Page 34 - 31 August 2012

Mexico
Racing Quarter Horse Select Yearling Auctions
by Luis Prieto Zamudio
The appeal of going through the auction is that the yearlings are eligible to participate in four exclusive derbies and futurities...
Sales Pavillion
An auction is a mechanism to provide public goods or services through the interaction of sellers and buyers in a physical space, with the goal in mind to arrive at a fair price for both accord- ing to rules previously established by the organizer and accepted by the participants.
In the case of horses, breeders and buyers flock to auctions. With new advances in technology pertain- ing to communications and information, opera-
tions can be undertaken remotely. There are mixed auctions, involving animals of different ages and/or breeds, and specialized ones offering certain products.
The most famous and popular auctions are the yearling sales, in which colts and fillies are sold the year after their birth. In Mexico there are two annual auctions of this type, one organized by the Mexican Association of Horsemen and Breeders of Quarter Horses, A.C. (AMCM), a subsidiary of the American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA). The other one is hosted by the National Association of Thoroughbred Breeders, A.C. (ANCPS). Both sales use the installa- tion of the Hipodromo de Las Americas as their stage.
The first auction mentioned is known as the Select Auction. It includes yearlings that are registered,
born in Mexico, and sired by stallions that reside in Mexico or were in the country when bred to the dam,
which is also in national territory. Also eligible are yearlings conceived through artificial insemination and embryo transfer, provided that they were handled in Mexican laboratories.
The information available for sales from 2004- 2011 states the following:
• The number of registered yearlings varied from a
low of 236 in 2006 to a high of 355 in 2011, the
highest in the history of this event.
• Of the total enrolled, about 91% are presented on
the sales floor. The others are removed for different reasons. Between 30-40% of the individuals entering the ring are actually sold, while the other 60-70% are “bought back” by the consignees or breeders.
• The average price per horse, including repurchase was 71,000 pesos ($5,259 U.S.).
• There is an apparent concentration of produc- tion. Seven breeders, out of an approximate total of 50, provided on average 46% of the animals, highlighted by Mr. Carlos Antonio Sosa, Abelardo and Salome Gallegos, Everardo Muzquiz, Salvador Onate, Hector Roldan, and Anselmo Aguilar.
The above data suggest that the low prices are explained for the most part by the high rate of repurchase. What about those individuals that do not change owner? Some remain in the hands of their
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SPEEDHORSE, August 31, 2012
AROUND THE GLOBE
Miguel Angel espinoza