Tag: Havana Grey

Somerville Soars As Zoustar Filly Leads The Charge

NEWMARKET, UK–There are plenty of troubling stories out in the big wide world at the moment, but buyers at the yearling sales so far this season appear not to be concerned or affected by a cost-of-living-crisis, with the Tattersalls Somerville Sale the latest to benefit from a boom in demand for young stock.

The Somerville is only in its second year but it has already been pegged as an important fixture in the run of yearling sales and the 2022 renewal posted huge gains in all sectors. Four six-figure lots compared to just one last year, and an increase from 17 yearlings making 50,000gns or more this time last year to 39, meant that the median rose by 60% to 26,000gns, and the average by 42% to 30,377gns. The clearance rate also improved on a string start last year and settled at 88%, while at 7,746,200gns, the turnover was up by 56%.

The only trouble this newcomer to the auction calendar could face is balancing the desire by a number of participants for it to remain in its one-day format with what is likely to be a rise in demand for places. This time around 290 horses were offered from an original catalogue of 313, and from a 10 a.m. start, trading continued for 11 hours until the final yearling left the ring just after 9 p.m. It was a long day for most people involved in the sale, but the 'one and done' aspect of the Somerville remains of appeal in an increasingly condensed calendar. This week alone there are sales taking place in Newmarket, Doncaster, Deauville and at Yorton Farm in Wales within the space of four days.

 

Select Plantation Draft Makes a Splash

For Plantation Stud it was in a sense a case of 'if at first you don't succeed'. Last December at the foal sale, the stud took home a Zoustar (Aus) filly and Shalaa (Ire) colt, knocked down to vendor for 18,000gns and 20,000gns, respectively. Returned to the ring as yearlings on Tuesday, it was a markedly different story, however, as the Newmarket farm accounted for two of the four six-figure yearlings on the day.

Leading all-comers was the daughter of Zoustar (lot 213), the recipient of a boost from her half-brother Unanimous Consent (GB) (Almanzor {Fr}), who has won and been fourth in a Grade II in America this season, and was set to run on Tuesday night in the GIII Virginia Derby at Colonial Downs. But she had also grown into an imposing individual in the intervening nine months, persuading Richard Hughes to stretch to 160,000gns to secure her for his burgeoning team of yearling purchases this year.

Hughes, a former multiple champion jockey himself, calls on another champion of the jumps division, the legendary AP McCoy, to break in his yearlings. “They don't mess with him,” he said with a laugh.

“She'll take a bit of time but we'll see how her brother gets on tonight. If he wins tonight then she's half-price. I'd say he's a 115 [rated] horse.”

The filly has Australian sires on both sides of her pedigree as her twice-raced dam Fast Lily (Ire) is by Fastnet Rock (Aus) and is a half-sister to two classy fillies in the G2 Lowther S. winner Silk Blossom (Ire) and G3 Prix de la Porte de Maillot victrix Mashoora (Ire), both by Barathea (Ire).

James Berney, who manages Plantation Stud for Michael O'Leary, said of the sale's top lot, “We are over the moon, she deserves to make that type of money and she has improved greatly through the year. Her brother's form has helped as well.

“We are delighted she is going to Richard Hughes and it's great for the mare. She has a Showcasing (GB) foal at and she is in foal to Pinatubo (Ire).”

He added, “There has been a bit of motion with this sale and we thought we'd bring along horses who might stand out a bit.”

Just an hour earlier, Plantation Stud's Shalaa colt (lot 188) had gone through the ring, fetching a final bid of 120,000gns from Oliver St Lawrence.

“He is for Fawzi [Nass] and team and will probably end up in the red and white colours of Victorious Racing,” said the agent while sitting next to Archie Watson, who trains the G2 Coventry S. winner and last year's Somerville Sale graduate Bradsell (GB) (Tasleet {GB}) for the same connections.

St Lawrence added, “The mare is two from two [winners] and they are both rated up in the 90s. I think he will be going to Archie.”

Watson also issued an update on Bradsell, who is recuperating from an injury sustained in the G1 Keeneland Phoenix S. and will be aimed next spring at a Commonwealth Cup trial.

