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Today at 1:00 pm, the Lexington Selected Yearling Sale will resume at the Fasig-Tipton Sales Pavillion, with hip numbers 131 through 364 passing through the harness racing sales ring.
You can stay up to date with all the coverage throughout the weeklong sale right here at Harnesslink with regular updates and results live as they happen.
SALE LIVESTREAM
Here is how the weeks selling schedule will!
- Monday 30th September, Day One: Hip #1 – 117 | 7PM
- Tuesday 1st October, Day Two: Hip #131 – 364 | 1PM
- Wednesday 2nd October, Day Three: Hip #367 – 588 | 1PM
- Thursday 3rd October, Day Four: Hip# 598 – 801 | 1PM
- Friday 4th October, Day Five: Hip# 805 – 946 | 7PM
You can view the full sales catalog by clicking here!
Day One Coverage
The 2023 Lexington Selected Yearling Sale concluded by establishing and incredible 12 new records and remarkably a gross sale figure of near $68 million.
There was a 19% increase in the number of six figure purchases with 233 yearlings each priced over $100,000, reflecting a significant buying bench and demand for quality stock. Despite 63 more yearlings being sold compared to 2022, there was a marginal dip in the average sale price of around 3% with the final figure being $71,566.
Will the 2024 edition raise the bar yet again?
This year will see the first offerings from sires such as Captain Corey, Calgary Games and Perfect Sting while stablished stars such as Bettor’s Delight and Muscle Hill are well represented also.
There is a smattering of new French blood available in the trotting market also with yearlings by Fabolous Wood and Face Time Bourbon while the superstars Love You and Ready Cash will see a few of their own strut their stuff on American soil as well.
Be sure to check in regularly for updates as we share with you the greatest week of selling in the sport of harness racing.
Highlights
In total, 117 yearlings went through the ring on opening night for total sales of $30,127,027 ($22,294,000 USD) with an average ticket price of $257,496 ($190,547 USD). Seventy-three colts sold with an average bid of $228,916 ($169,398 USD) while 44 fillies sold with average price of $300,338 ($222,250 USD).
Last year’s sale had 121 yearlings go through the ring on opening night for total sales of $22,222,000 USD and an average sales price of $183,653 USD. This year’s gross was at a 0.32 per cent increase while the average was up 3.75 per cent.
Monday also included the sale of the highest priced filly ever sold at a standardbred auction with the first foal of champion mare Romona Hill!
Highest priced yearling filly ever sold at Lexington
Debutant Perfect Sting kicked off his maiden yearling sales with a bang by siring the highest priced pacing colt of the session. He was purchased for $460,000 by Joe Holloway, who trained two-time Dan Patch Award-winner Perfect Sting during his racing career.
“It was just a little bit higher (than I wanted). He has a great pedigree, and he was a great-looking animal,” said Holloway, who noted he’d gone to see the horse many times over the past several months.
Walner led trotting sires in gross with 27 horses selling for $6.27 million. Tactical Landing led in average with $281,667 for three yearlings. Walner was second among stallions with more than one yearling sold, coming in at $232,481.
Captaintreacherous led pacing sires in gross with nine horses going for $1.66 million. Perfect Sting was second with seven horses going for $1.54 million. Downbytheseaside led in average with $221,250 for four yearlings. Perfect Sting was second at $220,714.
Day Two Coverage
Highlights
The second session on Tuesday reached a record-breaking average of $97,678, contributing to a new all-time high two-day average of $129,625.
New records were set for average sale prices, both for the second session ($97,678) and over the first two days ($129,625). The second session average saw a slight increase of 0.4 percent from the previous record of $97,247 set in 2023, while the two-day average rose 2.3 percent from the prior record of $126,289, also set in 2023.
So far, the sale has generated $44,467,000, reflecting a 2.2 percent drop compared to last year’s all-time high of $45,464,000. This year, 16 fewer yearlings have been sold in the first two days. The two-day median stands at $90,000, a decline from last year’s $100,000. To date, 154 yearlings have sold for $100,000 or more, down from the record 197 during the same period last year.
