Flash Conroy | Horse Racing Free Tips

Almost 30 Million Guineas Spent On Foals At Tatts But Figures Take A Dip

Tattersalls chairman Edmond Mahony acknowledged the weakness of the lower end of the market as the Tattersalls December Foal Sale concluded on Saturday with a 125,000gns Showcasing (GB) filly leading the way.

Almost 30 million gns was spent on foals this week at Tattersalls while Friday saw the most expensive foal sold so far this year–a St Mark's Basilica (Fr) filly–in Europe and North America at 575,000gns.

However, the aggregate of 29,842,902gns was down 15% on last year while the average dropped 6% to 44,608gns. The clearance rate was more or less the same, dropping 1% to 75%, while the median dropped 19% to 21,000gns.

Mahony commented, “Sustained demand for quality foals has been the feature of the four days of selling at Europe's premier foal sale. In addition to the highest price for a foal in Europe and North America this year there have been a record 29 foals sold for 200,000 guineas or more and a healthy diversity of buyers in all sectors of the market.

“The cream of the British and Irish foal crop has attracted buyers in abundance not only from Britain and Ireland but also from throughout Europe and the Gulf region as well as China, Japan and America. The overseas demand has had a significant impact on trade which, although not matching last year's record levels, has remained robust with the exception of the lower end of the market which we must all recognise has been challenging.”

He added, “The pinhookers will always be the backbone of any Tattersalls December Foal Sale and as ever they have worked tirelessly, but the contribution from so many significant owners is becoming an increasingly important and regular feature of the sale. When a sale consistently produces racehorses the calibre of 2000 Guineas winner Chaldean (GB) and the unbeaten Group 1- and 2-winning two-year-olds Vandeek (GB) and Ghostwriter (Ire), it reflects the quality of the stock presented by the consignors and it is clear that their confidence in the sale has been reciprocated by many of the world's most successful racehorse owners.

“Another positive to come out of this year's December Foal Sale has been the overwhelmingly favourable response to the break in selling on the Thursday of the sale which allowed buyers valuable extra time to view the Friday and Saturday foals. The change was introduced in response to feedback from vendors and purchasers alike and as well as being well received it is notable that the clearance rates for both Friday and Saturday have improved significantly on last year's record-breaking sale.

“With a solid Tattersalls December Foal Sale behind us we now look forward to welcoming buyers from every continent in the world to Park Paddocks for another quality renewal of the Tattersalls December Sale which features some spectacular fillies and broodmares, many of them showcased in the elite Sceptre Sessions which take place on Monday and Tuesday.”

The Saturday topper (lot 1203) was consigned by Daymark Stud and went the way of Ciaran 'Flash' Conroy. The Showcasing filly is a sister to the stakes-placed Fourth Way (Ire) (Iffraaj {GB}) and will be offered for resale next year.

Conroy commented, “Let's hope she is a top lot next year! She is a lovely physical, I like the stallion – he is a very good sire of fillies. She is a really good individual, very balanced, a very good walker. She is a Book 1 individual, and from a young operation so good to see young breeders having a good result.”

The sale capped off a solid day's trade for Daymark Stud with four foals selling for 263,000gns.

“It is a sigh of relief! It has been incredible, we are very lucky, we are a very small operation,” the stud's Josh Cameron said. “I have done every hand walk with every single foal and some days I think 'Oh maybe I should get someone to help', but I do think it helps the foals in the end. I am not sure my girlfriend has loved living with me over the last eight weeks!

“But we got there in the end and thanks to the little syndicate who own the mare Messalina for their support. Two mates bought her out of Archie Watson's yard and sent her to me, and just said, 'See how you get on!' Her first foal by Havana Grey (GB), who we sold here last year for 46,000 guineas, is going to Kevin Philippart De Foy and this year she has produced this amazing Showcasing filly, who has not missed a beat all week. She is a real athlete and for someone like Flash to buy her is unreal.”

The post Almost 30 Million Guineas Spent On Foals At Tatts But Figures Take A Dip appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Cameras At The Ready As Flash Offers Blackbeard’s Sister

By Brian Sheerin and Emma Berry

KILDARE, Ireland–Blackbeard (Ire) has blazed a trail on the track this season and, less than a week after doubling his Group 1 tally when running out an impressive winner of the Middle Park S. at Newmarket, his little sister will go under the hammer at the Orby Sale on Tuesday, which gets underway at 9.30am.

