Lexington, KY — Kadena, a daughter of first-year sire Gimpanzee out of multiple Dan Patch Award-winning mare Mission Brief, equaled the highest price ever for a trotting filly at a yearling auction, selling for $800,000 to trainer Marcus Melander as agent during Monday’s opening session of the Lexington Selected Yearling Sale at the Fasig-Tipton Pavilion.

Moments later, Treacheryinthedark, a daughter of Captaintreacherous-Rainbowinthedark, set the record for the highest price ever for a yearling filly pacer, going for $700,000 to trainer Andrew Harris as agent for owner Bill Pollock.

Kadena’s price equaled the filly record set by Exile at the 2021 Lexington sale. USTA/Mark Hall photo.

Kadena’s price equaled the filly record set by Exile at the 2021 Lexington sale. Treacheryinthedark’s price broke the previous high of $625,000 for a pacing filly, which was set by Laugh A Day in 1983 at the Tattersalls sale.

The two fillies were the top-priced yearlings Monday night. The opening session of the sale concluded with 121 horses selling for a total of $22.22 million and average of $183,653. The gross and average were second best in the sale’s history, trailing only last year’s $23.06 million and $189,074 for 122 yearlings.

Melander trained Gimpanzee, a two-time Dan Patch Award-winner and 2020 Trotter of the Year, as well as Kadena’s siblings Jaya Bae and the yet-to-race 2-year-old Vic Zelenskyy. The family also includes Mission Brief’s full-brother Tactical Landing, a Breeders Crown champ and sire of 2023 Hambletonian winner Tactical Approach.

Kadena was bred by Mission Brief Stable and consigned by Hunterton Sales Agency. She is Kentucky eligible.

“This was a fabulous filly,” said Melander, who purchased Kadena for owners S R F Stable and Jeff Snyder. “She had a great body, a great video. It wasn’t just us that saw it, otherwise she wouldn’t have brought $800,000. She was a great individual. Of course, she will have some other value as well as a broodmare. I was very happy to get her.

“We bought a couple other ones (by Gimpanzee), and they looked great,” Melander added. “It looked like they had a good temperament and everything. I was very pleased with what I saw.”

Melander also will train the fourth-highest seller Monday, trotting colt Charlie K Hanover, who was purchased for $475,000 by Courant Inc.

Charlie K Hanover, by Chapter Seven, is the first foal out of stakes-winning mare Crucial. The family also includes Dan Patch Award-winner Venerable and last year’s Lexington sale-topper Epoch, who sold for $725,000. Charlie K Hanover was bred and consigned by Hanover Shoe Farms. He is New York eligible.

“He was one of the nicer Chapter Sevens in the sale, in my opinion,” Melander said. “He’s the first colt out of that family, and it’s a great family. He was just built right. I’ve been very lucky with the Chapter Sevens; I really like him as a stallion. I was very happy we could get (Charlie K Hanover) as well.”

Treacheryinthedark’s price broke the previous high of $625,000 for a pacing filly, which was set by Laugh A Day. USTA/Mark Hall photo.

Treacheryinthedark is a three-quarter sister to Seven Colors, a world-record-setting multiple Grand Circuit-winner trained by Harris and co-owned by Pollock. The filly’s family also includes multiple Dan Patch Award-winner Bettor’s Wish. She was bred by Buckstone Land Livestock and John Barnard and consigned by Preferred Equine Marketing. She is Pennsylvania and Kentucky eligible.

“We really like Seven Colors, so that was a big draw for us,” Pollock said. “She looks big, she looks strong.”

Harris and Pollock spent a session-high $3.2 million for nine yearlings overall, including six of the top 14 sellers. Among those was colt pacer Readyforprimetime, a son of Bettor’s Delight-Prescient Beauty who went for $500,000 to be the night’s third-highest purchase.

Readyforprimetime is a half-brother to this year’s Metro Pace winner Captain’s Quarters. USTA/Mark Hall photo.

Readyforprimetime is a half-brother to this year’s Metro Pace winner Captain’s Quarters out of the family of Dan Patch Award-winners Sportswriter and Precocious Beauty, and 2020 Horse of the Year Tall Dark Stranger. He was bred by Jim Avritt Sr. and consigned by Hunterton Sales Agency. He is Ontario and Kentucky eligible.

Other yearlings purchased by Harris and Pollock included trotting colt Grande Via (Muscle Hill-Megadolce), from the family of 2022 Trotter of the Year Bella Bellini, for $450,000 as well as filly pacer Lily White Hanover (Captaintreacherous-Lillian Hanover), a half-sister to stakes-winners Linedrive Hanover and Legendary Hanover, for $350,000.

“Everything seemed to fall into place,” Pollock said. “I give Andrew the green light for what he wants to do, and he calls the shots on the horses he’s looking for. It’s really exciting to see all these horses get paraded out there and everybody bidding and laying out their money for their next future star hopefully.”

Rounding out the top-five sellers Monday was Destiny Deo, a daughter of Chapter Seven-Princess Deo who was purchased for $460,000 by Determination. She was bred by Deo Volente Farms and Tom Pontone and consigned by Preferred Equine. She is New York, Kentucky, and New Jersey Standardbred Development Fund eligible.

Chapter Seven led trotting sires in gross with 19 horses selling for $3.87 million. Gimpanzee led in average with $260,714 for seven yearlings. Captaintreacherous topped pacing sires in gross with 18 horses going for $3.62 million. His average of $201,111 trailed only Bettor’s Delight, who was at $278,333 for three horses.

The second session of the five-day sale begins at 1 p.m. Tuesday.

Find the sale’s catalog here. For the live stream, visit the sale’s company website here, and for complete results, here.