The Shalaa colt's winning dam Dream Dana (Ire) (Dream Ahead) has produced the multiple winners Operatic (Ire) (Showcasing {GB}) and Dynamic Force (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) and is a daughter of the dual Group 3 winner Lidanna (GB) (Nicholas). The immediate family includes the Group 1-winning sprinter Wizz Kid (Ire) (Whipper), a son of Dream Dana's half-sister Lidanski (Ire) (Soviet Star).

 

 

Aughamore Strike With Mehmas Colt

Nobody in the bloodstock world really needed a reminder that Mehmas (Ire) is one of the most promising young sires to have burst onto the scene in recent years, but it never hurts for a stallion to have a Group 1 winner just prior to a sale. Minzaal (Ire) gave his Tally-Ho Stud-based sire, or more accurately those consignors with one of his yearlings to sell, a timely boost with his G1 Sprint Cup victory at Haydock, and it was a win that underlined that there is more to just speed and precocity when it comes to Mehmas. The speed is there for sure, and we saw just how precocious his stock can be when members of his first crop helped Mehmas set a new European record when becoming champion freshman sire. But far more importantly, his stock appear to thrive on their racing, as exemplified by the 4-year-old Minzaal, who also happens to be a former Gimcrack winner.

Laurence Gleeson of Aughamore Stud was one of those beneficiaries, selling a homebred colt (lot 163) to Ross Doyle and Robson Aguiar for 135,000gns. Out of the winning Exceed And Excel (Aus) mare Classic Image (GB), who was bought by Gleeson as a 3-year-old for 6,500gns, the colt will be trained by Richard Hannon, who also trained Mehmas.

“Mehmas needs no introduction, and the farm has done a great job prepping him, he looks fantastic,” said Doyle. “He is a good mover, and Mehmas has already been a very good friend to a lot of people.”

Gleeson added, “We sent the mare to Mehmas just as he was just about to have his first 2-year-olds, and we heard there were some good breezers. We took a punt and it has worked out.

“This colt has been a star here everyone was saying that he was a stand-out. You don't want to get your hopes up but it has all worked out in the end.”

 

Hannon will also take charge of another Ross Doyle purchase (lot 126), a filly by Kodiac (GB), bought for 70,000gns and whose ownership group will include one of the owners of Australian superstar Verry Elleegant (NZ) (Zed {NZ}). Adrian Whittingham and his son Darcy of the New South Wales-based Honeycomb Stud already have horses in training in the UK, including the twice-placed juvenile Tellus (GB) with John Quinn, who previously trained Deny Knowledge (Ire) for the same partnership before the daughter of Pride Of Dubai (Aus) was transferred to Michael Kent in Australia. The Whittinghams' trip to Europe to watch Verry Elleegant run at Longchamp on Sunday also provided time for a Tattersalls shopping trip.

Doyle said, “She has been bought to go to Richard Hannon for partnership of Honeycomb Stud in Australia and one of our clients will take half. They are happy to race here, but if they think the horses might be more effective Down Under they will ship. A broodmare pedigree is a big bonus down the line.”

The Kodiac filly, who was consigned by her breeder Tally-Ho Stud, is a granddaughter of the G1 Irish Oaks winner Winona (Ire) (Alzao) and from the further family of the multiple Grade I winner Stella Madrid (Alydar).

 

Teme Valley Hoping For Another Star

A striking chestnut son of Starspangledbanner (Aus) turned plenty of heads, but it was Richard Ryan who has the most staying power in the bidding battle to secure the Ballyhimikin Stud-consigned colt (lot 147) who had been bought as a foal for €62,000. That sum was more than doubled by the time the hammer fell at 130,000gns, and Ryan had plenty of extra encouragement in ensuring that he was bought for Teme Valley Racing, who, until the end of last season had campaigned Starspangledbanner's outstanding son State Of Rest (Ire).

“He was a slightly unexpected type of horse to find this horse in this sale, a different ball game than the rest of the field, I thought,” said the agent. “He's a good strong Starspangledbanner colt with a good backside on him. He is from a real speed family and will make a lovely 2-year-old. He is a proper horse, and would be in any sale.”

