Gun Runner and a formidable performance with his yearlings at Keeneland
The stallion standing at Three Chimneys proved to be the undisputed star of the opening session at the Keeneland September Sale: he sired seven of the 12 yearlings sold for $1.3 million or more, highlighted by the session-topping price of $2.8 million
LEXINGTON, Kentucky (Special for Turf Diario).— Gun Runner no longer requires racetrack achievements to prove his status as a sensation. Yet, each new wave of his progeny seems to elevate his legacy even higher. This time, the stage was the Keeneland sales pavilion, where the Three Chimneys Farm stallion exerted overwhelming dominance during the opening session of the September Yearling Sale.
The numbers alone convey the magnitude of his impact: out of the 12 yearlings that commanded prices of $1,300,000 or higher, 7 were sired by the champion, the finest heir to the sire line established by Argentine icon Candy Ride.
Moreover, he was responsible for the session topper, a colt acquired by RTM Racing for $2,800,000, setting the tempo for a remarkably potent day of trade. Consigned by Four Star Sales, he is out of graded stakes winner Twenty Carat, by Into Mischief, and hails from the direct family of Breeders’ Cup heroines Shared Account (Pleasantly Perfect) and Sharing (Speightstown). His full brother Bletchley is currently conditioned by Chad Brown, the same trainer who will take charge of the new multi-million-dollar acquisition.
“We fell in love with him and added him to our shortlist two days ago. We didn't expect to pay that much, but it's what the horse deserved. Our dream is the Kentucky Derby,” explained Mahmud Mouni, who signed the ticket on behalf of RTM Racing.
It was far from an isolated splash for Gun Runner. M.V. Magnier and Peter Brant’s White Birch Farm teamed up at $2,300,000 to secure another of his sons, this one a half-brother to double G1 winner Colonel Liam (Liam's Map). Offered by Darby Dan Farm, the colt will remain in the United States, though training plans have yet to be finalized.
Winchell Thoroughbreds, the stable that campaigned Gun Runner through his stellar racing career, invested $1,900,000 in a half-brother to undefeated Triple Crown champion Justify (Scat Daddy). Brought to the ring by Glennwood Farm, he is out of Stage Magic, the blue-hen dam responsible for G3 winner The Lieutenant (Street Sense) and stakes winner Stage Raider (Pioneerof the Nile).
The tally continued with a colt purchased for $1,500,000 by the partnership of Coolmore and White Birch Farm. Consigned by Lane’s End, he is a half-brother to multiple G1 star Paradise Woods (Union Rags) and Forest Chatter(Union Rags). Three additional yearlings by the sire surpassed the $1,300,000 barrier, capping a concentration of top-end market dominance rarely witnessed in auction history.
Gun Runner was accountable for more than half of the twelve highest prices during a session where 18 yearlings reached seven figures—the highest opening-day total at the September Sale since 2005.
Additionally, the chestnut's offspring fetched prices of $900,000, $675,000, $550,000, $450,000, $425,000, $280,000, $250,000, and $200,000, while only 3 failed to meet reserve prices set at $950,000, $575,000, and $325,000. Simply extraordinary.
With a progeny portfolio that continues to stockpile G1 victories paired with commercial power that knows no bounds, Gun Runner proved once more that he operates in a league of his own. His stock is intensely sought after to race, to develop as future stallion prospects, and to hold immense residual value. On the track he produces champions; in the sales ring, he triggers outright wars. Keeneland was, yet again, his kingdom.
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