Don’t Tell Sophia one smart bargain

HOT SPRINGS - Although she’s all ears, Don’t Tell Sophia must not have heard her sales price.

Purchased for only $1,000 as a yearling, Don’t Tell Sophia has emerged as the most dominant horse at this year’s Oaklawn Park meeting heading into the biggest race of her career, Saturday’s $150,000 Grade III Azeri Stakes for older fillies and mares.

“I never pay much for them anyway,” said Phil Sims, who trains and co-owns Don’t TellSophia. “I don’t go on price, I go by just individuals. We look at the individuals, then go to the pedigree after that.”

Sims still called his purchase of Don’t Tell Sophia at the 2009 Keeneland September Yearling Sale “dumb luck.”

Don’t Tell Sophia, a physically imposing 5-year-old daughter of Congaree, originally belonged to the internationally prominent Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum (Darley Stable) following his 2008 purchase of Stonerside, a massive racingand breeding operation headquartered in central Kentucky, Sims said.

Don’t Tell Sophia was bred by Stonerside, whose founder, Houston Texans owner Bob McNair, campaigned Congaree.

Sims said when Darley bought the farm, many horses were part of the sale, including Don’t Tell Sophia. But Sims said Don’t Tell Sophia didn’t possess a pedigree to Sheikh Mohammed’s liking, so she was entered in the 2009 Keeneland September Yearling Sale without a reserve.

Sims made the only bid.

“I surely thought she would bring in the $20,000 range,” Sims said.

Instead, Don’t Tell Sophia was among 69 horses who sold for a sales-low $1,000 each.

“There’s just a lot of luck involved,” Sims said. “Buying yearlings, you never know what they’re going to turn out to be. You just hope. It’s a numbers game. I would rather buy 20 for $50,000 apiece as to buy one for $1 million.”

At the other end of Keeneland’s 2009 September yearling market was Storm ’n Indian, the $2,050,000 sale-topping son of Storm Cat who couldn’t break his maiden in two lifetime starts and earned $8,940.

Of the top 10 highest-priced graduates that year, ranging in price from $2.05 million to $775,000, two horses never raced and three others have failed to break their maidens. None has earned more than $170,000.

Don’t Tell Sophia has bankrolled $243,606 off six victories from 12 lifetime starts.

She has blossomed this winter, scoring record-breaking victories in the $75,000 Pippin Stakes on Jan. 19 (7¼ lengths) and the $100,000 Bayakoa Stakes on Feb. 16 (6½ lengths).

Don’t Tell Sophia is unbeaten in four lifetime starts on dirt.

Blame it on the ears.

Sims said Don’t Tell Sophia’s ears are larger than normal, which is an “old-school” sign of intelligence.

“I love those fillies with big, floppy ears,” Sims said. “I always try to get horses with floppy ears. Most good horses have big ears. Remember, Zenyatta had big ears. Rachel Alexandra had big ears.”

Don’t Tell Sophia will be facing her toughest career test in the 1 1/16-mile Azeri, the final major local prep for the $500,000 Grade I Apple Blossom Handicap on April 12.

The projected seven-horse lineup includes champion My Miss Aurelia, defending Azeri winner Tiz Miz Sue, multiple stakes winner She’s All In, and Songs and Sonnets, an eightlength winner of her only career start on dirt.

My Miss Aurelia was purchased for $550,000 at the 2010 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

But don’t tell Sophia.

“It’s going to take a horse to beat Don’t Tell Sophia - if she keeps running like she’s running,” Tiz Miz Sue’s trainer, Steve Hobby, said after the Bayakoa. “I mean, she’s a monster right now. No shame in getting beat by her.”