The demand for quality yearlings was once again on display at Thursday’s KZN Yearling Sale, which took place at Durban’s Suncoast Casino.
Following some outstanding results at the National Yearling Sale earlier in the year, Maine Chance Farms’ boom sire Vercingetorix was yet again the star attraction at Thursday’s sale.
Silvano’s champion son was responsible for both the top lot sold at this year’s KZN Yearling Sale, as well as the top filly, and Vercingetorix ended Thursday’s sale as the Leading Sire by Aggregate, with his six lots on offer all selling for a gross total of R2.865 million.
Boland Stud consigned the top priced yearling at the KZN Yearling Sale this year, with the Vercingetorix colt (Lot 73) out of Varster knocked down to John Freeman for R1 100 000. The well bred colt is out of a three time winning Var half-sister to exported G2 Betting World Derby winner Silvano’s Jet (like Vercingetorix, a son of Silvano), and his granddam, State Coach, herself a Jet Master daughter of G1 Gosforth Park Fillies Guineas winner State Treasure, won both the Listed Memorial Mile and Listed Jockey Club Stakes.
Prominent owner Mary Liley snapped up the top priced filly sold at this year’s KZN Yearling Sale –a Vercingetorix filly (Lot 4) out of the Rip Van Winkle mare Killer Woman. Consigned to the sale by Klawervlei Stud, this filly, whose dam won three times and is related to the likes of G1 Dubai Golden Shaheen winner Sterling City and G1 Randwick Guineas victor Kementari, was knocked down for R625 000 making her not only the top filly at this year’s sale but the second top lot sold overall.
Thursday’s sale was the first time the KZN Sale had taken place since 2019, with the COVID pandemic forcing the auction to be abandoned in both 2020 and 2021.
Overall results for the 2022 KZN Yearling Sale stood up really well, with the sales’ average, median and sales topper all well up on those achieved at the last KZN Sale to take place. With considerably fewer horses offered than 2019 (289 offered in 2019 while 169 were catalogued for sale this year), the aggregate dropped from R21.505 million to R18.095 million in 2022. In contrast, however, the average price achieved rose from R89 979 to R123 938, and the median also rose handsomely –with the median reaching R77 500 off a median price of R60 000 at the previous KZN Sale.
Eugene Freeman’s Boland Stud had an outstanding sale and that Ceres farm led the Vendors List, selling all seven of their yearlings for a gross total of R2.21 million, while John Freeman, whose purchases included the sales’ topping colt, topped the Buyers’ List, with Freeman purchasing four yearlings for R1.73 million.
Yet another pleasing result of this year’s sale was total of horses not sold –with just 16 yearlings not finding new homes on Thursday.
Vendors are to be congratulated on bringing some outstanding yearlings to the KZN Sale this year, and this sale looks set to go from strength to strength.
Statistics and results from this year’s KZN Yearling Sale are available online at www.bsa.co.za
