Fasig-Tipton

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Fasig-Tipton Logo

The Fasig-Tipton Company, Inc. is an auction house for Thoroughbred horses founded in 1898 by William B. Fasig and Edward A. Tipton. It is the oldest Thoroughbred auction house in North America. The company has offices in Lexington, Kentucky, Elkton, Maryland, Saratoga Springs, New York, and Ocala, Florida.

History

Early years

Fasig-Tipton was established in 1898 by William B. Fasig and Edward A. Tipton. From the its original offices in Madison Square Garden, the company sold top class horses of a wide variety, primarily road and driving horses and Standardbred and Thoroughbred racing stock.

Old Glory

1903 "Old Glory" Sale Catalogue

Fasig-Tipton's flagship sale in the early 20th century was referred to as "Old Glory." Held annually in late November or early December, the Old Glory sale offered a "Grand Aggregation of Thoroughbred Stallions, Mares, Racehorses, Yearling, and Weanlings," as well as high quality Standardbred stock suitable for racing and breeding.

Shortly after the Old Glory sale was held in 1907, New York suffered another severe economic downturn in which bank closures threatening the sustainability of the horse sales business. Fasig turned the company over to his assistant, Enoch James Tranter. Tranter brokered a deal with the banks which allowed the young company to survive the financial instability.

Aside from keeping the company afloat in a tumultuous economy, Tranter's most significant impact of the business of horse auctions was the format of the catalogue page. When Tranter took the reins, the page for each horse offered might list up to 30 dams with limited or no produce record, as well as subjective descriptions authorized by individual consignors. Tranter instituted a practice wherein emphasis was placed on the performance and production history of the horse's closest relatives, thereby limiting the page to three to four dams with detailed information about the horse's dam's performance. In conjunction with the redesign of the catalogue, Tranter also insisted on health certificates for all catalogues horses and pregnancy certificates for broodmares offered in foal. Fasig-Tipton was the first horse sales company to require certification on its offerings.

Saratoga

After World War I, Fasig-Tipton established a satellite office in Saratoga Springs, New York. The brand new pavilion was host to the Saratoga Selected Yearling Sale, which was held during the Saratoga race meet beginning in 1917. Over the years, the Saratoga Sale has produced a bevy of champions, including Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, champions Black Tie Affair, Conquistador Cielo, De La Rose, Dearly Precious, Foolish Pleasure, Honest Pleasure, Open Mind, Rubiano, Saint Liam, Sky Beauty, Songbird, Tasso, and Tepin. The sale has also produced classic winners Cavalcade, Colonial Affair, Count Turf, Da' Tara, Flying Ebony, Funny Cide, Gallahadion, High Quest, Kauai King, Monarchos, Nellie Morse, Tonalist, and Union Rags. Saratoga Sale grads have also had great success off the track, as marked by Natalma, dam of influential sire Northern Dancer, three-time leading sire Danzig, and two-time British leading broodmare sire Miswaki.

Humphrey S. Finney Pavilion

Due to cargo limitations imposed on breeders during World War II, the Saratoga Sale was suspended from 1943 through 1945. In 1943, Fasig-Tipton offered selected yearlings in a tent sale at Keeneland Racecourse in Lexington, Kentucky. That sale produced 1945 Kentucky Derby winner Hoop Jr.

The New York Bred Preferred Yearling Sale, offered annually the weekend after the Saratoga Sale, features some of the best Thoroughbreds the state has to offer. 2014 Breeders' Cup and Eclipse Award winner Dayatthespa is a graduate of the New York Bred Sale.

In 1968, the Humphrey S. Finney Sales Pavilion was built, named after a company fixture from the 1930s through the 1960s. In 1959, Fasig-Tipton was honored as the Saratoga Firm of the Year. In 2010, the pavilion and sales grounds were renovated to improve amenities for buyers, sellers, and horses.

Sales held annually in Saratoga include the Saratoga Sale (selected yearlings), the New York Bred Sale (preferred yearlings), and the Saratoga Fall Sale (horses of all ages).

