Keeneland bills its annual September auction as ‘The World’s Yearling Sale’ and with just cause. Both the quality and quantity of Thoroughbreds that will be put through the action ring this September 13-24 is substantial. This year alone, through August 18, alumni of the sale have won 215 stakes, 102 of those have been Graded, and 25 of them have come at G1 level.
The 2021 edition of the sale, which has a robust catalog of 4,037 yearlings, features some changes to its format as well as changes to the faces representing the Keeneland team itself. In April, it was announced that Tony Lacy (pictured left) has joined the company as vice president of sales. Geoffrey Russell, the longtime director of sales operations, has retired after 25 years with Keeneland but will stay on in a consulting role through the end of the year.
Additionally, Cormac Breathnach was brought on as the new director of sales operations in June. Keeneland itself got a new president and CEO in 2020, when Shannon Arvin took over the reins from a retiring Bill Thomason, and Gatewood Bell was named vice president of racing in February.
“We’ve got a lot of new faces in here, between Shannon, Gatewood, Cormac, and myself, but obviously Geoffrey is the guiding light,” said Lacy. “He is a person who has invaluable experience. It’s not that we are trying to do a fresh reboot, but we are definitely coming in with the perspective of, we have done this from the outside, now how can we improve this?
“Like any other great organization, we have a great team. We rely on each other. I think one thing that a lot of people don’t realize is the amount of people it takes to make this work. The logistics of just the rotation of horses through the barns is amazing.”
Lacy, a native of Ireland, certainly brings a wealth of sales experience into his new position. He, along with Kerry Cauthen, helped establish Four Star Sales in 2001, and it went on to become a leading North American consignor. Additionally, starting in 2008, Lacy served as the North American representative for Arqana.
“I think my experience with Arqana has been invaluable as far as working with a sales company on an international level,” said Lacy. “They are exceptional with customer service and customer relations. I believe I have learned a lot from them, and we are all trying to adapt what we have learned from traveling to different sales and race meetings around the world.
“Keeneland has long been the standard bearer, and sometimes it is a source of criticism because it is held often times to a higher standard. That’s okay. We sort of embrace that. We want to challenge the boundaries. How can we do it better? How can we make the industry better? We are responsible to the industry at large.”
Shared vision
Long before he became a consignor and bloodstock advisor, Lacy had a connection to Keeneland through his parents, and his other past work with Arvin also led him to take on his new role.
“I’m very passionate about Keeneland, and always have been,” he said. “My first interaction with Keeneland was in 1988, when my parents won the Keeneland Phoenix Stakes [G3] when it was held at Phoenix Park with Ingabelle, a filly we owned, bred, and trained. I never thought I would ever be able to visit Keeneland, so to then work here as a consignor, buyer, and breeder, I think it is probably the best market in the world. It’s open, it’s international, and it’s dynamic.
“For me to come and work here, I feel very fortunate. I have worked with Shannon previously on other big projects, and I have the height of admiration for her. Her vision was very much in keeping with what I felt was important for Keeneland’s future. When I threw my hat in the ring, I think we clicked on many things.”
Some of the changes in place for the September sale include adjusting both the Week 1 and Week 2 formats in an effort to better accommodate buyers and sellers, a new RNA Reoffer at the conclusion of Book 1, and an enhanced online September sale catalog.
Second chance
“We are trying to alleviate some anxieties in certain areas,” said Lacy. “I was on that side of the fence, so I am very acutely aware of the anxiety. When we were working on this, there was a real fear of Day 1. People didn’t want to be first; they didn’t want to be early. As a consignor, I know that, if you are an RNA early in the sale, sometimes it can be a little tricky to get deal done later because people are already moving on, and you are in their rearview mirror.
“Our new RNA Reoffer is by no means mandatory, but it is a safeguard for people who feel their early placement was why their horse didn’t sell. It allows for a second chance. It’s something we are trying, and if it doesn’t work, we won’t do it again.”
Additionally, online bidding, which was offered in 2020 due to the pandemic, will again be an option, and Lacy points to it as one of the good things that has come out of a rough time.
“Every stressor creates innovation, and I think Covid was one of those innovative periods where online bidding may not have been instituted for another five or ten years if we didn’t have a circumstance like this,” he said. “It has been well received.
“Even if you are on the sale grounds, if you are up in barn 49 and you are looking at horses, the opportunity to bid on a horse from up there also gives people comfort. You are able to do that now. You can interact with the sale on different parts of the property because it is a big property, and running up and down the hill takes significant time. I think it is important we create as an easy a platform as possible, and I think it has worked well so far.”
The Keeneland September sale is designed to cater to every budget level, but for those shopping at the top, there will once again be plenty to choose from. One quarter of the yearlings cataloged, 1,007 to be precise, are by top 20 [U.S. earning] active sires including the likes of Into Mischief, Ghostzapper, Speightstown, Tapit, and Curlin.
On the dam side, 54 cataloged yearlings are out of G1-winning fillies or mares, including such champions as Dayatthespa, Take Charge Brandi, and Unique Bella. One of those G1 winners, I’m A Chatterbox, is also notable because her filly is the only offering by the late Galileo in the entire sale. She is consigned as Hip 2.
Also of note are the 114 yearlings that are full or half-siblings to G1 winners, including to 17 champions such as California Chrome, Big Brown, Drefong, Gamine, Lady Eli, and Midnight Bisou.
“From the buyer’s side, we want to create a much more comforting, welcoming feel,” said Lacy. “It is important they feel like they are coming to an event, coming to something special. If you are coming to a horse sale, it shouldn’t be so transactional. It has to be fun as well.
“We are trying to reach out, be more friendly, and listen more. That is something I felt on the outside as well, whether it’s perceived or factual, and I think it is important for Keeneland to be viewed as more approachable. That is something we want to be striving for as we go forward. We are not going to change everything overnight — we can’t and we shouldn’t. But we are certainly going to make strides every year to make it better and better for everybody.”