Some of the most respected names in the New Zealand thoroughbred industry will be out in force at Karaka over the next few days during the milestone 100th edition of the National Yearling Sale.

NZB’s annual showpiece gets underway with the Karaka Millions twilight race meeting at Ellerslie on Saturday, followed by Book 1 on Sunday and Monday, Book 2 on Tuesday and the inaugural Karaka Summer Sale on Thursday.

Vendors have embraced the significance of this occasion, including Cambridge Stud, who will offer their yearlings exclusively at Karaka this season.

“Sir Brendan and Lady Jo Lindsay made that decision a fair way out from the sale, and I think it’s very fitting that Cambridge Stud supports the sale 100 percent in its 100th year,” the stud’s sales and nominations manager Scott Calder said.

“The history of the National Sale, NZB and Cambridge Stud are very much intertwined, and there have been numerous highlights that Cambridge Stud has been a part of – particularly in the Sir Patrick and Lady Hogan era. We’d love to carry on that great legacy.”

This year also marks the 50th anniversary of Cambridge Stud, which was established by Sir Patrick and Lady Hogan in 1976.

Cambridge Stud will offer 70 yearlings during Karaka 2026, and the team’s excitement has only grown in the lead-up to the sale on the strength of an outstanding run of form by their stallions. First-season sire Sword Of State has emerged as a budding star with the likes of Bjorn Baker’s unbeaten colt Warwoven and the Ben, Will and JD Hayes-trained Torture, who won the Listed Debutant Stakes (1000m) in October and will contest Saturday’s Karaka Millions 2YO (1200m).

Almanzor, meanwhile, has sired four individual Group winners in New Zealand since November 22, including First Five in the Gr.1 Telegraph (1200m).

“The timing has been very good in that respect,” Calder said. “Almanzor has had a fantastic run, and I think Sword Of State is up near the top of the list in terms of stallions that people are coming to the sale to try to buy yearlings by.

“Hello Youmzain has had a good summer as well and will be strongly represented on Karaka Millions night on the eve of the sale. All of those things bode well for our draft, because those three stallions make up a large chunk of the 70 yearlings we’re offering.

“Yesterday (Wednesday) was a bit of a washout, the rain didn’t help at all, but everyone’s got stuck in once the weather cleared today. There seems to be a lot of buoyancy around the sale grounds.

“The sense of occasion certainly adds to it this year, being the 100th anniversary. Hopefully it all combines to create a strong market and the horses will sell well.”

An obvious headline act in the Cambridge Stud draft is Lot 513, the colt by Sword Of State out of the Shamardal mare Las Brisas. That makes him a half-brother to the four-time Group One winner and A$10 million earner Ceolwulf. His most recent elite-level triumph came in the Champions Mile (1600m) at Flemington after the catalogue went to print.

“He’s a real drawcard when you look at his pedigree page on paper, and he’s the same when you see him in the flesh,” Calder said. “We’re really excited about him. He’s by the right stallion and out of the right dam, and he’s a horse we’re very fond of.

“The early indications on the sale grounds are that there’s a lot of interest in him, so we’re really looking forward to seeing him go through the ring.

“Another one we’re quite excited about is Lot 461, the filly by Spirit Of Boom out of Gracious Grey. She’s another one that we’ve been fortunate enough to have a significant pedigree update for. Her half-sister Kind Words has won twice since the catalogue went to print, including the Gr.3 Belle of the Turf Stakes (1600m). It’s a very current family and she’s one to keep an eye on.

“But I think the strength of our draft is that it’s just a very even group of really nice horses that we’re hoping will have a lot of appeal for buyers.”

Another vendor that will operate exclusively at Karaka 2026 is Trelawney Stud, whose famous history stretches back almost as far as the National Yearling Sale’s. The nursery was established by Seton Otway in the 1930s.

“This is a great celebration for the whole industry, reaching 100 years, and Trelawney has played quite a big part in that,” Brent Taylor said. “They started selling yearlings at the sale in the early 1930s and have sold yearlings pretty much every year since then. That makes us certainly the longest-standing vendor still selling at the National Yearling Sale.

“I myself was there for the first sale at Karaka in 1988, working for Cambridge Stud at the time. To see the complex develop, change and become a world-leading centre of excellence for breeding and results on the racetrack is something to be very proud of.

“It’s fantastic to be a part of that history. We had our first sale at Trelawney in 1994 and have sold every year since then.

“Trelawney has decided to dedicate 100 percent of our yearlings to Karaka this year. It’s a really good, strong line-up of horses. We’ve been inundated with interest in parades and it feels like the market is going to be strong. The vibe is good, so we’re all really pleased and looking forward to the sale.”

Trelawney Stud has 17 yearlings catalogued for Book 1 of Karaka 2026, with another five entered for Book 2.

“We have a couple of personal favourites, although they may not end up being the ones that make the most money,” Taylor said. “For us, it’s more about presenting horses that you like and you can see a future in.

