'Mr Magnier and MV were very interested in her from the beginning' - Coolmore stump up sale-record $2m for Zetta Z

The final session of the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Winter Mixed Sale concluded on Tuesday with Coolmore extinguishing a bidding war at $2 million for Zetta Z, dam of top three-year-old colt Nysos. 

Besides that sale-record price, the complete dispersal of Lothenbach Stables also highlighted the two-day sale, bringing two seven-figure mares to the ring.

As for the sale topper, Grovendale Sales consigned the mare as an addendum to the supplement, entering her on Sunday morning after her Nyquist son Nysos put up a scintillating performance in the Grade 3 Robert B Lewis Stakes on Saturday at Santa Anita. 

The colt, campaigned by Baoma Corp and Bob Baffert, is three-for-three and a dual Grade 3 winner following that seven-and-a-half-length romp.

"Pretty strong," Grovendale partner Chance Timm noted on the reception for Zetta Z. "Ones like that, with that kind of an update – everybody saw and recognised it, and Fasig did a great job of making everyone know."

The mare sold in foal to dual Grade 1 winner Cyberknife, and she also has produced the stakes-placed Distorted Humor filly Attabe .

Adrian Wallace of Coolmore said: "We targeted Zetta Z as soon as she was entered into the sale on Sunday. She's a beautiful mare and stood out, being the dam of such a talented young colt with his whole future ahead of him. 

"She was a must-have, and Mr [John] Magnier and MV were very interested in her from the beginning. She's a wonderful mare and in foal to an exciting young sire and hopefully will be a nice addition to Justify's book when the time comes."

Saving the best for last, the 14-year-old Bernardini mare was the final horse through the ring on Tuesday and the third to hit the seven-figure threshold. Coolmore finished as leading buyer of the session and the sale with its single purchase.

"We were hoping we wouldn't have to go so high, but it seemed every time there was a return bid coming back quickly," said Wallace. "She's very well-credentialled and beautiful. She looks like a $2 million mare instead of a $1 million mare."

Timm said: "We are thrilled with the result. It's hard to predict what they can make at that level, but mares like her deserve to make a premium and a number like that because they're scarce."

Two mares from Vinery Sales, agent for the complete dispersal for Lothenbach Stables, climbed to $1.3m and $1m. The higher-priced mare, Bell's The One, was hammered down to agent Catherine Hudson. The hard-knocking Majesticperfection Grade 1-winning mare turned in an impressive record of 13-5-3 in 27 starts and earnings of more than $2m.

The second mare, She Can't Sing, a Grade 3 winner by Bernardini, went the way of Hill 'n' Dale at Xalapa. The broodmare prospect comes from the family of Grade 1 victresses Music Note and Musical Chimes.

Vinery Sales was the leading consignor of session two and the sale overall, with 73 horses sold of its 78-horse draft for receipts of $7,098,500, for an average price of $97,240.

The second session proved strong as the day's top ten horses brought $300,000 or more and were sold to nine different buyers. The session's top five short yearlings were by sires Into Mischief ($650,000), Twirling Candy ($300,000), Gun Runner ($225,000) and Medaglia D'Oro ($190,000 and $160,000).

Fasig-Tipton reported 175 of 196 horses changed hands in Tuesday's session for a $13,756,000 gross, improving 62.9 per cent over the 2023 corresponding session. The average price improved 96.4 per cent to $78,606, but the median of $19,000 dipped five per cent. The 21 horses who failed to attain their reserve represent an RNA rate of 10.7 per cent.

For the two days of selling, 372 of the 433 horses through the ring sold for a turnover of $21,687,000, posting a 53.7 per cent increase over the previous year. A $58,298 average shows an increase of 66.1 per cent and the median rose 13.3 per cent to $17,000. A total of 61 individuals failed to sell to account for a 14.1 per cent RNA rate.

The addition of the Lothenbach Dispersal propelled the sale into new territory and accounted for $8,263,000 of the total gross for the 62 horses sold. This was the first time the February sale saw a horse reach seven figures, and it happened three times. The previous top seller had been Pool Land  in 2013 at $900,000.

Robert Lothenbach spent a lifetime developing his stud book and curating his mares to his liking. The market over the past two days saw through his eyes and liked what it saw.

Fasig-Tipton CEO and president Boyd Browning Jnr said: "It's the reflection of a man who had a programme that raised and raced horses the right way; he gave horses time and used trainers that took care of the horses. 

"He had a long-term perspective and was in it for all the right reasons: He loved racing. That shared passion for racing ultimately fuels everything we do in our industry."

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