KEEJAN Hums Along Despite Lack of ‘Luck’
Updated: July 21, 2015 at 3:05 pm
While the opening session of Keeneland’s January
Horses of All Ages Sale saw headliner Blind Luck (Pollard’s Vision) RNA for $1.4 million, overall trade was relatively steady, with 204 head bringing a total of $12,607,200. The average rose 4.54% to $61,800 from last year’s corresponding mark of $59,116, while the median was unchanged at $35,000. The buy-back rate was 33.11% compared to 23.93% during the first session of the 2014 renewal.
Recently retired Premier Steps (Ire) (Footstepsinthesand {GB}), a stakes winner and Grade III-placed Stateside and graded stakes-placed in both France and England, topped the day’s action at $400,000 from Teruya Yoshida’s Shadai Farm. She was consigned by Craig and Holly Bandoroff’s Denali Stud, Agent II as hip 39.
“It was disappointing we couldn’t get Blind Luck sold, but that is the market and it is what it is,” said Keeneland’s Director of Sales Geoffrey Russell. “The rest of the sale, I thought, went very well. We assumed going in that the broodmare prospects would sell very well and they did and there was highly competitive bidding for them, both domestically and internationally.”
Blind Luck was the first seven-figure RNA at Keeneland January since fellow champion Azeri (Jade Hunter) was bought back for $4.4 million in 2009.
“Mixed sales are very different from yearling sales… They can vary more than anything else,” Russell said of overall trade. “Going into it, we were hoping that it would be like September and November, and I think it is. Anything that has perceived quality is selling very, very well. We’ve got a sophisticated buying bench that is here to buy the right horse. When that horse comes in, there’s plenty of money for them.”
Several of the day’s expected top lots were late outs, but Russell said, “The clients own these horses–they have the right to bring them to the market if they wish to or they don’t. We would much prefer them to be in the sale and sell them, we promoted them that they would be in the catalog to sell but it’s just a fact of life.”
Selling continues today at 10:00 a.m. with the second half of Book 1 (hips 401-804). For complete results, the catalog, or to watch the sale live, visit keeneland.com.