A son of the Bahamian Bounty (GB) mare Black Rodded (GB) and a half-brother to three multiple winners, the colt is a great grandson of the fast dual listed winner Palace Street, who later found fame as the dam of G1 July Cup winner Sakhee's Secret (GB). The family has been boosted recently by the G3 Coral Charge win of Raasel (GB), who is out of a half-sister to Black Rodded.

Vendor James Hanly of Ballyhimikin Stud said, “It is a great venue and everyone is here. It is a very good format as a one-day sale–people can get in and have plenty of time to see them over the weekend.”

He added, “It's a strong market and I'm very pleased with that price. The sire has had such a good year, there has been a big uplift in the stallion. Let's hope this colt goes on and wins lots of good races; it is a good way to start the yearling sale season.”

Hanly's positive start to the season continued its good run later in the session when he sold a Zoffany (Ire) filly for breeder Sven Hanson for 75,000gns to Grant Pritchard-Gordon of Badgers Bloodstock.

Lot 268 hails from the family of Group 1 winner and late dual-purpose sire Poliglote (GB) and is out of the Reliable Man (GB) mare Kiss Me Daily (Fr), who is a half-sister to Australian Group 1 winner I'm Your Man (Fr) (Cape Cross {Ire}) and to the dam of five-time group-winning stayer Called To The Bar (Ire) (Henrythenavigator).

 

 

Following in the Footsteps of Malakahna

Footstepsinthesand (GB) may now be a veteran of the stallion ranks but he can still come up with a sales horse and lot 189, Knockatrina House's half-brother to listed winner and Group 3-placed Alakhana (Fr) (Dalakhani {Ire}), was a case in point. One of four yearlings by the Coolmore sire in the sale, he sold for 90,000gns to Ben Brookhouse, who said, “He's a good walker with good scope. He's not too big and not too small and has a lovely attitude.

Brookhouse, who works with successful dual-purpose trainer Ian Williams, is already familiar with the family through Alakhana's daughter Malakhana (Fr), who won a Grade 3 fillies' hurdle for the Williams stable at Cheltenham in April.

“She's a hardy mare. If he's half as good as her he'll be alright,” Brookhouse added.

Bred by Canice Farrell, the dark bay colt is a son of the listed-placed Dubai (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), who was also a winner at two in Germany.

 

Middleham Park Return to Winning Formula

Middleham Park Racing teamed up with agent Ed Sackville to return to a successful formula. For the syndicate, the combination of the Somerville Sale plus Havana Grey has provided them with one of their stars of the season in Eddie's Boy (GB), the Weatherbys Super Sprint winner who has also twice been listed-placed and was a 45,000gns purchase from the inaugural sale.

One of their key selections of the day and the sale's early leader was Hillwood Stud's distinctive grey-spotted Havana Grey filly (lot 67), who brought the gavel down at 85,000gns.

“Obviously Havana Grey from this sale has been a recipe for us before so we have tried to repeat it,” said Middleham Park's Tom Palin of Middleham Park. “Obviously Havana Grey is a more established sire now than this time last year so we have had to pay more but this filly is from a family we have followed and we have bid on a couple [of her relatives] before.

“She is a good solid, nice-moving filly and the nicest Havana Grey we have seen here. She is a strong horse, too and we saw her on our own and then Ed put her to us. The stars were aligning, as such.”

Palin added that the filly would be trained by Hugo Palmer, who moved from Newmarket to Michael Owen's Manor Farm Stables in Cheshire at the beginning of the season.

“You could see her whipping around Chester in the Lily Agnes,” Palin said. “The Havana Greys are sound horses who keep running for you. We are really taken by them, we got a bit lucky that we stumbled on him at the right time and we threw plenty of Havana Grey darts at the board and come up with 180. They are good, honest horses and delighted to get another one.”

A half-sister to the 82-rated multiple winner and Group 3-placed Show Me Show Me (GB) (Showcasing {GB}), the filly was bred by Whitsbury Manor Stud, where her sire stands. She is a daughter of the six-time winner Springing Baroness (GB) (Bertolini) who is herself a half-sister to Showcasing's G2 Mill Reef S. winner Toocoolforschool (GB).

