by Pete Denk

If morning-line favorite Big Brown wins the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1), he will become the sixth graduate of a two-year-olds in training sale to win the classic.

Previous juvenile sales graduates who won the Kentucky Derby are Monarchos (2001 Kentucky Derby winner), Silver Charm (1997), Thunder Gulch (‘95), Lil E. Tee (‘92), and Sunday Silence (‘89).

This year’s field of 20 horses includes seven contenders who went through the sales ring at a two-year-olds in training sale in 2007—Cool Coal Man, Court Vision, Big Truck, Visionaire, Denis of Cork, Recapturetheglory, and Big Brown.

About 13% of the foal crop of 2005 was offered at a two-year-olds in training sale, yet juvenile sale graduates account for 35% of this year’s Derby field—nearly three times what would be expected.

“The quality of the horses in the two-year-olds sales has increased dramatically over the last decade,” said Geoffrey Russell, director of sales at Keeneland. “They’ve really come of age.”

 Florida Derby (G1) winner Big Brown sold for $190,000 at the 2007 Keeneland April sale of selected two-year-olds in training.

“It’s always exciting when you have a sales graduate running in the greatest two minutes in sports, and it’s extra special when it’s from our two-year-old sale,” Russell said. “It gives the sale a marquee-type of horse.”

Irish-born Eddie Woods, who runs a training center in Ocala, purchased Big Brown for $60,000 from the colt’s breeder Monticule at the 2006 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky fall yearling sale. Woods resold Big Brown at the Keeneland April sale.

“I think due to the education that pinhookers have gotten, we’re buying better horses,” Woods said. “We make money and lose money very quickly. And we’ve figured out that yeah, we need speed, but at the end of the day quality is the name of the game. When the pinhookers are stretching, they’re going for more quality.”

Pete Denk is sales editor of Thoroughbred Times