A Tapit  colt that is a half brother to champion and Lane’s End stallion Honor Code and Rathmor’s Noble Tune sold to Chris Baccari for $1.05 million during the 9 November session of the Keeneland November breeding stock sale, the highest-priced weanling at the time of his selling.

Consigned by Hill ‘n’ Dale Sales, the dark bay colt is out of the top-producing Storm Cat mare, Serena’s Cat, whose offspring have been extemely popular in recent years.

A half sibling to the Tapit colt sold for $2.6 million at last year’s Keeneland November sale with a full sibling bringing a then-North American record weanling price of $3 million at the 2014 exercise.

Given those prior levels, Baccari felt he got one of the steals of the sales in the colt he purchased in the name of his Baccari Bloodstock on behalf of a partnership.

“That’s a very very hard pedigree to get into,” said Baccari, who said the partnership could race the colt or resell him. “I happened to see the colt on the farm ahead of time so I had the ability to see what I was going to get into. He’s just a very special horse. Very hard to find that kind of pedigree with that kind of sire power.

“I just felt like he could have brought a lot of money here,” Baccari continued. “But it’s like anything, he’s a younger foal and he’s been here for several days. When I first saw him he was very sharp and the last two days he was probably a little sluggish for some people. But I remembered what he looked like. That’s why I thought if I have the ability to get him, I’m going to try.”

In addition to Honor Code, the Tapit colt is also a half brother to multiple Graded Stakes winner and Gr1 Breeders Cup placed Noble Tune.

“I think the horse was a great value to the buyer,” said Hill ‘n’ Dale’s John Sikura.

Mares due to foal this year include Gypsy Queen, the dam of American and South African Gr1 winner, Gypsy’s Warning.

– extract bloodhorse.com

Lane’s End, who are standing Noble Tune’s dual Gr1 winning half brother Honor Code at stud for his first season, have purchased Lot 538 from Denali Stud at the September Keeneland Yearling Sale.

The colt is by Speightstown out of a three part-sister to Noble Tune named Night And Day – she recently produced Gr2 With Anticipation winner, Made You Look (by More Than Ready), her first foal to race from two produced.

Speightstown is himself by Gone West out of a Storm Cat mare – Lot 538 is bred on similar lines to that of Noble Tune (out of Storm Cat mare Serena’s Cat), a cross that has produced the likes of American Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, Forever Unbridled, Bodemeister, Shared Belief, Carpe Diem and Close Hatches, to named but a few.

Night And Day is by Unbridled’s Song out of Serena’s Song – the sire of Noble Tune and his mighty third dam.

Another close relative on the sale is a filly as Lot 625, consigned by Hill ‘n Dale as agent. The filly by Violence (by Medaglia ‘d Ora out of  Gone West mare) out of the appropriately named Serena’s Sister by Rahy should attract significant attention at the sale, with Noble Tune’s dam line in demand the world over due to its significant multiple successes at the highest level the world over.

Rizeena is a dual Gr1 winner including the Coronation Cup in England, whilst Puissance De Lune has retired to stud in Australia and not forgetting Noble Tune’s great half-brother by AP Indy, Honor Code – named America’s  in 2015 after winning the Gr1 Whitney, Gr1 Metropolitan Stakes and finishing a courageous third to American Pharoah after coming from last, in the Breeders Cup Classic.

Noble Tune is covering his third season at Rathmor Stud and his second crop of outstanding foals are arriving on farms across KZN, once again showing their outstanding quality and size. Noble Tune’s book this year reflects his outstanding quality in every regard and has repeated the significant support received from outside of the province this year.  In 2015 Noble Tune received 22 mares from the likes of Klawervlei, Mauritzfontein, Gary Player, Lammerskraal and Ascot Stud.

Noble Tune as a racehorse placed second in the Gr1 Breeders Cup Juvenile on Turf, and won the Gr2 American Turf Stakes and Gr3 Pilgrim Stakes.  His weanling half-sister set a world record when she sold for $3million at Keeneland, and a year later their War Front half-brother sold for $2,6million to Coolmore.

Lynton Ryan had reiterated to the guests present at the Rathmor Stallion Day held in July, that “the cream” of the world’s Thoroughbred breeding establishments had all rallied to secure progeny from dam of Noble Tune and grand-daughter of the great Serena’s Song – including the likes of Lane’s End and Coolmore – to which Lynton added “Rathmor Stud is in good company!”

Contact Mike McHardy on 083 447 5315 for further information.

Giant’s Causeway, the sire of Scott Bros’ sire Eightfold Path and the now deceased Await The Dawn from Summerhill Stud, produced the sales topper at Keeneland last night when Take Charge Brandi sold for $6 million. Eightfold Path and Await The Dawn will have their first crop of yearlings on offer in 2016.

Champion Take Charge Brandi became the new Keeneland November breeding stock sale topper when with Hill ‘n’ Dale’s John Sikura signing the ticket. She was consigned by Hill ‘n’ Dale Sales on behalf of owner Willis Horton.

The 3-year-old daughter of Giant’s Causeway was champion 2-year-old filly of 2014 after she won the 14 Hands Winery Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Gr1 for Horton and trainer D. Wayne Lukas.

Lukas and Horton were sitting together at the sale. Lukas said Horton agonized over the decision before opting to sell the filly.

“We’re glad it went the way it did. I had no idea where it’d all end up. She’s special and you just can’t buy that family; it’s a broodmare of the year,” Lukas said. “The horse industry is very good right now.”

Sikura said the price ended up where he expected.

“I thought that mare was a $5 million to $6 million mare,” Sikura said. “She’s a champion, has a unique pedigree, is a beautiful individual, and you saw a weanling filly from the immediate family bring $3.2 million, so it’s a highly coveted family in the marketplace.

“So, top to bottom on any metric of the way you want to measure value, she had it: pedigree, performance, champion, temperament, active family, by the right sire, everything.”

Eightfold Path is a French Gr3 winner of the Prix Eclipse over 1200m. The stallion is producing outstanding foals with great size and substance, as is Await The Dawn whose last crop are being foaled this year – leaving just two crops before his untimely death.

A common denominator amongst the foals from both stallions are their size and substance, with really good bone beneath the knees – a trait from their sire, the “iron horse” Giant’s Causeway, a Champion son of Storm Cat. He is also the sire of a top stallion in Sharmadal.

The first yearlings from Eightfold Path and Await The Dawn will fall under the auction hammer in 2016.

– extract bloodhorse.com

Rathmor Stud’s Noble Tune and his half-brother Honor Code had their weanling half-brother by War Front, Lot423 sell for $2,6million to MV Magnier of Coolmore Stud at the Keeneland November Breeding Stock sale.

Noble Tune’s first foals are on the ground this season and dual Gr1 winner Honor Code, who came from stone last – two lengths off the pack in the Breeders Cup Classic – to finish a courageous third behind American Pharoah.

Honor Code made up the most amount of ground in the fastest time of any other horse in the race, and retired to Lane’s End Farm on Sunday to replace his great sire who is pensioned, A.P. Indy.

The weanling colt’s half-sister by Tapit set a record last year when she sold for $3million.

Noble Tune’s book is full this season. Touted as one of the best stallion prospects to come to South Africa, he has received mares countrywide this season.

His fee was set at R25 000 for a service this season.