Rockhampton’s Capricornia Yearling Sale, the only one of its kind in this state outside SEQ, has been inundated with record entries for its 2023 version on Sunday, April 2.
A record 132 yearlings have been entered to be catalogued for auction making it the biggest after its transformation to the current format since it was inaugurated in 1988.
At the 2022 version, 118 yearlings were auctioned with 96 selling for a gross turnover record of $1.67 million.
Given the quantity but more so the quality of the 2023 catalogue, there is every possibility that those figures will be eclipsed at the Robert Schwarten Pavilion, Rockhampton Showgrounds.
During its dynasty, the CYS has stood the test of time as a nursery from which yearlings have graduated into some of Queensland’s best racehorses.
The most illustrious graduate being the GR 1 Stradbroke Handicap winner River Lad while in more recent times Marway has been a great advertisement through wins on Sydney racetracks.
Current poster girl is 2022 CYS graduate Party For Two, passed in at $24K but has since gone on to win twice including the $127K QTIS 2YO (1000m) at Doomben last Saturday. Read about her here.
Ian Mill the CEO of the Rockhampton Jockey Club which hosts the annual sale said his club was justifiably very happy with the sale entries after they were announced on Tuesday.
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As well there is a good sprinkling of yearlings from both established and new vendors based in Central Queensland,” Ian Mill said.
The largest draft is that of 13 yearlings to be offered by KBL Thoroughbreds, Beaudesert which just recently sold yearlings at the Magic Millions, January Sale at the Gold Coast.
Other vendors in the Rockhampton sale that also sold there include Kenmore Lodge, Wyreema, Grandview, Raheen, Oaklands, Bahrinna, Fraser Bloodstock, Lucas Bloodstock and Lyndhurst.
“Those names are instantly recognised as significant players in the thoroughbred bloodstock breeding industry in Queensland and in some cases throughout Australia. It is not only endorsement of the Capricornia Yearling Sale but in Rockhampton racing as an entity in Queensland as well,” Mill said.
Glenthorne Park, Taree from where 2022 CYS 2YO Classic winner Sammiballerina emanated will despatch two Sebring Sun yearlings to Rockhampton while others “babies” are coming from Mareeba. Sebring Sun has done a great job of late and you can read more on him here.
Diversity in the range of stallions with yearlings on offer is also at a premium for the 2023 sale, with no fewer that 66 individual stallions represented.
Such a range of stallion progeny has never been assembled before at a Rockhampton yearling sale.
It affords buyers far greater options while including progeny of many of the “big boys, such as the glamour Queensland stallions in Spirit of Boom, (2) and Better Than Ready (2).
While over the years it has become a well-worn cliché but this year the 36th annual CYS can without qualification boast “the best catalogue” ever offered.
Graduates from the CYS are exclusively eligible to run in the $150K CYS 2YO Classic (1200m) and the following two years the $100K 3 & 4YO Classic (1300m).
The fact that prizemoney for both those CYS races was raised substantially by Racing Queensland since the 2022 sale can be attributed in part to the increased volume of yearlings on offer in 2023.
Both those races are run annually at Callaghan Park on the Saturday preceding the Sunday sale.
