DeBerdt Bullish on Barretts

Kinsley Kisses | Leslie Martin

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Bruno DeBerdt, whose Excel Bloodstock will send eight juveniles through the sales ring at Barretts Wednesday, is among those excited about the company's inaugural March Select Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training at Del Mar. After making its longtime home in Pomona, Barretts relocated to Del Mar, some two hours to the south, last year and conducted its first auction at the oceanside oval with the May Sale of 2-Year-Olds-in-Training.

“I think Del Mar is a great location for a 2-year-old sale,” DeBerdt said. “There was a big learning curve because Barretts had to learn to work with the 22nd Agricultural District [which operates Del Mar Fairgrounds], but a lot of the logistical frustrations we experienced in May of last year have all been worked out. And it's a very good track. The barn is close by and the staff is very good, but more importantly, it's a very safe environment, a very pleasant environment in which to work.”

The Del Mar location will force trainers based at Santa Anita to focus solely on the sale, which will be a benefit, according to DeBerdt.

“I think it works out better, when you have a trainer who is training his horses in Arcadia,” DeBerdt explained. “[In the past he would] drive to Pomona for the afternoon, then he had to run back to his barn. He was more focused on his training stable. But when he or she comes down to Del Mar, they are going to be here for one or two days. So they are going to be focused only on the sale horses.”

He continued, “It's a great catalogue, a good group of horses. There are a lot of trainers looking for horses and this is right in their backyard. There is no reason why they wouldn't show up.”

DeBerdt, whose previous Barretts graduates include Grade I winner Havana (Dunkirk), is very high on his 2016 March consignment. Prepared in Ocala by W.D. North, the octet are owned by DeBerdt in partnership with two longtime clients.

The Excel-consigned hip 120, a daughter of Ghostzapper, received a timely update when her half-sister Kinsley Kisses (Congrats) opened her career with back-to-back impressive victories in Florida. Owned by Cheyenne Stables and trained by Todd Pletcher, Kinsley Kisses earned a 97 Beyer while debuting with a 2 1/4-length victory at Gulfstream in January. She added a seven-length allowance romp as the 1-10 favorite in a Tampa allowance Mar. 13.

“She is a nice, big, good-boned filly,” DeBerdt said of the $100,000 Keeneland September graduate. “When you see her on the end of the shank, she is extremely hard to fault. She has a nice walk. She is very well put-together. She's probably not going to go down there in :10 flat, that's not her. But she has a lovely way of travelling. And I think she is probably going to be better going a little bit further distance. But the two basic ingredients you want in a good racehorse is 1) ability and 2) a good mind. This filly has a great mindset.”

The Excel consignment also includes hip 72, a son of last year's leading freshman sire Uncle Mo out of multiple graded stakes placed Her She Kisses (Dehere). The youngster was purchased for $50,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton October sale.

“We are very excited about the Uncle Mo colt,” DeBerdt said. “The sire couldn't be any hotter. This is a nice colt. He's showing up. He will breeze well–I know that is a bold thing to say before a breeze show because it's always the kiss of death when you say something like that, but I've got a lot of confidence in that colt.”

Also receiving rave reviews from the consignor is hip 33, a filly from the first crop of GI Florida Derby winner Dialed In (Mineshaft).

“She has turned out to be a lovely filly and has a lot of ability,” DeBerdt said of the juvenile, who is out of Fall Fantasy (Menifee).

The juvenile sales have already produced strong results at the Fasig-Tipton Florida Sale and at the OBS March Sale. DeBerdt thinks Barretts will continue the trend.

“I think we've got a great group of horses on the grounds,” he said. “I've watched horses prep and there are a lot of good horses here. Barretts did a good job and they got the horses. I think it's very important that we have a presence in California. We have some of the top racing here on the West Coast and there is no reason that we shouldn't have a good product to offer to these trainers here. Too many good horses have come out of Barretts for it to be discounted.”

The training preview for the Barretts March sale will get underway Monday at 10 a.m. (PT). The sale commences 2 p.m. (PT) Wednesday.

 

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