The gross sales for the first session were $7,622,000, a 12.4% decrease from last year, when 64 horses went through the ring, compared to 63 this year. The average dropped from $130,281 last year to $120,894, while the median remained at $100,000.
Sweet Azteca won a pace duel with the speedy Thermal to take the Rancho Bernardo Stakes at Del Mar for the third straight year. Juan Hernandez was aboard the 6-year-old daughter of Sharp Azteca for trainer Richard Baltas.
The two horses with the least experience on grass were the top two across the Saratoga Race Course wire Aug. 16 in the $225,000 Mahony Stakes (G3T), with Stradale outlasting Oscar's Hope to win by a neck.