four sires represented the entering-year crop of 2018—Three Chimney's Gun Runner ,  Juddmonte Farms' Arrogate , Ashford's Cupid , and Claiborne Farm's Mastery .

Gun Runner, last's year Horse of the Year, was represented by three sold of three in-foal mares offered. The mares averaged $501,667, with the Tiz Wonderful mare Quezon (Hip 127) commanding Gun Runner's highest price as covering sire of $700,000. Quezon, a graded-placed stakes winner, is carrying her first foal. She was offered by Valkyre Stud, agent, and bought by Bridlewood Farm.

Arrogate was represented by three in-foal mares cataloged, but only one sold. The winning Salt Lake mare Maggie McGowan (Hip 221), the dam of grade 1 winner Denman's Call, was sold for $775,000 by Taylor Made Sales Agency to SF Bloodstock.

Mastery, with one mare cataloged and sold, was represented by the highest price among first-year covering sires. Gainesway, agent, consigned the winning Henny Hughes mare Drumette, who is the dam of multiple grade 1 winner and Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) winner Monomoy Girl. The mare sold for $1.85 million to Bridlewood.