Not This Time colt takes his moment in solid Keeneland session

It was another solid day of trade during the Monday session of the Keeneland September Yearling Sale as buyers continued to vie for future racing prospects with vigor during the eighth day of sales.

With a Not This Time colt named Mardi Gras Time topping the ledger at $320,000, Keeneland reported 255 horses were sold for $11,832,500 at an average of $46,402 and a median of $25,000. There were 33 individuals that sold for six figures on Monday and the RNA rate was 24 per cent.

From 2,812 catalogued in Books 1-4, 1,619 yearlings have been sold for an aggregate $233,556,200. The average price is $144,260 and the median is $80,000. The cumulative RNA rate is 30 per cent.

Buyers and sellers said trading was competitive on Monday - especially for the most desired lots - as consignors seemed to have set reserves that would make it more likely for their offerings to find new homes.

"There are people still competing at these levels and we just hope it continues through the end of the sale," said Bret Jones of Airdrie Stud. "We wish they were bringing more, but they are changing hands."

A Not This Time colt topped the bill at $320,000Credit: Keeneland Photo

Jones said there was significant buying action from buyers inspecting the horses in the back show ring before going into the sales ring, rather than spending a lot of time at the consignors' barn.

"It's been nice to see an active back ring today," Jones said. "Horses you struggled with at the barn are getting moved."

Considering the uncertainty associated with the Covid-19 pandemic, Jones said that the Keeneland auction has held up over the course of eight sessions showed the resiliency of the industry.

"Everybody wants to find that next great horse and that's what drives us all," Jones said.

Pinhooker David McKathan said he had been shut out so far as he prospected for precocious horses that will appeal to two-year-old buyers next year.

"We are vetting 12-13 horses a day and the failure of that is high, like 80 per cent," McKathan said of the percentage of yearlings on his list that do not pass veterinary scrutiny. "Then the outbidding rate of what passes the vet is 100 per cent."

With what he believed would have been a softer market due to the effects of the pandemic on the buyer base or on reserve prices set by breeders, McKathan said he believed that pinhookers like himself would be able to begin buying sooner than Book 4. Monday's session marked the second and final day of Book 4.

"Obviously, the top money is always going to be there for those horses, but I was hoping it would trickle down faster to our wheelhouse, maybe by Book 3, but it still hasn't," he said. "The end-users are still here, and they may be paying even more than they would want to pay. Hopefully, some of the bigger jets are starting to leave (Lexington's airport).

Competition for horses has extended into the second weekCredit: Kirk Schlea (Keeneland Photo)

"But their buying has not been any easier, so they are trickling down to our bread and butter."

If his current buying rate at Keeneland continues, McKathan said he will try his luck at two Fasig-Tipton sales - the Midlantic Fall Yearlings or Kentucky October Yearlings - to fill his orders.

"The October sale is the final yearling sale, so people go in there knowing it's the end of the road. You either sell them or you race them," McKathan said. "People are a little more realistic (with their reserves) at that sale."

One pinhooker having better success was Clovis Crane of Crane Thoroughbreds, who had bought five yearlings midway through the eighth session including a Constitution colt named Sugar Weasel that cost $120,000 on behalf of client Joseph Besecker.

"You just have to be patient and sift through them," Crane said. "We'll see how it turns out in the spring (when offered at two-year-old sales). It's the same-old, same-old, you just have to be careful about what you buy so it will be desirable next year."

Taylor Made Sales Agency was Monday's leading consignor, selling 26 yearlings for $1,304,000 and leads the sale with 176 (from 296 offered) sold for $28,479,500.

The leading buyer on Monday was Woodford Thoroughbreds, which signed the tickets on three horses for $395,000. The sale continues through to Friday.

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