The strength of the market carried through the end of Book 4, with a colt (Hip 2469) by leading freshman sire Yaupon topping the Sept. 16 session of Keeneland's September Yearling Sale, selling for $560,000 to Mike McCarty.
The colt was bred by Tom Hinkle, Henry Hinkle, and Robert Kessinger, and consigned by Hinkle Farms. He is the third foal of the young Mineshaft mare Media Circus, who is a half sister to the multiple graded stakes placed West Omaha.
"He was a lovely-moving horse; a lot of good judges of horses liked him a lot," said Tom Hinkle of Hinkle Farms. "We couldn't have asked for him to get a better opportunity than going to (trainer) Steve Asmussen.
"We're delighted. Our team on the farm, and Anne Archer, did a great job of raising him and getting him ready up to the sale."
Yaupon stood the 2025 season at Spendthrift Farm for an advertised fee of $25,000. He finished the eighth session second on the sire's list, with 11 horses selling for a total of $1,576,000. Yaupon's highest earner to date on the racetrack is back-to-back stakes winner Sassy C W.
"Yaupon's been great," Hinkle said. "Steve (Asmussen) trained Yaupon, so it makes a lot of sense for him to have this one (Hip 2469) in his barn. The Yaupons are getting it done on the track, and I would expect them to continue. He's by Uncle Mo, and Uncle Mo is a breed-shaping stallion.
Hinkle said they didn't go up to the ring expecting the colt to bring $560,000, but noted the demand has been strong for horses that have good physicals and meet the criteria of the market.
"We liked him (Hip 2469) a lot, and thought he would be well-received," Hinkle said. "You don't expect to sell a Book 4 horse for over half a million dollars, but the market's really strong.
"He had a good mind, a good physical, a good vet report. Throw all those things together, and sometimes you get lightning in a bottle."
The highest-priced filly of the session was Hip 2597, a daughter of Airdrie Stud's Girvin , who sold for $535,000 to Winter Creek Stables. The filly was a $65,000 purchase by Mauro Lucas and Nathan McCauley, who signed under the name Guatemalan Hermanos at Fasig-Tipton's February Winter Mixed Sale.
Bred in Kentucky by Mulholland Springs, Hip 2597 comes from a strong female family. The filly is out of the stakes-placed and graded stakes-producing mare Stormandaprayer, who is the daughter of grade 1 winner Stormy Pick.
READ: Lucas Hits Pinhooking Home Run With Girvin Filly
Girvin led the eighth session by gross, with 15 yearlings selling for a total of $1,693,000.
At the end of the day, 289 horses had changed hands, selling for $25,123,000, including private sales. The average was $86,931, with a median of $70,000. An RNA rate of 21.3% represented the 78 horses who failed to meet their reserve.
JAS/Costa was the leading buyer Thursday, with four purchases totaling $710,000. Taylor Made Sales Agency sold 33 horses for $3,269,000 to lead the consignors.
"I think today, it's a little bit different," said Mark Taylor of Taylor Made on the market. "Okay, there's a ton of people who will give you between $5,000-$30,000; and then there's tons of people for a really nice (high-end) horse, but that $30,000-$75,000 area, it seemed a little tricky to me.
"But, overall, the sale has been fantastic. This is the highest-grossing September Sale we've ever had. I could've never anticipated it would be this good, so I'm happy."
The ninth session of the sale begins Sept. 17 at 10:00 a.m. ET with Hips 2841-3265 slated to go through the ring. As of Tuesday evening, Keeneland had reported 54 outs. The sale runs each day beginning at 10:00 through Sept. 20.
"It's been a remarkable sale, and it's very deep, and I would expect it to continue right on through," Hinkle said.
