Sequel Bloodstock brings Broman-bred depth to Midlantic sale

Becky Thomas is bringing more than a well-prepared draft to Timonium. Sequel Bloodstock’s Midlantic May consignment arrives with the kind of Broman depth that has helped shape New York breeding for years, and that reputation may matter even more this time because Fasig-Tipton’s under-tack show will be untimed, with breezes neither officially clocked nor published.

The sale opens Monday and runs through Tuesday, May 19, at the Maryland State Fairgrounds, with 593 juveniles catalogued for the 2026 Midlantic May 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale. Fasig-Tipton said the new format is meant to emphasize natural athleticism, restrict whip use and widen the buyer base, which puts a heavier premium on what buyers see on the page, on the body and on the brand behind the horse.

That is where Chester and the late Mary Broman still loom large. The couple, who owned Chestertown Farm in Chestertown, New York, were honored as New York’s leading breeders eight times, most recently in 2022, and their operation continued to produce top-end runners through 2024. Mary Broman died on October 16, 2024, at age 88, after a run of success that helped keep the family near the top of the state standings.

The Bromans have also shown they can command the sale ring. In 2022, Broman-bred Berning Remarks brought $3.55 million at Midlantic, setting a record for a New York-bred juvenile and a Maryland auction record at the time. Last year’s Midlantic May sale added fresh momentum, setting records for gross, average and median and producing multiple seven-figure juveniles for the first time, including a $1.1 million topper.

Sequel’s headliner is Hip 54, a Flightline colt out of Bar of Gold, the Bromans’ highest-earning homebred and the 2017 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint winner. Bar of Gold has earned more than $1.5 million on the track, and Becky Thomas called the colt a big horse with two-turn looks and obvious speed, a profile that fits a market still willing to pay for a pedigree that can stretch from the breeding shed to the stakes stage.

Thomas has worked with Chester Broman for many years from her base near Ocala, Florida, helping with matings and decisions on whether horses go to yearling sales, 2-year-old sales or the races. With progeny from the Bromans’ top two highest-earning homebred mares in the Sequel group, this Timonium consignment is another test of how far a trusted regional breeding program can carry a sale.