Catalog for 12-session auction now online.
LEXINGTON, KY—Keeneland has cataloged 4,635 horses for the 83rd edition of the internationally significant September Yearling Sale, which will cover 12 sessions from Monday, September 14 through Saturday, September 26. Click here for the online catalog, which is now available.
There are 69 Florida-breds cataloged including 13 in Books 1 and 2 which sell in Sessions 1-4.
The 2026 catalog features horses by 189 sires, including 24 first-crop sires represented by 1,072 yearlings. Of the horses in the catalog, 722 yearlings are by North America’s top 10 leading sires, underscoring the depth and quality found throughout the auction.
Last year’s September Sale was the world’s highest-grossing Thoroughbred auction in history with more than $531.7 million in sales for 3,078 horses. The number of million-dollar horses (56) along with the average price ($172,755) and the median price ($80,000) all set records for the sale.
“The 2025 September Sale established a historic benchmark,” Keeneland President and CEO Shannon Arvin said. “With record participation and strong economic performance, buying power was evident at every level of the market. Selling at Keeneland comes with clear advantages: an unmatched auction team, world-class hospitality, a broad buying base with the highest quality of bloodstock and sellers and the full force of the global Thoroughbred industry.”
“This year’s September Sale offers remarkable quality and depth from the opening session through the final day,” Keeneland Vice President of Sales Tony Lacy said. “With so many outstanding yearlings, placing horses throughout the catalog required careful consideration. We are grateful to the breeders and consignors who continue to entrust Keeneland with their best horses. Now our focus turns to delivering the strongest possible marketplace for every buyer and seller.”
September Sale schedule
Books 1 and 2 during Week 1 of the September Sale comprise the first four days of the auction when more than 1,1000 yearlings representing the sale’s highest concentration of sire power, pedigree and physical quality will be offered. This placement enables major domestic and international buyers to inspect the largest number of exceptional horses possible before the Dark Day on Friday, Septemeber 18 when no sale will be held.
“After six years of this consistent format, buyers and sellers understand the rhythm of the sale and can plan their inspections accordingly,” Keeneland Senior Director of Sales Operations Cormac Breathnach said.
The September Sale will resume Saturday, Sept. 19 and continue through September 26. The final four sessions fill the two-part Book 5. Yearlings in Book 5A will sell Wednesday, September 23 and Thursday, September 24. Horses in Book 5B will sell Friday, September 25 and Saturday, September 26.
Here is the September Sale schedule:
Week 1
Book 1 – Monday-Tuesday, September 14-15. Sessions begin at 1 p.m. ET.
Monday’s catalog has 181 horses. Tuesday’s catalog has 184 horses.
Book 2 – Wednesday-Thursday, September 16-17. Sessions begin at 11 a.m.
Wednesday’s catalog has 377 horses. Thursday’s catalog has 379 horses.
Dark Day – Friday, September 18. No sale will be conducted.
Week 2
Book 3 – Saturday-Sunday, September 19-20. Sessions begin at 10 a.m.
Saturday’s catalog has 416 horses. Sunday’s catalog has 423 horses.
Book 4 – Monday-Tuesday, Septembeer 21-22. Sessions begin at 10 a.m.
Monday’s catalog has 417 horses. Tuesday’s catalog has 423 horses.
Book 5A – Wednesday-Thursday, September 23-24. Sessions begin at 10 a.m.
Wednesday’s catalog has 427 horses. Thursday’s catalog has 431 horses.
Book 5B – Friday-Saturday, September 25-26. Sessions begin at 10 a.m.
Friday’s catalog has 496 horses. Saturday’s catalog has 481 horses.
Keeneland will livestream the entire September Sale at Keeneland.com. As always, online and phone bidding will be available.
Print catalogs for the auction are scheduled to start arriving in the mail the week of August 24. They also will be available for pickup at Keeneland’s Welcome Center beginning that week.
Sire power
The September Sale has cataloged 2,386 colts and 2,248 fillies by 189 established stallions and exciting young sires. Nearly 200 yearlings cataloged in Week 1 are by stallions with their initial sales yearlings, including Horse of the Year Cody’s Wish. He is the sire of 51 yearlings cataloged in Week 1 among his 84 offspring in the entire catalog.
Other sires represented by their first crops of September Sale yearlings include champion and Belmont presented by NYRA Bets (G1)-winner Arcangelo; champions Elite Power and Forte; Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (G1)-winner Mage; and additional Grade 1-winners Annapolis, Arabian Lion, Country Grammer, Dr. Schivel, Gunite, Proxy, Taiba, Up to the Mark and Zandon.
“There is another very deep crop of freshman stallions with first-crop yearlings in 2026,” Breathnach said. “They are a diverse group of stallions with some sprinters and turf performers along with classic dirt types. There is no shortage of athletic individuals by these stallions coming to market, and they will add extra excitement to the sale.”
Freshman stallions join such popular sires as Candy Ride (ARG), Charlatan, City of Light, Constitution, Curlin, Essential Quality, Flightline, Ghostzapper, Girvin, Good Magic, Gun Runner, Into Mischief, Justify, Liam’s Map, Life Is Good, Lope de Vega (IRE), Maclean’s Music, Maxfield, McKinzie, Medaglia d’Oro, Munnings, Not This Time, Nyquist, Omaha Beach, Oscar Performance, Paddington (GB), Practical Joke, Quality Road, St Mark’s Basilica (FR), Street Sense, Tapit, Tiz the Law, Twirling Candy, Uncle Mo, Upstart, Vekoma, Violence, War Front, Wootton Bassett (GB) and Yaupon.
Return to the August 11 issue of Wire to Wire
