SANTA ANITA

Although he did not hit any major home runs, Florida consignor John Stephens enjoyed a solid afternoon at the Fasig-Tipton Santa Anita 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale.

After one withdrawal, Stephens Thoroughbreds sold all three juveniles sent through the ring June 5 at Santa Anita Park, topped by a Bodemeister  colt consigned as Hip 98 and purchased by Sand Ridge Stable for $120,000.


Bred in Kentucky by Town & Country Horse Farms, the colt is the first foal out of the Strong Contender mare Miss Da Point, a multiple stakes winner who won 11 races and earned $503,247. He was previously purchased by Pat Madden for $40,000 from Taylor Made Sales Agency's consignment to the Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

Stephens' other six-figure transaction was Hip 23, a Candy Ride  half brother to multiple grade 2 winner and $1.6 million earner Pants On Fire bought by Jerry Caroom for $100,000. Bred in Kentucky by K & G Stables, the colt out of the Cape Town mare Cabo De Noche was purchased by Stephens' business partner Jay McKee for $55,000 from Lane's End's consignment to the Keeneland yearling sale.

Like many consignors, Stephens said he entered a flight of horses in the Santa Anita sale to support Fasig-Tipton's move into The Golden State after Barretts Equine closed and to offer some quality horses for California horsemen.

"I appreciate what Fasig-Tipton is trying to do," said Stephens, who remained in Florida to prepare his consignment for the Ocala Breeders' Sales June 2-Year-Olds in Training and Horses of Racing Age Sale next week, with McKee handling the Santa Anita contingent. "We're all in this together. California is kind of an island, but there are a lot of good horsemen out there. Horses do well when they ship out there. They like the weather."

Stephens said the sale might have been affected by slower presale under tack show workout times due to the deeper cushion on Santa Anita's track that has undergone changes as a result of a rash of fatalities earlier in the race meet.

"I think they made it deeper, so it was a little laboring," Stephens said, noting the surface had minimal impact on his consignment. "Our horses were not speedy horses anyway."

Stephens said he will keep the Santa Anita sale on his calendar, noting buyers should adjust to workout times slower than at other juvenile sales.

"It's just different, but it's hard to change," he said. "Hopefully, horses coming out of this sale will go on to do well."