The No Nay Never filly will be sold by Flash Conroy of Glenvale Stud and is one of the most important lots of the entire sale given the exploits of her older brother this year.

But there's only so far a yearling can piggy back off its vaunted sibling, according to Conroy, who says lot 93 has a physique to match her page.

“She's very good-looking, a lovely filly,” Conroy said on Monday. “Listen, we're looking at her all year and every day that Blackbeard ran was a big day for us.

“It's very rare in this game when you get the big updates on the page but you can stand over the physical of the horse that you are going to sell. It matches up in this case.”

Blackbeard has gone from strength to strength for Aidan O'Brien and the colt may not be finished yet. He has won six of his eight starts and, after following up on his Prix Morny victory in the Middle Park, O'Brien suggested he could run again before the year is out, possibly in the Dewhurst.

But Blackbeard has more than done his job as far as Conroy is concerned, with the leading consignor describing his offering as being up there with the best he has sold in recent times, which is saying plenty.

“Blackbeard is the top 2-year-old sprinter around. Watching him win, that's what this game is all about. If you don't get a kick out of that, you may as well give this game up.”

Conroy added, “We've had some very good horses in recent years and she is another. We sold Minzaal (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}), Pretty Gorgeous (Fr) (Lawman {Fr}), and Flotus (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}), so we've had a good old time of it. This filly has all the physical attributes that you look for. She's a really good filly.”

Staffordstown's Rare Jewel

At the Lanwades/Staffordstown boxes on Monday much of the talk centred on Kirsten Rausing's five-time Group 1 winner Alpinista (GB) (Frankel {GB}), who heads to the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe on Sunday.

“I'll be off my food by Sunday,” joked the filly's trainer Sir Mark Prescott as he tucked into soup and sandwiches handmade by Catriona Oxx and reminisced about Sea The Stars (Ire) with her husband John, who also trained Sinndar (Ire) to win the Arc in 2000.

Rausing herself admits that she will probably be a “bundle of nerves” by Sunday, and Alpinista is not her only star filly to be travelling to Longchamp as dual Group 2 winner Sandrine (GB) (Bobby's Kitten) is being aimed at the G1 prix de la Foret. But before thoughts can turn to Paris she has the equally important task of selling a half-sister to two more Group 1-winning Lanwades graduates, the brothers Time Warp (GB) and Glorious Forever (GB), both of whom are by the stud's late stallion Archipenko. Their younger sister, set to sell late on Wednesday as lot 490, is the sole yearling by Dubawi (Ire) in the catalogue, making her something of a standout.

“I have a really nice Sea The Stars filly also and obviously we wanted to separate them, so the Sea The Stars goes to Tatts and the Dubawi filly came here. My thoughts were that there would be fewer Dubawi yearlings here, and in fact she's the only one,” said Rausing.

“She was always an outstanding filly and she merits her place in the limelight. Her brothers both won the same Group 1 in Hong Kong, and the elder brother (Time Warp) won a further two Group 1s.”

Staffordstown, the Irish sister stud to Newmarket-based Lanwades, topped this sale in 2007 when selling the filly subsequently knowns as Jane Eyre (GB) – a half-sister to Alpinista's dam Alwilda (GB) (Hernando {Fr}) – for €2.4 million to Coolmore. Two years ago, for the more humble sum of £110,000, Rausing sold recent St Leger winner Eldar Eldarov (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}).

Meanwhile the International success of Lanwades continues, with the likes of Zaaki (GB) and Le Don De Vie (GB), both by Leroidesanimaux (Brz), reaping group-race success in Australia.

Rausing continued, “I think I am right in saying that we have sent 11 Lanwades-breds down to Australia in the last few years. All 11 have run, one has only run once, ten have won, and seven have won black-type races. I suppose what it means is that I seem to breed horses that go distances the Australians like.”

No matter how out of fashion middle-distance races become in various parts of the world, there are few breeders who wouldn't dream of winning the Arc, and Rausing is justified to travel to Longchamp with high hopes of doing just that.

Of Alpinista she added, “She's obviously very special, as were her ancestresses Albanova (GB), her granny, and Alborada (GB), her great aunt in human terms.

“You're in this game so long that one tries to submerge any feeling of nervousness which I think I am fairly good at, because we all know that there are so many things that can go wrong. But if all the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle actually fall into place it is so amazing one can hardly believe it.”

Staffordstown also offers four colts by the Lanwades first-season sire Study Of Man (Ire), including lot 236, who is out of the Group 3 winner Starlit Sands (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) and is a half-brother to the dam of the aforementioned Sandrine.