 

 

Major Result For Minor

The first foal of the winning George Vancouver mare Cirrus Minor (Fr) brought a smile to the face of breeder Zorka Wentworth when the filly by Bated Breath (GB) sold as lot 162 from the Norris Bloodstock draft to Oliver St Lawrence for 75,000gns.

A half-sister to the G1 Doomben Cup winner Pornichet (Fr) (Vespone {Ire}), Cirrus Minor is a permanent boarder at Jenny Norris's Redenham Park Stud and is now back in foal to Bated Breath.

“I'm chuffed to bits,” said Wentworth. “Jenny has done a great job and she seemed to be very popular. I put a good reserve on her because I was quite happy to keep her myself. Now I just need her to win because the mare has a gorgeous Time Test (GB) colt foal.”

 

Dunlop's Change of Direction

This time last year Harry Dunlop and Anthony Bromley of Highflyer Bloodstock went to a 12,000gns for a colt from the first crop of Tasleet (GB). Later resold at the Goffs UK Breeze-up for £47,000, that colt went on to win the G2 Coventry S. under the name of Bradsell (GB).

Dunlop was back at the Somerville Sale on Tuesday and bought a filly by Outstrip (GB) (lot 140) in partnership with his brother Ed for 20,000gns, and it is in this role we are more likely to see him in the future after he announced that he would be handing in his training licence at the end of the season.

“Thankfully I am stopping training on my own terms and my financial situation is in a good place and is all sorted out,” he said. “But I am very much keen still to be involved in the industry because I think it would be foolish to step away from it. I love the sales and I love racing and what I would love to do is manage some horses for a big client as well as doing some work at the sales.”

He continued, “I bought a filly with my brother today, which is something I have never done before. I really liked her and hopefully she will do well for Ed. Her sister Ardad's Great is entered in the G1 Cheveley Park S. and is trained by Jessie Harrington, so we are hoping that she could have a nice update.”

Dunlop, who trained French Group 1 winner Robin Of Navan (Fr), as well as Group 2 and Listed Derby Trial winner Knight To Behold (Ire) for American owner Neil Jones, is keen to expand on the international experience of his own training career as well as that gleaned through growing up in Arundel, where his father John trained successfully for decades.

“Dad was a big pioneer on the international circuit and I think was the first English trainer to have a runner in New Zealand and in the Japan Cup, and while I have been training I've had a lot of success in France,” he said.

“The international aspect of the business really interests me and over the last few years we have seen increased investment from overseas, especially from owners in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.”

He added, “I've also been helping Tom Ward at the sales, doing some spotting for him. It's fun working with another trainer and offering an opinion, and Tom is a guy going places. He had his first listed winner this season and lives close to my home in Lambourn.”

 

From the Somerville to October…

Reflecting on the Somerville Sale, which provided an extremely lively warm-up for Tattersalls' major yearling sale which gets underway in four weeks' time, chairman Edmond Mahony said, “Last year's inaugural Tattersalls Somerville Yearling Sale proved to be an immediate success and today's second renewal has made further significant progress with wide margin gains in all the key indicators of average, median and turnover, as well as a new record top price for a Somerville yearling of 160,000 guineas.

“It was very apparent as we were inspecting yearlings in the spring that there was genuine enthusiasm for our newest yearling sale from both British and Irish consignors and they have supported the fixture with exactly the profile of sharp, precocious, commercial yearlings which we were looking for. To see the average and median prices both rise by more than 40% and the sale turnover increase from under five million guineas to well in excess of seven million guineas demonstrates a sale of real vibrance from start to finish. Equally impressive has been a clearance rate nudging 90% and the number of yearlings selling for 50,000gns or more which has risen from 17 to 39 while six-figure transactions have increased from one to four.”

He added, “The sheer number of buyers here at Park Paddocks over the past few days is also a reflection of the racecourse success enjoyed by so many graduates of last year's sale, most notably the G2 Coventry S. winner Bradsell, and we look forward to similarly impressive results next year as well as to sustaining the momentum of today's sale into Books 1 to 4 of the forthcoming Tattersalls October Yearling Sale.”

