# Keeneland September Sale Opens Strong at $71.8M **Published:** 2026-09-15T01:54:03.000Z **Source:** [Keeneland](https://www.keeneland.com/media/news/keeneland-september-yearling-sale-opens-71770000-total-sales) **AI-generated:** yes (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001) **Canonical:** https://feeds.lexingtonky.news/article/keeneland-september-sale-opens-strong-at-71-8m LEXINGTON, Ky. — [Keeneland's September Yearling Sale kicked off Monday with $71.77 million in gross sales](https://www.keeneland.com/media/news/keeneland-september-yearling-sale-opens-71770000-total-sales), marking a robust start to one of the thoroughbred industry's marquee events. The opening session featured 97 horses sold, with 18 reaching the $1 million mark — the most for an opening day since 2005. A Gun Runner colt consigned by Four Star Sales topped Monday's session at $2.8 million, purchased by RTM Racing. The colt, out of Grade 3 winner Twenty Carat and from the family of Breeders' Cup winners Shared Account and Sharing, represents the type of high-pedigree offering driving market strength. The opening-day gross exceeded last year's first-session total of $69.24 million by 3.65 percent, despite selling 9 fewer horses. The average sales price climbed to $739,897, up 13.27 percent from the prior year's opening day of $653,208, while the median jumped 16.28 percent to $625,000. "It was a great opening session," Keeneland President and CEO Shannon Arvin said, noting the attendance and energy levels rivaled those seen when the sale of Flightline's interest occurred in 2022. "Thirteen different consignors sold 14 of the top lots. Lots of Japanese participation, lots of domestic participation. We saw some new faces." White Birch Farm, representing M.V. Magnier and Peter Brant, led all buyers by spending $5.2 million for three yearlings. Their costliest purchase was a Gun Runner son at $2.3 million, consigned by Darby Dan Farm, who is a half-brother to Grade 1 winner Colonel Liam. Gainesway led all consignors with $12.75 million in sales across 19 yearlings. Other significant purchases included a $2.1 million Not This Time colt purchased by J.S. Company and a $1.9 million Gun Runner half-brother to Triple Crown winner Justify, purchased by Winchell Thoroughbreds. Gun Runner sired 7 of the 12 yearlings sold for $1.3 million or more, underscoring the stallion's influence in the current market. Keeneland Vice President of Sales Tony Lacy attributed the strength to breeder confidence. "We're in a good healthy market, which allows breeders to feel confident about what they're doing," Lacy said. The Book 1 second session continues Tuesday at 1 p.m., with the entire sale running through September 26 and streamed live at Keeneland.com. ## Sources - [Keeneland](https://www.keeneland.com/media/news/keeneland-september-yearling-sale-opens-71770000-total-sales) - [Keeneland home page for live streaming](https://www.keeneland.com/) --- This article was generated by AI (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001) based on source material from Keeneland. The original source is available at https://www.keeneland.com/media/news/keeneland-september-yearling-sale-opens-71770000-total-sales.