The duo of trainer Andrew Harris and owner Bill Pollock maintained their impressive momentum on Day 2, spending $1.44 million to purchase five more yearlings. Over the course of two days, they’ve invested $5,115,000 to acquire 15 yearlings.
On Tuesday (Day Two) Harris and Pollock secured the session-topper, Hip #267 Naughty Beauty (Filly, Bettor’s Delight – Beautyonthebeach), for $550,000 from Hunterton.
$550,000 Bettor’s Delight filly tops Lexington sale session
They also secured, Hip #149 Che Bella, a Bar Hopping filly out of New Wave, for $400,000 from Kentuckiana. She was the 3rd highest priced sale of day two.
Through two sessions, Walner led trotting sires in gross with 42 horses selling for $8.32 million. Bar Hopping led in average with $228,667 for six yearlings. Walner was second among stallions with more than one yearling sold, coming in at $198,262.
Captaintreacherous led pacing sires in gross with 26 horses going for $2.97 million. First-crop sire Perfect Sting was second with 19 horses going for $2.37 million. Bettor’s Delight led in average with $197,500 for four yearlings. Downbytheseaside was next with $149,727 for 11 yearlings.
The third session of the five-day sale begins at 1 p.m. Wednesday (Oct. 2).
Day Three Coverage
Trotting fillies, led by Storybook Love, dominated the third session of the 2024 Lexington Selected Yearling Sale, held on Wednesday afternoon, October 2, at the Fasig-Tipton Sales Pavilion in Lexington, Kentucky.
Storybook Love, listed as Hip 514, fetched $210,000 and was purchased by Bax Stable, representing Al Libfeld of Campbellville, Ontario. The filly, consigned by Kentuckiana Farms, is by Chapter Seven out of Stirling Debutant and is a half-sister to Indiana stakes winners Shirley Goodness ($394,945, 1:53s) and Simply Right ($124,351, 1:57s).
Other top-selling yearlings of the day included trotting fillies Hustle N Bustle and Cork And Carry, each sold for $175,000, also from the Kentuckiana consignment.
Session three generated $10,705,000 in total sales from 219 yearlings, averaging $48,881 per horse, which marked a decrease from last year’s average of $52,717.
Altogether, the three sessions have brought in $55,172,000 from 563 yearlings, with an average price of $97,996, down from the 2023 total of $58,485,000.
The sale will continue on Thursday at 1 p.m. and conclude on Friday at 7 p.m.
Day Four Coverage
On Thursday, 208 horses were sold for a total of $5.86 million, averaging $28,216 each. In comparison, last year’s fourth session also featured 208 horses, with a gross of $4.97 million and an average price of $23,913.
So far, 771 horses have been sold this year, bringing in a total of $61.04 million. For the same period in 2023, the gross was $63.45 million for 815 horses, while in 2022, it was $60.44 million for 748 horses.
This year’s average price over four days is $79,171, marking the second-highest in history, just behind 2022’s record of $80,802. Last year’s four-day average was $77,864.
The top seller on Thursday was The Goose Princess (Muscle Mass), the only horse to reach six figures.
Burningforyourlove, a trotting filly sired by Bar Hopping out of Beltane Hanover, was sold for $95,000 to Preferred Equine Marketing as agent. Two horses followed closely at $90,000: the pacing colt Over Bet and the trotting filly New Orleans.
Over Bet, a son of Bettor’s Delight and Sadayo Hanover, was purchased by Anthony Beaton as agent. His family includes millionaire Sassa Hanover. He was consigned by Spring Haven Farm and bred by Doug Millard Farms, and is Ontario eligible.
New Orleans, sired by Muscle Hill and out of Nepentha, was bought by Tommy Bo Andersson. She is a half-sister to Grand Circuit winner and Kentucky Sire Stakes champion Beads, and her family also includes Dan Patch Award winner Almost An Angel. She was consigned by Hunterton Sales Agency and bred by Atlantic Trot Inc. and Steve Stewart. New Orleans is eligible for both New Jersey and Kentucky racing.
The sale concludes with the fifth and final session starting at 7 p.m. on Friday, October 4.