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Park Paddocks Buzzing Ahead of Somerville Sale

NEWMARKET, UK–There's no let-up in a sales calendar that becomes more packed every year, and the yearling action now switches to Newmarket, with the Tattersalls Somerville Sale sandwiched between last Friday's BBAG Yearling Sale in Germany, and a new French sale at Arqana this coming Thursday and Friday.

This is in effect only the second year of the Somerville, a sale that grew out of the Tattersalls Ascot Yearling Sale, which itself only existed for four years, having been moved to Newmarket during the first year of the pandemic.

That move coincided with a boost in both entries and returns, and the Somerville, with its focus on a sharper type of yearling more usually found at the Goffs UK Premier Sale, was born. Its debut last September could hardly have been more encouraging, and this year's sale is on the rise again in numbers. Even so, judging by a full car park and packed runways between the stable blocks at Park Paddocks on Monday, there should be plenty of people on the ground attempting to buy the yearlings offered  from 10am on Tuesday. 

As first-year results go, having the G2 Coventry S. winner Bradsell (GB) (Tasleet {GB}) as an early flag-bearer was a welcome boost, through sadly that 12,000gns purchase is now on the easy list after picking up an injury in his subsequent start in the G1 Keeneland Phoenix S.

Sold from Bearstone Stud, which offered seven yearlings at the sale last year, Bradsell was not the only star performer from that draft. The most expensive member, at 45,000gns, was a colt from the first crop of Havana Grey (GB). Like Bradsell, he too ended up at Archie Watson's stable. Now named Eddie's Boy (GB), he has raced eight times for the Middleham Park Racing syndicate, winning on debut, and later scooping the lucrative pot of the Weatherbys Super Sprint, as well as picking up some Listed black type when third in the Windsor Castle S. at Royal Ascot behind Little Big Bear (Ire) and again at Sandown in the Dragon S.

Farther afield, Marco Bozzi's 4,500gns purchase New Collection (GB) (Brazen Beau {Aus}) is now a Listed winner in Italy. 

Bearstone Stud has returned to the Somerville Sale this year with a draft of nine, including two fillies by Tasleet and Havana Grey, as well as the half-sister to the aforementioned Eddie's Boy, who sells as lot 66 and is by Washington DC (Ire), one of Bearstone's three resident stallions. The stud's owner Terry Holdcroft was not alone among consignors in reporting hectic viewing sessions for Sunday and Monday.

“It's just been absolutely manic,” he said. “We've been very busy. We have five staff here and it's almost not enough but even if we'd brought a couple more there's not room to show them all at the same time. Yesterday it was unbelievable, we were almost having to ask people if they would like to come back later as there was a queue of people waiting to see them.”

Holdcroft added, “The sale has worked well for us and we used to go to Ascot previously, but we are putting better horses in now that it has moved to Tattersalls. It does come a bit quick for us after Doncaster, especially for the staff. But we have brought mostly sharp, 2-year-old types, which is basically what I try to breed, and it's what they are looking for in this sale, and at Doncaster of course.”

Holdcroft also issued an update on one of Bearstone's star graduates, Glass Slippers (GB) (Dream Ahead), winner of the G1 Flying Five and GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint two years ago.

“She's very much in foal,” he said. “She went to Dubawi and we're really looking forward to that.”

Eddie's Boy's sire Havana Grey is currently way out in front in the first-season sires' table with 30 winners of 45 races, and three stakes winners to his name. The most recent of those, and his first group winner, came last Thursday with Lady Hollywood's victory in the G3 Prix d'Arenberg at Longchamp. Her rising star of a young trainer, Alice Haynes, was among the many pounding the sale yards on Monday, and if she is on the hunt for another by Whitsbury Manor Stud's Havana Grey she will have 21 to choose from, including one from the farm responsible for breeding Havana Grey in the first place, Mickley Stud. The Shropshire farm offers lot 7, the third foal of the Listed winner Peach Melba (GB) (Dream Ahead) who already has a multiple winner to her name in Instinctive Move (GB) (Showcasing {GB}).

As outlined by Terry Holdcroft, there is a strong focus on speed and precocity in the catalogue, and just over 20% of those slated to sell are by first-crop sires, including Inns Of Court (Ire), Calyx (GB), Eqtidaar (Ire), Masar (Ire), Magna Grecia (Ire) and Land Force (Ire).

