Nyquist Colt Tops Final Session of "Exceptional" Kentucky October Yearlings Sale

The Kentucky October Yearlings sale concluded Thursday evening in Lexington, Kentucky, with final numbers which crushed historical benchmarks in gross, average, and median.

A colt by last year's Leading First-Crop Sire Nyquist topped the final session when sold for $500,000 to St. Elias Stables from the consignment of St George Sales, agent (video). Offered as Hip 1281, the dark bay or brown colt is the second foal out of Froyo Star, a winning Rockport Harbor half-sister to multiple Grade 1 winner Sweet Reason; graded stakes winner Don't Forget Gil; stakes winner Battle Girl; and the dam of this year's Dubai Golden Shaheen (G1) winner Zenden. The session topper was bred in Kentucky by Southern Equine Stable, and was a $270,000 selected weanling at last year's November Sale.

"Day four was another outstanding day for the October sale," said Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning. "It was kind of a fitting conclusion to an exceptional horse sale. The numbers have been tremendous all four days, across the board."

The session's top filly came in the form of a daughter of current Leading First-Crop Sire Gun Runner, sold for $335,000 to Donato Lanni, agent for Glen Hill Farm. The bay filly was offered as Hip 1584 by Taylor Made Sales Agency, agent. The filly is the first foal out the stakes placed Malibu Moon mare Lunar Gaze, from the immediate family of multiple Grade 1 winner Ello Luv. Hip 1584 was bred in Kentucky by Waymore LLC.

"(There was) tremendous depth overall in the bidding activities," continued Browning. "A very diverse group of buyers stayed 'til the bitter end. We saw two or three very high priced horses sold in the last 20 to 30 minutes of the sale. We really could not be any more pleased that (the sale) exceeded our most optimistic expectations."

Rounding out the top five prices of the final session were:

• Hip 1580, a colt by Street Sense out of Lucky Cover (Medaglia d'Oro), which sold for $290,000 to Cash Is King from the consignment of Burleson Farms, agent. The bay colt is the first foal out of a daughter of multiple Grade 2 winner Teammate, from the immediate family of War Front. Hip 1580 was bred in Kentucky by Nice Guys Stable.
• Hip 1201, a filly by Speightstown out of Elusive Wave (Mizzen Mast), which sold for $240,000 to Maverick Racing and Siena Farm from the consignment of Four Star Sales, agent. The gray or roan filly is out of a full sister to two-time Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint winner Mizdirection). Hip 1201 was bred in Kentucky.
• Hip 1338, a filly by Ghostzapper out of Handwoven (Indian Charlie), which sold for $240,000 to Jump Around Stables from the consignment of Baccari Bloodstock, agent. The dark bay or brown filly hails from the immediate family of millionaire and multiple graded stakes winner Scott's Scoundrel. Hip 1338 was bred in Kentucky by Vision Racing and Sales.

"In recent years, the trajectory of the sale has continued to improve," added Browning. "The consignors are bringing us better horses (every year), and the buyers are supporting them."

During Thursday's session, 297 yearlings sold for $13,095,900, good for an average of $44,094 and a median of $25,000. Thirty-four horses sold for $100,000 or more.

Over the course of the four days, 1153 horses sold for $52,607,500, surpassing by 37.5% the previous sale record gross of $38,258,900 set in 2019. The average was $45,627, a 20.2% increase over the established benchmark of $37,955 (also set in 2019). The median rose to $22,000, a new sale record 18.9% higher than the previous record median of $18,500 set in 2014. The RNA rate was 17.8%, the lowest at Kentucky October Yearlings since 2013.

The sale topper (Hip 1107), a colt by Street Sense sold for $925,000 during Wednesday's session, tied the sale record originally set in 1999, while establishing a new record price for a colt at this sale. In addition, a pair of colts sold for $750,000 – a colt by Empire Maker (Hip 513) on Tuesday and a colt by Gun Runner (Hip 870) on Wednesday – to match the previous record price for a colt at Kentucky October Yearlings, which was established in 2000.

Full results for the Kentucky October Yearlings sale are available online.