Altior's Brother 'Going Down Like A Bomb'

Fresh off the back of another productive September Yearling Sale at Tattersalls Ireland, Mark Dreeling of Coole House Farm offers the quirkiest colt at the Orby Sale in lot 86, a Mastercraftsman (Ire) half-brother to Altior (Ire), one of the greatest two-mile chasers in modern times.

Dreeling admitted that the colt, who was a late June foal, was always going to struggle to make it to a National Hunt foal sale, even if that would have been the most natural place to sell Paddy Behan's youngster.

However, the consignor, flanked by the enthusiastic breeder at Barn M, described himself as pleasantly surprised about how well the colt has been received by buyers.

Dreeling said, “He was foaled late so it was always going to be a struggle to get him to the National Hunt foal sales. We contemplated bringing the half-brother by Camelot (GB) here a few years ago but decided against that.

“This lad came along and we thought he might be a novelty horse here and he's gone down like a bomb. Paddy was astute in his thinking. Himself and his wife Rosie have done all the hard work. Goffs were eager to have him and we said, 'why not?' He's going down terribly well.”

Monte Solaro (Ire) (Key Of Luck) has been a dream broodmare for the Behans, with four-time Cheltenham festival hero Altior flying the flag for the pedigree, and Tuesday's offering is likely to be the last out of the 22-year-old.

However, Behan will continue to breed from the family after revealing that he recently struck a deal to buy Princess Leya (Ire) (Old Vic {GB}), a half-sister to the legendary dual Champion Chase winner.

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TDN Q&A With Ciaran ‘Flash’ Conroy

Minzaal (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}), purchased by Shadwell for 140,000gns from Glenvale Stud at Tattersalls Book 2, is set to run in the G1 Juddmonte Middle Park S. at Newmarket on Saturday. TDN‘s Gary King chatted with Glenvale’s ‘Flash’ Conroy to hear more about the horse, and his thoughts on some wider industry issues.

GK: You’ve had plenty of top horses through the gates of Glenvale over the years. Who, in your opinion, was the best?

FC: I’ve been fortunate to have consigned Royal Ascot winners like The Wow Signal (Ire), Waterloo Bridge (Ire), Telescope (Ire) and Thomas Chippendale (Ire), but Alice Springs (Ire) and Leading Light (Ire) were multiple Group 1 winners so they would have to be the best.

GK: 2020 has been another banner year with the likes of Minzaal and Pretty Gorgeous (Fr) (Lawman {Fr}). They must have been a welcome distraction in what has been a challenging period for everyone?

FC: It’s been a very tough year on everybody involved in the business so it was great to see John Oxley have his success with Pretty Gorgeous. He’s a big owner in America but is relatively new to Europe and we always need new owners coming into the game.

On the other hand, Minzaal has helped Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum have another brilliant year and that’s just as important as he’s been a marvellous supporter of the business for so long.

GK: As you said, the Joseph O’Brien-trained Pretty Gorgeous has been a real flagbearer, especially her tussles with Donnacha’s Shale (Ire). What were your impressions of her as a younger horse, as she developed from a €55,000 Arqana December foal, purchased by Mags O’Toole, to a 525,000gns yearling at Tattersalls Book 1?

FC: Well it’s this simple, she’s very well named! She was always gorgeous. She was a big, strong filly with great limbs and extra action.

GK: Without giving away too many secrets, what do you typically look for when pinhooking a foal to a yearling?

FC: For me it’s about getting the right mix of physical and pedigree. I look for a foal with quality and scope. It needs to have a good walk and temperament, and ideally will be by a sire that’ll be hot the following year.

GK: You’ve been fortunate to work with some legends of the Thoroughbred industry over the years. If you had to pick one person who you learned the most from, who would that be?

FC: I got a great education with Tim Hyde of Camas Park Stud; he’s a gentleman and a wonderful judge of both horses and pedigrees. Paul Shanahan is a great friend and must be one of the most knowledgeable men in the business.

GK: It’s been a tricky year so far but the European yearling sales have held up pretty well. What’s your overall opinion of the market?

FC: Yes, they have held up well, considering we are in the middle of a global pandemic, and hopefully things will be much better by this time next year. Great credit must be given to everyone who has worked so hard to make sure that the racing and sales are continuing.

The post TDN Q&A With Ciaran ‘Flash’ Conroy appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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