(Keeneland / Photos by Coady Media)
From the Keeneland Media Team / Amy Owens:
Keeneland catalogues 4,396 horses for 81st September Yearling Sale
Online catalogue for 12 sessions starting September 9th now available
LEXINGTON, KY (August 6, 2024) – Keeneland’s September Yearling Sale, internationally recognized as a source for Thoroughbreds that excel in the sport’s premier races, has catalogued 4,396 horses to be offered in 12 sessions Monday, September 9 through Saturday, September 21. Click here for the online catalogue, which includes walking videos of yearlings and links to the websites of consignors participating in the 81.st Issue of the auction.
The printed catalogs are expected to be mailed around August 16th.
“This time of year energizes Keeneland and our entire industry as we prepare to showcase an outstanding collection of quality yearlings and welcome many local and international horse owners to Lexington to participate in a vibrant market like no other,” said Shannon Arvin, Keeneland President and CEO. “With some of the best results in recent years and an established track record of successful graduates, the September Sale is an absolute must for buyers and sellers from around the world.”
The format of the September sale remains unchanged
For the fourth year in a row, the format of the September sale remains unchanged:
Week 1
1. Book – Monday-Tuesday, September 9-10. Sessions begin at 1:00 p.m. ET.
The daily catalogue contains 176 yearlings each.
2. Book – Wednesday-Thursday, 11-12 September. Meetings begin at 11am
Wednesday’s catalogue includes 380 horses, while Thursday’s catalogue includes 372 horses.
Dark day – Friday, September 13. There will be no sale.
Week 2
3. Title – Saturday-Sunday, 14-15 September. Meetings begin at 10am
A total of 838 yearlings will be catalogued over the two days.
4. Title – Monday-Tuesday, 16-17 September. Meetings begin at 10am
A total of 839 yearlings will be catalogued over the two days.
5. Title – Wednesday-Thursday, 18-19 September. Meetings begin at 10am
A total of 826 yearlings will be catalogued over the two days.
6. Title – Friday-Saturday, 20-21 September. Meetings begin at 10am
A total of 789 yearlings will be catalogued over the two days.
Keeneland will be livestreaming the entire September sale on Keeneland.com. As always, you can bid online or by phone.
Total sale offers opportunities
During 12 dynamic days, the September Sale offers unprecedented access to a diverse catalog of exceptional prospects.
“The September Sale spans two weeks and six books and is suitable for buyers of all levels. Each session will feature yearlings in a variety of price ranges,” said Tony Lacy, Keeneland’s vice president of sales. “As the quality of entries continues to rise, so does the competition. Shopping the lot from Book 1 to Book 6 gives buyers the opportunity to find everything on their shortlist and more. Last year, we were thrilled to see celebrity buyers signing tickets not only on the first day of the sale, but through the last day.”
Another indication of the strong market for later books in 2023 was that the most expensive yearlings of Session 8 and Session 12 each achieved record prices for their respective sessions.
Again this year, over 1,000 yearlings were catalogued in Books 1 and 2 during the first four days of the sale, judged to be the best individual horses in the sale based on conformation and lineage factors such as family sales history, mare lineage and sire strength. This placement allows major domestic and international buyers to inspect the greatest possible number of exceptional horses before the “black day” of Friday, September 13, when no sale takes place.
The 2024 Class 1 winners who participated in the September auction include horses from Book 1 Arthur’s Ride (Whitney), Leslie’s Rose(Ashland Central Bank) and New gate (Santa Anita Handicap presented by Yaamava’ Resort & Casino) and representative of Book 2 Dornoch (Belmont presented by NYRA Bets and NYRA Bets Haskell) and Randomized (Ogden Phipps, presented by Ford).
This year’s September sale produced the following additional Class/Group 1 winners: Vahva (Derby City Distaff presented by Kendall-Jackson Winery) from Book 3; Courage (Arkansas Derby) from Book 4; Today (Frank E. Kilroe Mile) and Kabir Khan(Al Maktoum Challenge), both from Book 5; and Tuz (Dubai Golden Shaheen sponsored by Nakheel) from Book 6.
As of August 4, this year’s September Auction graduates have won 210 races worldwide, including notable victories in North America as well as in England, Ireland, France, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea and the United Arab Emirates.
At Del Mar and Saratoga – two major summer meets that draw the attention of the entire industry – the September Sale graduates recorded 11 stakes victories.
The winners of the Del Mar Stakes are Dr. Venkman (San Diego G2), Iscreammuscream (San Clemente-G2), Ag Bullet (Osunitas),Impressive man (Caesars Sportsbook Oceanside) and Miss Justify (Wilton), while the winners of the Saratoga Stakes were the aforementioned Arthur’s Ride and Movie star (Lure), Clean (National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame-G2), Jump(Lake George-G3), Raging sea (Shuvee-G3) and Unsurpassed wisdom (Curlin).
The catalogue contains the world’s leading sires
The yearlings in the September sale catalogue represent 187 of the world’s best known and up-and-coming stallions, including American Pharoah, Authentic, Blame, Blue Point (IRE), Bolt d’Oro, Candy Ride (ARG), City of Light, Complexity, Constitution, Curlin, Dubawi (IRE), Flatter, Ghostzapper, Girvin, Good Magic, Gun Runner, Hard Spun, Into Mischief, Invincible Spirit (IRE), Justify, Kingman (GB), Kitten’s Joy, Liam’s Map, Maclean’s Music, McKinzie, Medaglia d’Oro, More Than Ready, Munnings, Night of Thunder (IRE), No Nay Never, Not This Time, Nyquist, Oscar Performance, Practical Joke, Quality Road, Speightstown, Street Sense, Tapit, Tiz the Law, Twirling Candy, Uncle Mo, Upstart, Vekoma, Violence, War Front and Wootton Bassett (GB).
Horse of the Year Knicks Go, Champion Essential Quality and Grade 1 winners Charlatan, Maxfield and Yaupon are among the stallions represented in the catalogue with their first yearlings. Other exciting young stallions with their first yearlings for sale include Basin, Beau Liam, Independence Hall, Known Agenda, Lexitonian, Modernist, Raging Bull (FR), Rock Your World, Silver State and Tacitus.
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Since its first horse race 88 years ago, the Keeneland Association has been committed to the health and vibrancy of the Thoroughbred industry. As the world’s largest Thoroughbred auction house, Keeneland conducts six auctions annually, in January, April, September, October and November. Graduates of Keeneland sales dominate horse racing around the world at every level. In April and October, Keeneland offers some of the highest-profile and most lucrative Thoroughbred racing in the world. Keeneland hosted the Breeders’ Cup World Championships in 2015, 2020 and 2022. Keeneland is a uniquely structured, privately held company with a charitable mission that returns its profits to the industry and community in the form of increased prize money and millions of dollars donated to support horse industry initiatives and charitable contributions to education, research, and health and social services throughout Central Kentucky. Keeneland also maintains the Keeneland Library, a world-renowned public research facility dedicated to preserving information about the Thoroughbred industry. For more information, visit Keeneland.com.