Graduates of the Somerville Sale are eligible not just for the £100,000 Tattersalls Somerville Auction S., which is to be run next August 26 over six furlongs of the July Course, but also for the Tattersalls October Auction S., staged over the same distance but slightly later and next door on Newmarket's Rowley Mile. The latter also takes in graduates of Books 3 and 4 of the October Yearling Sale.

With only 17 withdrawals at the time of writing from the 313 yearlings in the book, trade on Tuesday will be continuing long into the evening at Park Paddocks at this sale that seems unlikely to remain in its one-day format for much longer. Long viewing days and a lengthy sale session will seem worthwhile in hindsight, however, if the level of activity over the last few days is carried through on the day that it matters most.

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The Major Talking Points From The Premier Yearling Sale At Doncaster

The first major yearling sale of the autumn in Britain or Ireland, the Goffs UK Premier Yearling Sale provided entertainment from the beginning to the end, but most importantly, boasted impressive figures. Brian Sheerin was in attendance and discusses the major talking points from the sale.

Figures on the up

The team at Goffs UK could hardly have wished for a better start to the Premier Yearling Sale. The day one figures were off the charts. Of the 218 lots offered on Tuesday, 199 were sold, representing a clearance rate of 91%. 

The aggregate was up 28% to £8,954,500, the average rose 15% to £44,997 and the median climbed 27% to £38,000.

There were noticeably less people around the sales complex at Doncaster on day two. While the figures failed to match what took place on Tuesday, there were some impressive numbers recorded on Wednesday, with an 87% clearance rate on a day where the aggregate climbed 11% to £7,003,000. 

The average on Wednesday went up 0.5% while the median fell by 4% to £32,000. That came despite the fact that there was some late drama in the ring with three of the last seven lots making six figures. 

All told, the sale went well. Of the 406 yearlings catalogued, 363 were sold, translating to a clearance rate of 89%. The aggregate was up 20% to £15,987,500 while the average was up 8% and the median rose by 9%.

Big Results From Small Numbers For Fitzgerald

Alice Fitzgerald knows what she is doing. It was at the Premier Yearling Sale in 2021 when Fitzgerald sold her homebred Basil Martini (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}} out of 10,000gns purchase Under Offer (Bated Breath (GB) to MV Magnier for £160,000.

Fast forward 12 months and Fitzgerald, who never brings more than one or two to the sales, bagged another big pay-day by selling her Kodiac (GB) colt out of Night Queen (Ire) (Rip Van Winkle {Ire}) to Manor House Farm for £160,000. 

What's even more impressive about Fitzgerald? This isn't even her day job. 

John and Jess Dance Stock Up

Given John and Jess Dance bought six-time Group 1 winner Laurens (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) at this sale in 2016, it's only natural that the owners would have an affinity towards Doncaster, which was evident in the results. 

Under Manor House Stables, they signed for nine different yearlings at a total of £837,000, which was only bettered by the £1,162,000 that Peter and Ross Doyle spent across the two days on a whopping 17 different horses. 

However, of the top 10 spenders at the Premier Yearling Sale, nobody boasted a better average than John and Jess Dance. 

The couple spent an average of £93,000 on their nine lots, illustrating that they are seeking quality over quantity more so than ever before. 

High Praise From Doyle

Ross Doyle is renowned for being one of the best judges in the game. Along with his father Peter, he has sourced Mehmas, Barney Roy, Limato, Japan, Fairyland, Magna Grecia, Olympic Glory and much more. 

Therefore, when he praised Goffs for attracting the best bunch of yearlings that he has seen for some time, it reflected well on the quality of the sale.

Doyle signed for two of the top lots in the sale, a colt by New Bay (GB) [211] for £200,000 on day one, and a lovely Dark Angel (Ire) colt [251] the following day for the same figure. 

Grangemore signed for the Dark Angel colt at last year's Tattersalls December Foal Sales for 40,000gns and the sale to the Doyles, who didn't reveal where the horse would be trained, secured a tidy pinhooking profit. The New Bay colt will be trained by Richard Hannon. 

