Son of Medaglia D'Oro tops first September Yearling Sale session

Boosted by a broad-based international buying bench and the appeal of top-caliber sires Medaglia D'Oro, Tapit, and War Front, the marathon Keeneland September Yearling Sale had a solid opening on Monday.

For the session, which was trimmed slightly in size from a year ago, Keeneland reported 108 horses sold for $34,531,000, compared with the $44,642,000 paid for 150 head during the 2015 opener. The average of $319,731 represented a seven per cent gain over the day one figure of $297,163 last year; the median of $267,500 was up slightly from the $265,000 in 2015.

The 60 horses that did not sell represented an RNA rate of 36 per cent, compared with 31 per cent last year. There was one seven-figure yearling this year, one less than on day one last year. There were 25 horses sold in the $500,000-$999,999 range, up from 19 in 2015.