There was no shortage of enthusiasm in the audience on Monday when a $1 million yearling was auctioned off. While some of those in attendance that day have left Pennsylvania, those buyers looking to fill up a stable of racehorses with potential breeding implications would be wise to stick around for Friday's finale where a plethora of accomplished racehorses and budding stars will be on display. While yearling purchase results won't be realized for months, those with a keen eye on Friday can get near instant returns on their investment with ready-made horses to be dropped in the entry box immediately. The sophomore pacing ranks is quite difficult to navigate even for those with the ability to pace in sub-1:48 territory, and there are a couple of "also-rans" that didn't quite crack the list of major stakes talent in 2024 but could emerge and become next year's premier elite pacers. Specifically, we're speaking of the well-traveled Captain Luke and the speedy McCrunch, two 3-year-olds with extreme speed, while perhaps not enough luck to have earned more in 2024 than some of their contemporaries. Captain Luke (HIP 1600, Preferred Equine) will hope to go over the $300K mark in seasonal earnings just hours before he's scheduled to arrive in Harrisburg. The son of Captaintreacherous has a date on Thursday (November 7) in the Matron Stakes at Dover (post six, race 12) less than 24 hours prior to the auction. The Governor's Cup winner as a 2-year-old, Captain Luke has proven his durability with 30 starts over two years while battling the sport's best. Sharp both early and late this season, Captain Luke was a solid second behind Captain Albano in a Breeders Crown elimination recently at the Meadowlands. HIP 1586 McCrunch (Diamond Creek), a 1:48 2/5 winner in a division of the Tattersalls at The Red Mile, is an entirely different kind of prospect in that he was unraced as a 2-year-old but quickly emerged this year with superstar credentials. He was lapped-on Captain Luke in a $200,000 Hempt Consolation in August at Pocono, showing some class against horses with more experience. There's no telling what a year's racing will do for this son of Captain Crunch with a solid pedigree. Also selling via Diamond Creek is HIP 1581 Arbitrage Hanover, another horse that could emerge next year in Invitational and stakes competition. The son of Bettor's Wish proved his dominance inside the Garden State this year for the most part, but added a new wrinkle to his résumé with a solid score in the Simpson at Pocono just a few weeks ago. Having won on all-sized tracks, Arbitrage Hanover could be the perfect kind of horse to race throughout North America in Open and Invitational type races as a 4-year-old and beyond. With sophomore trotters retiring at a rapid rate these days, one must wonder just what the make-up of next year's Open class of trotters will look like. It's not just the stallions that will be lost to the division as the top trotting mare in North America Jiggy Jog S will move on to her second career. That leaves the door ajar for any one of this year's other sophomores to have a shot at some major stakes money in 2025. The Hambletonian Maturity offers a great starting point for those with 4-year-olds, as does the Graduate Series, making any buy at Harrisburg a solid investment. Perhaps no one horse in the auction fits the bill more perfectly than HIP 1595 Amazing Catch (Preferred Equine), third by a neck to Sig Sauer in this year's Breeders Crown finale after finishing second to him in the Kentucky Futurity.  A winner of $870K already, Amazing Catch not only has the pedigree to succeed next year, but the stallion potential that was just a short distance out of reach this year because he was on the wrong side of a photo or two. ► Sign up for our FREE DRF Harness Digest Newsletter Amazing Catch caught a break in winning the Canadian Trotting Classic when rival Highland Kismet broke stride early in the race. Unfortunately, he didn't have that kind of luck in the Hambletonian where he got squeezed along the pylons while appearing full of trot and had to settle for a third-place finish. Amazing Catch is clearly a horse that danced all the dances, and thus his talent was on full display throughout the year. Timed in sub-1:50 this year, Amazing Catch could be the top prize on the trotting side in this auction and for good reason. His pedigree not only shouldn't be ignored but revered in that he's out of Met's Life and hails from the immediate maternal family of top sire Muscle Hill, as well as the budding stallion Gimpanzee. For those with the same enthusiasm one might have for Amazing Catch but not the funds to take that one home, there is a multitude of quality sophomore trotters with the potential to join the elite class next year in this auction. Breeders Crown elimination runner-up Greenspan (HIP 1606, Preferred Equine) showed plenty of talent on the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes circuit over the last two years and certainly could be a player in the 4-year-old division. HIP 1596 Bella's Musclehill (Preferred Equine) went from an unraced 2-year-old to the top level as a sophomore, most notably with second-place finishes in the Hambletonian elimination and a New Jersey Classic elimination. That he was behind two now-retired colts in those races, specifically Karl in the Hambletonian and Sig Sauer in the New Jersey Classic, suggests the Muscle Hill-sired gelding is at least close to greatness. With the needed experience, Bella's Musclehill should be even better as a 4-year-old for new connections. Then there is French Kronos (HIP 1605, Preferred Equine), the sophomore with an international pedigree, being a son of Face Time Bourbon. Third to Karl earlier this year in a division of the Reynolds, French Kronos has been in fine form towards the end of the campaign, capturing the $100,000 Langley at Hoosier Park in late September. While 3-year-olds advancing into the 4-year-old ranks offers potential to some buyers, there are those looking for a younger horse to provide some thrills as well. One 2-year-old that has shown enormous speed is the Lather Up-sired freshman filly named Chakra (HIP 1456, Preferred Equine). A winner in Kentucky Commonwealth action in August, Chakra showed high speed and manners in a 1:50 3/5 victory in a Kindergarten leg at the Meadowlands on October 25. The fact that the filly is dual-eligible and could race in Kentucky and Ohio next year, as well as the Grand Circuit, is compelling considering just how hard it is to find one with this kind of speed. Chakra is also entered in the $165,000 Kindergarten final at the Meadowlands on Saturday from post three in race seven. HIP 1510 Mambacita (Preferred Equine) is the lone $1 million winner in this sale, and the 4-year-old mare by Tactical Landing has the pedigree and performance to be a star no matter what her next owner has in mind. Dominant earlier this year in the Kentucky Sires Stakes program following a pair of stakes-winning seasons as a freshman and sophomore, Mambacita could rise again on the racetrack if healthy, but if not, she's got plenty of credentials to be a high-end broodmare worthy of elite status at most any nursery in North America or abroad. There is quality in abundance this Friday in Harrisburg, a sale that might cost you more if you miss out.