Keeneland September Book 3 closes with $725,000 Audible colt leading session

LEXINGTON, Ky. - A $725,000 colt from the first crop of Audible led Sunday's session as the Keeneland September yearling sale reached its midway point with strong figures.

Sunday’s session marked the end of Book 3, and was the sixth of 12 sessions overall. To this point, 1,242 horses have sold for gross receipts of $327,909,500, already surpassing the key milestone of $300 million. Last year’s sale hit that mark in the seventh of 11 sessions overall. To this point of the 2021 sale, also comprising the first three books in a consistent format, 1,169 horses had sold for grosses of $278,883,000. The gross is up 18 percent, although the number of horses sold is up only 6 percent, in comparison.

The current cumulative average price for Keeneland September sits at $264,017, up 11 percent from $238,565 through six sessions in 2021. The cumulative median is up 11 percent, to $200,000 from $180,000. The buyback rate is also improved, sitting at 24 percent compared to 28 percent.

Last year's Keeneland September sale, which showed a resurgent marketplace following the pandemic-impacted 2020 edition, ultimately finished with a gross of $364,516,500, and record figures for the average ($130,698) and median ($65,000).

Classic-placed Grade 1 winner Audible, a son of leading sire and emerging sire of sires Into Mischief, recorded a big score with his session-topper sold to Flurry Racing Stables. The colt tied for the third-highest price of Book 3 overall, behind a $900,000 Curlin colt [https://www.drf.com/news/keeneland-september-curlin-colt-sells-900k-book-3-opening-session] and a $775,000 Bolt d’Oro colt, and matching a $725,000 colt by first-crop sire Omaha Beach, all sold Saturday.

The colt, who was consigned by Paramount Cales, as agent, is out of the winning Kafwain mare Oh Boo Hoo, dam of three winners from as many starters. The mare is a half-sister to Grade 1-placed Palacio de Amor and to stakes-placed Island Hop. Palacio de Amor is the dam of stakes winners Threefiveindia and Hero's Amor, while Island Hop produced stakes winner Ex Pirate.

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