Newsells Park Stud, which has been owned by the Jacobs family since 2000, has been sold to owner/breeder and tech entrepreneur Graham Smith-Bernal.
The Hertfordshire farm is home to the stallions Nathaniel (Ire) and Without Parole (GB), and the sale agreed with Jacobs Holdings includes the stud's bloodstock and 1,200-acre property.
The 63-year-old Smith-Bernal is described in a press release announcing the sale as “a leading figure in legal technology, [who] revolutionised the operation of law courts, tribunals and arbitrations around the world through the introduction by his company, Opus 2 International, of paperless trials a decade ago”.
His interest in racehorse ownership and breeding grew throughout that time and he has boarded mares at Newsells Park for the last six years, as well as having horses in training in Newmarket with William Haggas.
Over the last two decades Newsells Park Stud, which was founded in 1926 by Sir Humphrey de Trafford, has played a leading role at the major European yearling sales, and has bred a number of top-class horses, including the treble Group 1 winner Legatissimo (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}) and her fellow Classic winner Masked Marvel (GB) (Montjeu {Ire}). It is also the co-breeder of the 2019 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winner and Ballylinch Stud stallion Waldgeist (GB) (Galileo {Ire}).
“Newsells Park Stud dates back almost a century and is part of the fabric of British and International horse racing,” said Graham Smith-Bernal. “As an existing client, I have had the pleasure of witnessing at first hand the meticulous professionalism, attention to detail and service provided by Julian Dollar and his team, both in preparing horses for racing and yearlings for the sales ring. I consider it a huge honour and a privilege to have acquired Newsells Park and look forward to building on the legacy of Klaus J. Jacobs and the previous owners, to ensure that the stud remains at the pinnacle of breeding and racing.”
Nathalie Albin-Jacobs, whose late father Klaus purchased the stud in 2000 and who was chair of Newsells Park until the sale, said, “Newsells was a passion of my late father. He would have taken great pleasure and pride in the stud's many successes and especially Waldgeist's win in the Arc in 2019 which would have been the culmination of his ambitions as a breeder.”
She added, “The time has come now for my family to focus on our other businesses and we know that with Graham, the stud will find a passionate and successful custodian and owner of Newsells Park for a new successful journey both in maintaining and building further on its many achievements.”
Julian Dollar will continue in his role as general manager of Newsells Park Stud, a position he has held since 2006. During that time, the stud, which was also the birthplace of the 1959 Derby winner Parthia (GB), has been the leading consignor at Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale on five occasions, including the last three years. It topped last year's sale with a Galileo filly out of its star broodmare Shastye (Ire) (Danehill), who was sold for 3.4 million gns to Coolmore. The filly is a full-sister to the Newsells Park-bred Group 1 winners Japan (GB) and Mogul (GB), as well as the Oaks runner-up and Group 2 winner Secret Gesture (GB).
“The team and I are very grateful for the vision and investment made by the Jacobs family to date, which has seen the stud grow to be one of Europe's foremost commercial stud farms,” he said. “We now really look forward to working for Graham and making the most of this excellent opportunity to further develop Newsells Park Stud as a leader in its field worldwide. We will continue not only breeding, raising and selling exceptional racehorses, but also offering domestic and international clients professional boarding services, sales preparation and top-class stallions.”
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