“The first of those favourites is Lot 94, the colt by Proisir out of Ruqqaya. It’s a special family that we’ve been heavily involved with, producing the likes of Ocean Park, Grunt and Zayydani, and he’s just a ripping colt. He’s one of my favourites on type. He’s a good mover and has great balance and temperament.

“And then there’s a Russian Revolution filly, Lot 203, who’s out of one of my favourite racemares in Two Illicit. She was an absolute star on the track for us – a very consistent and high-class performer. She’s given us a beautiful, beautiful filly to offer.

“It’s exciting to have a couple of really nice horses like that, but it’s a good-sized draft and I’m sure I’ve missed other horses that people will like more.

“We’ve got a good draft, a good bunch of people at Karaka helping us out, and we’re looking forward to a busy few days.”

The 2026 edition of the National Yearling Sale is a milestone in more ways than one for the respected vendor Curraghmore.

“As well as being the 100th National Yearling Sale, it’s the 30th for NZB and the 30th national sale for Curraghmore as well,” Gordon Cunningham said.

“It’s very special to have built up the history that we’ve had with this sale, and we’ve had highlights every year.

“I was gifted a beautiful book this week with the top horse to come out of the sale each year for those 100 years. In our 30 years, we’ve had Fairway in 1998, who was a multiple Group One winner and the most successful horse from that year’s sale. Then a few years later we had Efficient, who won a Melbourne Cup and was the most successful graduate from his year’s sale. We’re very proud of that.”

Curraghmore’s class of 2026 features 22 yearlings in the catalogue for Book 1, seven in Book 2 and two in the new Karaka Summer Sale.

“I think we’ve got our usual sort of draft, with lots of really good prospects to become good racehorses,” Cunningham said.

“The first couple of days here were quite testing with the weather, but the horses paraded very well for us and we were very proud of them.

“It seems to me that the level of interest is consistent with other years. People always seem to be happy to come back to Karaka and come to see us, which we appreciate.

“One of my favourite things about this year’s draft is that many of them are relatives to good horses that we’ve produced in the past.

“An example of that is Lot 222, a full brother to Kovalica, who’s been a Group One winner and has earned more than A$4 million for Chris Waller.

“Lot 382 is a colt by Super Seth out of Distinctive Lass. That makes him a half-brother to five stakes winners including the Group One winner Kahma Lass. He’s also a half-brother to Drops Of God, who’s unbeaten in two starts and running in the Gr.3 Almanzor Trophy (1200m) on Saturday evening.

“That meeting will also feature a horse that we sold last year, Torture, in the Karaka Millions 2YO. She was the first stakes winner for Sword Of State and we’re looking forward to cheering her on at Ellerslie. We had a half-sister by Proisir in our draft, but we unfortunately had to withdraw her because of a minor knock on her leg.

“We’re offering a beautifully bred, good-looking colt by The Autumn Sun out of Infinite Wonder (Lot 485), along with a lovely filly by Ghaiyyath from On The Ball (Lot 23), bred by Bob Emery from one of his original families.

“We have five yearlings by Satono Aladdin, including a filly out of Avisto (Lot 292). Avisto was one of Tavistock’s three stakes-winning two-year-olds. She was also his first winner, his first stakes winner, and then she produced Annavisto and credited Tavistock with his first stakes winner as a broodmare sire. This is a lovely filly.

“Another one worth mentioning is a Too Darn Hot filly from Glory Bound (Lot 455), who placed in the Gr.2 Fillies’ Classic (2000m) and went on to be a Group placegetter in Australia. This is her first foal.”

Waikato Stud, the leading vendors at Karaka in 10 of the last 12 years, again have both quantity and quality in a draft of 55 yearlings in Book 1 and 22 in Book 2.

“The Karaka complex is second to none and a great place to work,” Mark Chittick said in an interview with NZB. “There have been many highlights in our time coming here and I couldn’t really single any out.

“All of our drafts have been born at Waikato Stud and raised at Waikato Stud. We’re happy selling a horse for $150,000 to $200,000, there’s profit in that for us and it all mounts up. Just 12 months later, those horses can be in Australia and racing for $150,000 every Saturday. It’s a no-brainer to me.

“This year, with it being the 100th National Yearling Sale, that made it a big factor in us wanting to have a really good, strong draft that we’re extremely proud of. We try to do that every year, but certainly this year.

“The amount of high-quality Super Seth yearlings that we’ve got in the draft is a real high point for us, and of course there are some lovely Savabeels – we all know about him.

“The Ardrossans are another notable feature. People have to remember that he’s done what he’s done so far with very limited opportunities. He has a big crop of foals that are two-year-olds this season. Only two of those have gone to the track so far, and De Armas is a stakes winner and Butler Cabin has been Group Two placed, and they’re both in the Karaka Millions 2YO field. The rest of that crop are all coming through too.

“There’s also Noverre, who always leaves lovely types.

“It’s a really good draft. We’re hugely excited about Karaka every year, but certainly this year, being 100 years.”