Scanlon and King have long been in the thoroughbred industry. Built on a foundation of historic success, Scanlon has followed in the footsteps of his father Robert Scanlon, a great rider whose program set the gold standard by producing the likes of legendary champions Afleet Alex and Bernardini. The elder Scanlon was a respected 2-year-old trainer and pinhooker who broke the then-world record for a 2-year-old sold at public auction in 2005 when he sold a Tale of the Cat colt for $5.2 million at Fasig-Tipton’s Florida Select Juvenile Sale at Calder Race Course.
Scanlon and King have built a premier client base that includes Calumet, Coolmore, Don Alberto and Godolphin. Recent graduates of their program include the 2024 champion 3-year-old colts Sierra Leone And Paladin who currently sits atop the Road to the Kentucky standings with 60 points.
“It’s amazing. It was probably one of the scariest moments of our lives, but probably one of the best moments of our lives,” Scanlon said of the purchase of the Woods plant. “It was definitely a dream. We gained a lot of new customers, and the farm. I can’t say enough about the farm and the work Eddie and Angela have done. I can say it’s one of the best career moves I’ve ever made.”
Around the same time Scanlon secured his new facility, he was busy at Fasig-Tipton’s The Saratoga Sale, where he purchased a striking colt by Practical joke for $350,000. The colt is the second foal of the stakes winning and rated mare Market Rumor.
“He’s a big, strong horse. He was always very striking,” Scanlon said. “We saw it at the Saratoga select sale, and my wife and I always enjoy buying that sale. It slips through the cracks for us, but it’s still actually a lot of money no matter what slips through the cracks for pinhooking.
“We just thought he was so strong and muscular. I love the dad. We were like, ‘Well, let’s give it a shot.’ So while he is a steal at Saratoga’s select sale, he was a challenge for us.”
Hip 143, a colt by Practical Joke, works a furlong in :09 4/5 during the under-tack show for the OBS March Sale
Scanlon’s faith in the colt, designated Hip 143, paid off as he went a furlong in :09 4/5 on the first day of the under-tack show.
“I loved his breeze,” he said. “For a horse that strong, he basically just floated around the track. He looked like he did it effortlessly.”
Demand for quality yearlings has reached an all-time high in recent years, with Keeneland’s 2025 Yearling Sale posting a record $531.7 million in sales in September, the highest gross ever achieved at a thoroughbred auction worldwide.
The higher stakes of this year’s market have caused some concern among some pinhookers entering the 2-year-old sales season.
“When you’re out there in the moment, and you’re in Saratoga, and everyone else is dropping millions, in the atmosphere you’re in, $300,000 doesn’t seem like a lot at the time, but when you’re here, you realize the hoops you have to jump through.
“But at the same time, the strongest part of the market is for high-end horses. It’s a really competitive business these days. Everyone wants a good horse. Sometimes with those high-end horses you have to risk a little bit for the ones you love. I’ve never done well with a horse where I just said, ‘Yeah, let’s just buy him.’ But the ones I think about and really want are the ones I’ve always been good with.”
In addition to Hip 143, Scanlon will deliver four other juveniles on the first day of the sale, including a colt (Hip 114) and a filly (Hip 100), each by Nyquist . They came in: 10 2/5 and : 10 1/5 respectively.
Hip 114 topped last year’s Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Fall Yearling Sale when it sold to Scanlon for $370,000. The Maryland-bred colt is the first foal of stakes-placed Lookin by Lucky mare Lookin Dynamic.
Later that day he sends one Jack Christopher filly (Hip 240) and a filly by the leading first-year sire of 2025 Jaap sent as Hip 269, to the ring.
Hip 240 is out of the Bernardini mare Party of Interest, making her a half-sister to the graded stakes winner Five Star General. The filly from Jack Christopher’s first crop completed a furlong in:10 1/5.
The Yaupon filly, who flew in :10 a furlong, is the first foal of the Practical Joke mare Pretty Paper, a half-sister to the Class 1 placed Next Level. She was purchased by Scanlon for $265,000 at the Fasig-Tipton The July Sale last year.
This year marks the first full season without the Eddie Woods banner at the 2-year-old sale, marking a changing of the guard. The legendary rider capped off a spectacular career last March when he broke the OBS record with a $3 million sale of eventual Del Mar Futurity (G1) winner, Brant .
“It means a ton,” Scanlon said of acquiring the former Woods factory. Eddie was always well represented. I remember working for my dad, just watching Eddie, and I always admired how Eddie handled himself. He was very successful with the horses, but he’s also a great guy. He and Angela have been very supportive. He recommended many of his clients to us. I can’t say enough about how wonderful he and Angela have been to us, and what an icon he has been in the two-year company.
“They’re big shoes to fill, but the legacy he left with that farm has made it a lot easier. When you step into that farm, you see that someone who really knows what it takes and what you need designed it.”
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