Kentucky

Havre de Grace selling for $10 million at the 2012 Fasig-Tipton November Sale

In 1972, Fasig-Tipton established its now permanent headquarters in Lexington, Kentucky. The Kentucky office operates year-round, offering five sales catering to buyers, sellers, and breeders of all types. Currently, the Kentucky location offers open and selected yearling and mixed sales, as well as a horses of racing age sale.

The Kentucky division was an immediate source of high class racing stock. Graduates of Kentucky sales exhibited success at the highest levels, including 1975 Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew, champions Artax, Big Brown, Blind Luck, Bold Forbes, Dubai Majesty, Epitome, Genuine Risk, Informed Decision, Itsallgreektome, North Sider, Northern Spur, Princess Rooney, Silverbulletday, and Trinniberg. Kentucky sales have also produced classic winners Crème Fraiche, Dancing Brave, Go For Gin, Hoop Jr., Mine That Bird, Rainbow Quest, and Unbridled.

Each November, the November Sale annually produces the highest average price of any breeding stock sale worldwide. The catalogue showcases graded stakes winners fresh off the track, graded stakes winning and/or producing broodmares, and selected weanlings. The November Sale currently holds three world records for horses offered at public auction: top-priced broodmare, Broodmare of the Year Better Than Honour, who sold for $14,000,000 in 2008; top-priced broodmare prospect, champion Havre de Grace, who sold for $10,000,000 in 2012; and top-priced juvenile filly, Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) winner Stardom Bound, who sold for $5,700,000 in 2008.

Sales held annually in Kentucky include the Kentucky Winter Mixed Sale (horses of all ages), the July Sale (selected yearlings), the Summer Selected Horses of Racing Age Sale, the October Sale (Kentucky fall yearlings), and the November Sale (selected weanlings, two-year-olds, racing prospects, and broodmares).

Florida

The Florida Sale, Under Tack Show

Inaugurated in the 1950s, the Florida Two-Year-Olds in Training Sale alternated between Calder Racecourse and Hialeah Park. In 2015, the selected sale moved permanently to Gulfstream Park, taking advantage of the superior amenities and dirt track. The Florida Sale produced the most expensive Thoroughbred ever to sell at public auction, a colt which sold for $16,000,000 in 2006.

Florida Sale graduates include champions Gio Ponti, Left Bank, Lord Avie, Nyquist, Risen Star, Stevie Wonderboy, and Wayward Lass. The sale also produced Breeders' Cup winners Court Vision, Desert Code, and More Than Real and Grade 1 winners Devil May Care, Jersey Girl, November Snow, and Technology, among others.

Maryland

In 1986, Fasig-Tipton established a Midlantic division, based in Timonium, Maryland. The location is ideally suited to supply the many surrounding racing jurisdictions and regional breeding programs with a vibrant marketplace for yearlings, two-year-olds, and breeding stock.

The Midlantic Two-Year-Olds in Training Sale holds the record for most expensive Thoroughbred sold at public auction in Maryland, a filly which sold for $1,250,000 in 2015.

Midlantic sales graduates include champions Declan's Moon, Smoke Glacken, and Xtra Heat, as well as Grade 1 winners Afleet Alex, Informed Decision, Lion Heart, and Mizdirection, among others.

Modern era

In 2008, Fasig-Tipton was purchased by Synergy Investments Ltd., a Dubai-based company headed by Abdulla Al Habbai. The acquisition helped Fasig-Tipton increase its profile internationally, with representatives in Australasia, Europe, and South America. In addition, Fasig-Tipton has modernized its sales facilities in Lexington, Saratoga, and Timonium, as well as made considerable technological upgrades across the board as part of its long-term.

In 2015, Fasig-Tipton added to its legacy when Saratoga Sale graduate American Pharoah became the first horse in 37 years to sweep the Triple Crown. Of the 12 Triple Crown winners, only two have ever been offered at public auction: 2015 winner American Pharoah, sold at the 2013 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale and 1975 Seattle Slew, sold at the 1973 Fasig-Tipton July Sale.