SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y.--The 105th Saratoga Selected Yearling sale began with a bang on Monday evening, Aug. 10 as 15 yearlings sold for over $1 million, with the sales topper, a Nyquist colt, bringing $3.2 million. 

A Nyquist colt, the sales topper on Monday night at the Saratoga saleThe 15 yearlings sold for seven figures surpassed last year's opening session record of nine, so if it continues in the second session it will result in record figures. 

"Tremendous start to the 105th Saratoga Yearling Sale tonight," Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning said. "Literally from beginning to end, the energy was palpable. The bidding activity was very, very, very, strong. Tremendous session."

"We were optimistic when we put together the Saratoga catalog,"said Browning. "We were more optimistic then when the horses unloaded off the vans and we saw them on the sales grounds. We got even more optimistic as we saw the level of activity on the sales grounds with people looking, got even more optimistic in terms of repository activity. But despite our optimism, it exceeded our expectations."

"Amazing" said Russell Jones of Unionville, Pa., whose Walnut Green was a top sales agency before Jones sold it although he continues to buy and sell top young thoroughbreds as part of a syndicate. "It's a high stakes game, and when you win it pays off big, and when it doesn't pay off you get a big write-off."

 

A $3,200,000 colt by Nyquist (hip 83) was the session's sales topper when bought by Randy and Jenny Boyd's Boyd Racing, with Brittany Linton acting as agent.

The Boyds are relatively new players to the high end of the sport, making a splashy debut at the 2025 Saratoga Sale.

From just a few horses in their stable at this time a year ago, they have now grown to be major players at auction, and this year bought multiple G1 winner Splendora..

"We're enjoying every minute of it," Jenny Boyd said. "It's exciting. You don't know what's going to happen around the corner.  This is a magnificent colt. We love him,"

Boyd Racing is among five buyers relatively new to Saratoga highend  buyers along with Flying Dutchmen, Mitsu Nakauchida, B-4 Farms and Blue Devil Racing.

Nyquist, the 2015 Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner and Eclipse Award divisional champion who won the 2016 Kentucky Derby, sired three seven figure yearlings duing the first night session

This colt is the first foal out of the Marking mare Slammed, a remarkable New Mexico-bred who won nine of her 13 career, starts, including the G2 Thoroughbred Club of America Stakes in 2022.

"He's worth every penny of it, and we're excited to see him on the track next year," Randy Boyd said.

Three other yearlings sold for over $2,000,000 with two tied for the second highest price of the evening at $2,300,000 - a chestnut Gun Runner colt (hip 78), with trainer Wesley Ward signing the ticket, and a gray Into Mischief colt (hip 91) purchased by Flying Dutchmen.

Ward says he has increased his presence at the upper end of the yearling marketplace in hopes of targeting the American classics in the coming years.

"He's some horse," Ward said of his purchase, who will race for a partnership. "I go out every year [to Three Chimneys] and look at all of his yearlings in the sales, and this one stood out. We're really excited to get a colt like this. Everything that I like in a racehorse, he had."

Early in the sale, bloodstock agent Donato Lanni, bidding for Zedan Racing, payed $2,000,000 to buy a bay colt by two-time Horse of the Year and prominent classic sire Curlin, consigned as agent by Hill 'n' Dale at Xalapa, which stands his sire.

"He did great today," Hill 'n' Dale's Director of Bloodstock Jes Sikura said. "We had high hopes, and he had shown so well throughout the last few days, so we were coming up here excited.  We're thrilled that such a result came up for great partners in Don Alberto who entrusted us with him. We're over the moon excited."

Mitsu Nakauchida payed $1,900,000 for a gray filly by Not This Time (hip 100), a breakout young sire who is dueling Into Mischief on the top of the North American sires earnings list at this point of the season. 

The final horse through the ring, a chestnut Gun Runner colt (hip 113), was also purchased for $1,900,000 by M.V. Magnier of the international Coolmore group and frequent partner White Birch Farm.

A bay colt (hip 54) from the final crop of the late classic sire Uncle Mo and from the immediate family of Hall of Fame racemare Rachel Alexandra sold for $1,500,000 to B-4 Farms LLC.

Later in the evening, Stonestreet had another $1,500,000 sale, as a Quality Road filly (hip104) was purchased by Boyd Racing, with Linton again acting as agent.

A Nyquist filly (hip 49) was a $1,375,000 purchase by Dan Hayden, as agent for Blue Devil Racing,.

RTM Racing made several purchases late in the evening, including buying a $1,150,000 chestnut Gun Runner filly (hip 108).

Legion Bloodstock/Gracie Bloodstock, as agent, payed $1,075,000 for a filly (hip 40) by Candy Ride, a successful veteran sire who is the sire of Gun Runner, among other champions.

A chestnut Gun Runner filly (hip 111) was purchased for $1,050,000 by RTM Racing from the consignment of Darby Dan Farm, as agent.

Three additional yearlings sold for $1,000,000 each:

--A bay colt from the second crop of Life Is Good (hip 70) sold to Mitsu Nakauchida from the consignment of Taylor Made. 

--A Nyquist colt (hip 75) continued the big night for his sire when purchased by Resolute Bloodstock.

--A Tiz the Law colt (hip 101) was purchased by the MyRacehorse group from the consignment of Gainesway. 

During the session, 79 of the 97 yearlings sold for a total of $54,395,000, an average price of $688,544 and median of $500,000.

Monday’s results were all up from last year’s opening session, when 77 yearlings sold for $39,975,000, an average price of $519,516 and median of $400,000, a 36.1 percent rise in total sales, a 32.6 gain in average price and a 25 percent increase in median.

The buyback rate for the session came in at a solid 18.5%.

"I often say after the first night, you know, we don't make any bold proclamations," Browning said of pacing above the records, but added, "We played a hell of a first half."