By Stefanie Grimm
Coming off of a strong 2024 renewal which saw a record three seven-figure mares go through the ring, the 2025 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Winter Mixed Sale kicks off in a consolidated single session at Newtown Paddocks Monday morning with bidding set to begin at 10 a.m.
414 catalogued hips are on offer including exciting late supplemental adds such as 14-year-old broodmare Athenian Beauty (Corinthian), the dam of this year's GIII Southwest Stakes winner Speed King (Volatile), who sells in foal to Caracaro from the Taylor Made Sales Consignment.
“That's a great thing about this time of year,” said Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning, Jr. “There's always opportunities that emerge. Speed King ran very impressively [in the Southwest] so we were very pleased that the owner, Mr. Bowman, decided to supplement the mare to the sale. She should be a very interesting and attractive offer.”
The Winter Mixed Sale is the last chance for horses to change hands at auction before the breeding season begins and shortens into a jam-packed one-day session this year.
“Last year honestly was a bit of an anomaly with the Lothenbach dispersal,” Browning continued. “This year is a little bit more representative of a catalogue for February. There are some very attractive mares in foal. There are some very nice fillies and mares coming off the track. And the feeling is that we probably have a little higher percentage of short yearlings this year than we've had in the catalogue in year's past, so it's a diverse group. There's really a horse here in the catalogue for every buyer.”
Browning noted the timing of the sale, with additional racing updates coming in daily, presents opportunities for both breeders and those looking to race.
“Whether you're trying to add something to the very top end of your program or you're trying to find something to take to the races, there's a lot of options in this sale,” said Browning. “Clearly a timely update or new activity in the family helps. We're heading into Derby and Oaks season and hope springs eternal with those types of connections. We're seeing more of an emphasis on quality and expect to see that trend continue on.”
Even without the Lothenbach disperal from last year, Browning expects numbers to be similar to what was seen in recent sales.
“I think we'll see [that] the market is very similar to what we've experienced in the last two or three years,” said Browning. “For the top 20% of the horses, the market is going to be really good. There will be very strong competition for what is perceived to be of higher quality. We live in a market that there is certainly some fragmentation and that's going to continue. That's just the reality of the marketplace today.”
Baldwin Bloodstock's Amy Bunt, who brings a consignment of 10 to the Winter Mixed Sale this year, agreed with Browning's assessment of both the market and the opportunity present.
“I love this sale,” said Bunt. “I hope the market's going to be good because it is the last chance to buy [short yearlings] for the pin-hookers. I think people really like to shop this sale. I've had some pretty good success selling here because it's the last opportunity for people to buy babies.”
Cats Inthe Timber | Jim McCue
Bunt brings eight short yearlings to market Monday including several by young sires such as Drain the Clock, Mystic Guide and Epicenter. Her two young mares include racing or broodmare prospect Matters (Kitten's Joy) (hip 40), a 4-year-old out of GISW Byrama (GB) who is also the dam of GI Florida Derby winner Known Agenda. Matters's half-brother sold for $650,000 to John Stewart's Resolute Racing as a yearling at Keeneland in 2023. Bunt also sells the 5-year-old stakes winner Cats Inthe Timber (Honor Code) (hip 238), out a half-sister to GISW True Timber (Mineshaft).
“It's a very physical sale,” Bunt continued. “Everybody is able to look at everything. I would definitely put the emphasis on the physical here. Not that people are more forgiving of pedigree, but it's more of a physical sale. I don't have anything here that I wouldn't put on someone's short list.”
Last year, boosted in part by the aforementioned dispersal of horses from the late Robert Lothenbach, the Winter Mixed Sale saw 372 horses change hands for $21,687,000 with an average of $58,298 and a median of $17,000. As previously mentioned, three mares topped the seven-figure mark led by Coolmore's $2,000,000 purchase of Zetta Z (Bernardini), the dam of undefeated 'TDN Rising Star' Nysos (Nyquist).
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