Regional Sales
CAL-BREDS, FASIG-TIPTON, AND LOS AL DESPITE PANDEMIC WOES, FASIG-TIPTON CALIFORNIA YEARLING SALE HAS BRIGHT SPOTS
BY TRACY GANTZ
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Wait a minute—how’s that? Well, Lovingier claimed Lost Bus for $32,000 in 2015 because he remembered how well she had run against My Fiona. Lost Bus went on to win the 2016 Santa Monica Stakes (G2) and was named that season’s Cal-bred champion older female. Following the retirement from racing of My Fiona and Lost Bus, Lovingier bred them both to Stay Tirsty. My Fiona’s yearling colt topped the 2020 sale at $200,000, while Lost Bus’ yearling colt brought the third-highest price of $110,000. It was only one of the many Cal-bred angles to the Oct. 19 sale, which had to switch from Pomona to Los Alamitos because of COVID-19 restrictions. Paul Jones, the all-time champion trainer of Quarter Horse racehorses, is based at Los Alamitos, and he bought a Cal-bred. Te entire catalog was predominantly 32
FASIG-TIPTON PHOTOS
hen My Fiona defeated Lost Bus by only a neck in the 2014 California Toroughbred Breeders’ Association Stakes at Del Mar, it set into motion a series of events. It helped My Fiona win that year’s title as California-bred champion 2-year-old female, urged her owner, Terry Lovingier, to eventually claim Lost Bus, and afected the top prices at the 2020 Fasig-Tipton California fall yearling sale.
A Stay Thirsty colt from the sire’s frst California crop topped the Fasig-Tipton yearling sale at $200,000
Terry Lovingier’s Lovacres Ranch led all other consignors at Fasig-Tipton’s California sale
CALIFORNIA THOROUGHBRED ❙ November 2020 ❙ www.ctba.com
Cal-breds, and every one of the top 10 prices went for Cal-breds. Despite the year’s difculties with COVID-19, the sale grossed $3,735,700 for 166 sold, an average of $22,504. At the inaugural edition last year, 137 grossed $3,667,800 and averaged $26,772. Te buy-back rate was 35.2% compared with 46% last year. Lovingier’s Lovacres consigned the two Stay Tirsty yearlings and led all consignors by gross with 29 sold for $1,119,400. Naseer Fasihuddin of San Diego, the sale’s leading buyer, purchased fve, all from Lovacres, for a total of $420,000. Tree of