By Kate Hunter
With the Hokkaido Autumn Sale's conclusion on Oct. 22, it was a wrap for the 2020 yearling sales season in Japan. While the world reels from the impact of the COVID-19 crisis, the Japanese yearling market held strong in 2020.
The Autumn Sale was in the spotlight this year thanks to 2018 graduate and G1 Kikuka Sho contender Babbitt (Jpn) (Nakayama Festa {Jpn}). He won G2 St Lite Kinen in September, setting him up to be one of undefeated Triple Crown hopeful Contrail (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn})'s biggest threats. Babbitt goes into the Kikuka Sho with a four-race win steak that includes two graded stakes victories, both of which came after the Japanese Derby. He will take to the lead and not look back, making him a new kind of rival for Contrail to contend with.
The 2020 Autumn Sale saw a rebound from a dip in the market last year, grossing ¥1,259,940,000 ($12,033,235/£9,224,051/€10,143,929), a 23.1% increase from 2019. A total of 365 yearlings sold for a record-breaking 78.3% clearance rate. The average and median of ¥3,451,890 ($32,967/£25,271/€27,791) and ¥3,190,000 ($30,466/£23,354/€25,683) also saw significant increases from 2019.
The sale topper, Hip 198, was an Espoir City (Jpn) filly out of Koyu Nomichi (Jpn) that sold to Yujiro Inutsuka for ¥12,100,000 ($115,562/£88,584/€97,418). A close second was Hip 174, a Pas de Trois (Jpn) colt out of Ocean Lady (Jpn) that was bought by Narutoshi Hasegawa for ¥11,220,000 ($107,158/£82,141/€90,333). The sale had six horses go over the ¥10,000,000 mark; considerably higher than the two that crossed that threshold in 2019.
Asia Express (Henny Hughes) saw all eight of his yearlings sell for an average of ¥5,678,750 ($54,235/£41,574/€45,720). He currently has a promising filly in the NAR, Solo Unity (Jpn), who won the Edelweiss Sho at Monbetsu against JRA company just a few days prior. It is a promising start for the young stallion's first crop. Asia Express stands at Yushun Stallion Station alongside his sire Henny Hughes.
Also popular was World Ace (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}). He had 13 out of 13 sold for an average of ¥3,469,230 ($33,133/£25,398/€27,931). With a pair of open class 2-year-old winners last year and a NAR stakes winner this year from his first crop, this young son of Deep Impact (Jpn) has proved versatile early on.
Espoir City (Jpn) was a champion dirt horse in his day and he has proved a powerhouse on the NAR circuit. With four crops to race, he continues to improve with 149 winners from 196 starters. His six lots at the Autumn Sale averaged ¥6,966,666 ($66,536/£51,003/€56,089).
Japan's racing industry has been fortunate during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through an early response and vigilant safety protocols racetracks, training centers and sales have managed to escape much hardship. The diligent efforts have allowed the Japanese racing industry as a whole to maintain a healthy cycle of life: betting, high purses, and buying horses.
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