A War Front colt from the female family of Will's Way and Willa On the Move was bought by Coolmore Stud interests Sept. 12 for $2.5 million to become the new sale topper at the Keeneland September yearling sale.
Consigned as Hip 712 by Peter O'Callaghan's Woods Edge Farm as agent and sold during the sale's fourth session, the colt was bred by Fred W. Hertrich III and John B. Fielding.
"When you've got Coolmore and the Arab outfits, whether it be Sheikh Hamdan or Sheikh Mohammed or the Qatari outfits, really eager to buy your horse, you know anything is possible," O'Callaghan said. "Our reserve was, like $350,000 or something. We knew he'd make a lot of money, but we always reserve them sensibly, because we have to sell them."
Hertrich had purchased the colt's dam, stakes-placed Blading Gold Ring (by During), while she was carrying the expensive colt for $165,000 from the Elm Tree Farm consignment to the 2011 Keeneland November breeding stock sale.
Sweet Willa, the colt's fourth dam, is a sister to grade I winner Willa On the Move and a half sister to grade I winner Will's Way.
Woods Edge struck again late in the day when a Tapit filly from its consignment sold for $1 million to Shadwell Estate. Out of the Tabasco Cat mare Evrobi, the filly is a full sister to grade I-winning filly Tell a Kelly.
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