by Lisa Groothedde

Prominent owner Jess Jackson’s Stonestreet Stables went to $700,000 to secure the top-priced offering of the 2008 Barretts Equine Ltd. May sale of two-year-olds in training on Tuesday at Hinds Pavilion at Fairplex in Pomona, California.

Jackson purchased the Harlan’s Holiday filly out the unraced Septieme Ciel mare Leading the Way from the consignment of Murray Smith, agent. The bay filly breezed two furlongs in :20.80, the fastest quarter-mile clocking recorded during two under-tack previews held on May 8-9.

The sale topper set a record as the highest-priced filly in the history of the Barretts May sale. Jackson said she would be sent to trainer Steve Asmussen, with whom the 78-year-old native Californian campaigns 2007 Horse of the Year Curlin as majority owner.

From the 328 juveniles originally cataloged for the 2008 auction, Barretts reported 147 horses as sold for total receipts of $7,816,400, a 31% decrease compared with last year’s record total of $11,331,300 from 181 horses sold. Average price dropped 15.1%, from the 2007 record of $62,604 to $53,173. Median dipped 4%, from $25,000 last year to $24,000. The buy-back rate increased from 31.7% in 2007 to 33.5%.

“There was a lot of money for the good horses, but weakness in the middle and lower ends,” said Jerry McMahon, president and general manager of Barretts Equine Ltd. “It was all about individual horses, and the buyers were pretty selective.”

The highest-priced colt of the sale was Much the Best, by Forestry, who worked two furlongs in :21.20. I. A. S. Management purchased Much the Best for $400,000 from the consignment of Excel Bloodstock, agent. The colt is out of the winning Dehere mare Just Fun.

Jackson was the leading buyer at the Barretts May sale with four purchases totaling $1.6-million. In addition to the sale-topping filly, he bought three two-year-olds for $300,000 each—colts by Fusaichi Pegasus and Mr. Greeley and a filly by Lion Heart.

The leading consignor by total sales was the Jerry Bailey Sales Agency, agent, with seven two-year-olds reported as sold for $1,009,000.

For complete results of the 2008 Barretts May sale, click here.

Lisa Groothedde is a California-based Thoroughbred Times correspondent