The Louisiana Thoroughbred Breeders Association's Breeders Sales of Louisiana held its Preferred Yearling Sale Sept. 1 at the Louisiana Equine Sales and Event Center, and the results didn't just meet expectations—they blew past them.
A total of 171 yearlings were cataloged and/or supplemented, with just 11 outs. Of those, 121 yearlings sold for a gross of $2,580,200—an average of $21,324, more than double last year's average of $10,100—and a median of $13,000, well above last year's $4,000 median. Thirty-nine horses failed to meet their reserve.
A dispersal of Mansfield Farms' horses of racing age followed the yearling session, pushing the overall sale gross to $2,776,700—nearly triple last year's total.
"Louisiana's Thoroughbred breeding program is on a trajectory that is climbing quickly," said Roger Heitzman, LTBA secretary/treasurer and Breeders Sales of Louisiana director. "Our breeders have upped their game, and today's sales are proof positive that they are on the right path."
For the first time, Breeders Sales of Louisiana split its annual sale into a live Preferred Yearling Sale in September, to be followed next month by a digital mixed sale. The move to an earlier date paid off immediately: a record number of buyer registrations and credit applications poured in ahead of the sale, keeping consignors busy showing their stock to eager prospective buyers throughout the day.
A Filly Leads The Way
The sale topper was Hip 87, Cyberchase, a chestnut filly from the second crop of Cyberknife , out of Killer Dress. Relentless Racing purchased the filly for $140,000 from the Clear Creek Stud consignment.
The second-highest price of the day also came from the Clear Creek Stud consignment: Hip 59, a filly out of the grade 2 stakes-winning mare Fanticola, by perennial leading Louisiana stallion Star Guitar , went to Brittlyn Stables for $100,000.
Notably, the five highest-priced yearlings of the sale were all fillies. Hip 109 a filly by Strike Power out of the mare Mystic Blue sold to Set-Hut for $97,000 from the Blanchet Farms, agent for Red River Farms consignment; Hip 32 a filly by Early Voting out of the mare Brittney Brat was purchased by Sean Romero for $87,000 from the Scott & Company Farm consignment, and Hip 45 a daughter of Star Guitar out of Clearly Sailing was purchased by Allen Landry and Larry Romero for $77,000 from the Boutte Sales consignment.
Complete results are available on the LTBA website at LouisianaBred.com.
This press release has been edited for content and style by BloodHorse Staff.
