If a major part of a trainer's job is to place horses in the right races, then a consignor must select the right sale for their offerings, which is exactly what David Cox of Baroda Stud gets right more times than not.
Baroda have had some well-received yearling drafts in Britain and France this autumn and Cox is quietly optimistic of breaking into the top bracket of the September Yearling Sale at Tattersalls Ireland this week with his 21-strong draft.
“It's all about trying to make your horse stand out. No matter what sale you go to, you want to be in that top 10 to 15 per cent,” Cox said at the end of a busy day showing at Barn G at Tattersalls Ireland on Sunday.
“You have to think about what physical you have, what pedigree you have and then try and make your horse stand out wherever you send it. All of the yearling sales so far this year, the top end of the market has been very strong, so, if you can position yourself to be in the top 10 to 15 per cent of that market, you are going to get well-paid.
“Take our horses at this sale for example, we have a broad arrangement of sires there; we've sharp types and staying types, so we've something for everyone. A lot of the breeze-up men and women, they didn't really do a lot of shopping in Britain this year because of the expenses involved, but they will shop here.”
He added, “This is a good sale. It's an Irish sale as well, which is important, because we need to support the Irish sales as well as the English ones.”
It being an Irish sale is a relevant point. There was a noticeably small representation of Irish trainers at the Premier Yearling Sale at Doncaster and the Somerville Sale at Tattersalls UK but Paddy Twomey, Ado McGuinness and many more were spotted doing some early legwork on Sunday.
Travelling horses to and from Britain has become far more expensive since Brexit and, according to Cox, is a major factor in when it comes to trainers, agents and owners deciding where to select the raw material from.
However, judging by the footfall at Tattersalls Ireland on Sunday, a good 48 hours before the sale commences on Tuesday, trade at the first Irish yearling sale of 2022 should be strong.
“Even for ourselves,” Cox explained, “sending yearlings to the sales in Britain has become extremely expensive. The cost is roughly double what it used to be and, if you don't sell one and have to bring it back, it's far from ideal.
“If you were to look at the amount of British runners in Ireland this season, I can only imagine that it is much less than what it used to be, and that's because of the costs in travelling these horses and the hassle that comes with Brexit.”
On his hopes for the week ahead, he added, “There aren't many Irish trainers who splash out at the yearling sales and buy on spec. There aren't many Richard Hannons over here and, to be honest, there are less and less trainers buying on spec on the whole.
“It's more agents, owners and syndicates who are doing the buying but the yearling sales have been strong so far this year so I'd be positive heading into this week.
“We've had a lot of footfall today, there's plenty of English over, which is great so I think this sale will go well.”
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