The yearling market is the largest segment by far in the commercial space, which is why breeders approach the yearling sales season with equal parts excitement and apprehension. The financial outcome for the year is at stake for many breeders. The commercial yearling market has been on an upward trend since 2011, when it started recovering from the recession of 2008. Total receipts for yearlings sold in 2018 surpassed the $500 million mark for the first time since 2007. In 2018, 9,752 yearlings sold for a total of $565 million, which accounted for 52.5 percent of all public auction receipts. The average yearling price of $78,725 in 2018 was up 14.2 percent over 2017. As part of that market segment, the Keeneland September yearling sale, the largest North American yearling venue, finished with 2,916 yearlings sold for gross receipts of $377,140,400. The average price was a record $129,335, while the median was $50,000, tied for the second-highest in the auction’s 75-year history. This year’s yearling season began with three sales conducted by Fasig-Tipton – the Kentucky selected yearling sale in July, and the Saratoga selected yearling sale and New York-bred preferred yearling sale last month. The Saratoga selected sale, the first high-level sale of the season, finished with a record average price, suggesting a solid marketplace. While Keeneland September takes center stage, here is a look at other upcoming sales in North America where foals from the 2018 crop will be offered. Fasig-Tipton California fall yearling sale: Sept. 26 www.fasigtipton.com Barretts ended its decades-long sales operations in California in October of last year. After it was announced that Barretts was discontinuing operations, Kentucky-based Fasig-Tipton announced it would move back into the state. Fasig-Tipton last sold horses in California in 1984, when it had a partnership with the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association. The inaugural Fasig-Tipton California fall yearling sale was initially to be held at Santa Anita, but in early July the sales company announced it would hold the auction at Fairplex, which had owned Barretts in recent years as part of the Los Angeles Country Fair Association. Fairplex is located in Pomona, Calif. The auction company recently announced it has cataloged 285 yearlings for this inaugural sale. Last year, Barretts held two yearling sales, a select session at Del Mar in August and a fall sale in October at Fairplex that included mares and horses of all ages. The August sale had 42 yearlings sell for an average of $62,667, and the fall sale had 119 yearlings sell for an average of $10,378. At that last Barretts sale, 255 of the 276 horses cataloged were yearlings. The 2018 August select sale was topped by a $250,000 colt by perennial California leading sire Unusual Heat. Fasig-Tipton Midlantic fall yearling sale: Sept. 30-Oct. 1 www.fasigtipton.com In 2018, 338 yearlings sold for a total of $7,318,700, an average of $21,653, and a median of $15,000 The Fasig-Tipton Midlantic yearling sale, held in Timonium, Md., is one of the largest regional sales in the country, and in 2018 its catalog comprised 500 horses. The large supply resulted in a 14 percent decline in average from 2017, though the median rose 7 percent. As a regional sale, the Midlantic fall sale attracts entries from breeders in Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia, as well as other states. The sale has been a stalwart for Maryland breeders for decades, and in 2018 the venue included 178 Maryland-breds (35.6 percent of the hips). Last year’s sale also included 111 New York-breds and 105 Kentucky-breds. The 2018 sale topper was a $210,000 filly by leading general sire Into Mischief out of Spin the Bottle, by Hard Spun. Ocala Breeders’ Sales select and open yearling sale: Oct. 8-10 www.obssales.com In 2018, 434 yearlings sold for a total of $9,532,750, an average of $21,965, and a median of $12,000 The Ocala Breeders’ Sale Co. made a major change to its sales calendar in 2017, when it eliminated its decades-old August yearling sale and moved its sales of yearlings to October. While it was a risky move, it proved to be a good one. The last August sale in 2016 averaged $16,712 for 517 yearlings sold. In 2017, the three-day sale averaged $20,001 for 406 yearlings sold. In 2018, the OBS October yearling sale average increased by 9.8 percent to $21,965. In 2018, the one-day select session averaged $41,000, while the two open sessions averaged $13,090. The 2018 sale topper was a $340,000 Cairo Prince colt out of Minutia, by Concord Point, purchased by John Oxley from the consignment of Stuart Morris, agent. The OBS yearling sale is the major marketplace for rank-and-file Florida breeders. Last year, 48.8 percent of the 777 yearlings cataloged were Florida-breds (379), with Kentucky-breds second with 166, and New York-breds third with 86. Florida-based sires whose first foals are yearlings include classic-placed Ride On Curlin and Jess’s Dream, the only son of Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra. Both are sons of Curlin. Fasig-Tipton Kentucky October yearling sale: Oct. 21-24 www.fasigtipton.com In 2018, 963 yearlings sold for a total of $34,260,100, an average of $35,576, and a median of $15,000 The Fasig-Tipton Kentucky October yearling sale decades ago used to be more like a garage sale, with low-priced offerings and horses with questionable pedigrees and conformation. Today, it is a robust sale, with some commercial breeders choosing the sale for their yearlings because they want more time for their horses to mature, and because they are confident buyers will be there for them. Where the October sale 30 years ago averaged just $3,306 and 10 years ago averaged $13,512, it now has an average price that puts it in the top six yearling sales in North America. In 2018, the Lexington, Ky., sale had 1,500 cataloged, with 963 sold and 283 failing to reach their reserve. The sale had a buyback rate of 22.7 percent. Last year’s sale was topped by a $500,000 Street Sense colt out of Shimmer, by Pulpit, bought by Donato Lanni, agent, from the consignment of Eaton Sales, agent. Equine Sales open yearling and mixed sale: Oct. 27 www.equinesalescompany.com Equine Sales, with operations in Opelousas, La., holds three Thoroughbred sales annually. The October sale follows a Sept. 5 consignor-select yearling auction for accredited Louisiana-breds, which gives state breeders a place to sell their best offerings. The October sale in Opelousas offers horses of all ages, and in 2018 yearlings accounted for a bit more than 40 percent of all horses passing through the sales ring. The 34 yearlings that sold averaged $6,162, while 19 of the horses cataloged, or 35.8 percent, failed to reach their reserve. The yearlings accounted for 64 percent of the total receipts at the sale. The 2018 sale was topped by two $50,000 yearlings. One was a filly by Kentucky-based Proud Citizen out of May Gator, by Green Alligator, purchased by Charles Castille from the consignment of Brown’s Thoroughbred Farm. The other was a filly by Kentucky-based Fast Anna out of Pleasantly Blessed, by Pleasant Tap, purchased by Virginia Lazenby from Select Sales, agent for Coteau Grove Farms.