CTBA Yearling Sale Returns to Del Mar Race Track

ARCADIA, Calif. (January 6, 2004) -- The California Thoroughbred Breeders Association's annual Del Mar Yearling Sale will return to the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club for a one-night sale Monday, August 16, 2004, kicking off Pacific Classic Week.

A smaller, more select group of yearlings will be offered at the sale, which returns to the track for the first time since 1995.

The auction will be conducted in the paddock following that day's race card, which will be a convenience for potential buyers and trainers. The sale has been held at the Del Mar HorsePark the past eight years.

"We are excited about returning to Del Mar Thoroughbred Club and believe the paddock will provide an ideal setting for a single-day select sale," said Doug Burge, executive vice president and general manager of CTBA. "We are committed to providing California breeders a first-class marketplace to showcase their prized yearlings.

“In recent years the Sale has yielded record results. With a more stringent selection criteria and the move to the race track, we believe we can expand on those results.”

Joe Harper, President of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, strongly endorsed the move to the race track.

"We always look for ways to expose the racing fan, new and old, to the excitement and drama of the Thoroughbred and we can't think of a better way to do that than to showcase select yearlings and buyers to the general public in a setting like the paddock here at Del Mar," Harper said.

The 2003 sale offered 140 horses, with 90 listed as sold. In the last five years, the sale has offered as few as 130 and as many as 187.

Yearlings will be stabled in the adjacent Del Mar Arena and will be available for viewing Saturday August 14, Sunday August 15, and Monday August 16, prior to the Sale.

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