Two Top-Notch Pinhooks

There were a number of good pinhooks over the course of the sale but two stood out. The first was that of lot 21, a gorgeous Ten Sovereigns (Ire) filly that Jamie Railton bought for €26,000 off Ballybin Stud at the November Foal Sales at Goffs last year before selling to Richard Hughes for a cool £110,000 on Tuesday.

The second was an even greater piece of inspiration as Violet Hesketh and Mimi Wadham, who run WH Bloodstock, and transformed lot 171 from a €38,000 purchase back in February to a £120,000 yearling just six months later. 

A colt by Kuroshio (Aus), lot 171 was tipped to do well after a number of shrewd judges got him vetted and, in the end, he was knocked down to Mark McStay and it's understood the colt will be sent to Fozzy Stack to be trained. 

Kuroshio Holding His Own

Kuroshio has been around the world and back but this year represented the classy Australian's first crop of runners since he took up residency at Starfield Stud in 2020. After a slow start to the season, Dontspoilasale (Ire) has come along and won for the stallion in Ireland, and looks potentially progressive, while Jessica Harrington's Panic Alarm (Ire) should be winning races for the stallion when he gets softer ground conditions. 

All told, anyone who has backed Kuroshio will be a lot happier now than ever before as last week's figures were respectable. Away from the headline-maker, lot 171, the Baroda Stud-drafted filly [lot 258] also secured a solid sale for the stallion, and changed hands to join John and Jess Dance for £48,000. All four yearlings by the stallion were sold. 

Force Behind Highclere Stallion

Some will argue that Land Force (Ire) is riding the crest of a No Nay Never wave, and that may have been an entirely plausible summation of the situation had his yearlings not been so impressive in the flesh. 

Top judges Clive Cox-who went to £85,000 to secure lot 71-and Oliver St Lawrence bought progeny by the stallion. Some of the best in the breeze-up business, Katie Walsh, Longways Stables and Con Marnane, also rowed in behind Land Force this week. 

Jake Warren even tipped the Highclere-based stallion for first-season sire honours and, while there is a lot of water to pass under that particular bridge, the early signs are promising for anyone with a Land Force in their stable. 

Of the 17 offered this week, 14 were sold at an aggregate of £510,000, which averaged out at £36,429.

Noteworthy Buyers

A number of top agents, trainers and breeze-up buyers relayed how footfall had increased at the sale and, as a result, it was going to be even harder to smoke out a bargain. 

Well, buyers also had to contend with major competition from afar as Wesley Ward also got in on the action, signing for lot 200, a Lynn Lodge-consigned £82,000 daughter of US Navy Flag. 

Ward is clearly a fan of the stallion and why wouldn't he be? The Patrick Grogan-bred Love Reigns (Ire), whose only defeat in three starts for the American-based trainer, came when she finished fourth in the G2 Queen Mary S. at Royal Ascot. Time will tell if Ward has bagged himself another Royal Ascot filly. 

It should be said that, for all that Eddie O'Leary has a host of international clients, he still made time for his neighbour at Goffs. At one point in the afternoon on Wednesday, Nick Nugent on the rostrum announced, 'from one corner of Mullingar to the other,' when Roger O'Callaghan of Tall-Ho purchased a Mehmas colt [lot 349] for £45,000 off his fellow Westmeath native. 

O'Leary's Lynn Lodge Stud ended proceedings with 11 yearlings sold for £677,000 at an average of £61,545, making the operation the fifth most successful across the two days. 

Tally-Ho Dominate

It was an excellent sale for Tally-Ho. Not only was the stud responsible for the top lot, the Blandford Bloodstock-bought Night Of Thunder (Ire) filly [lot 278] out of five-time winner and listed-placed Thiswaycadeaux (Thewayyouare), but they also ended proceedings as the leading consignors with 24 yearlings making £1,544,000 in total.

That was needed, according to Roger O'Callaghan, who revealed that there were 60 more yearlings standing in the field at home in Westmeath, with 40 needing to be broken in and prepared for the breeze-ups.

Away from the excellent results posted by their own stock, Tally-Ho will have been delighted by how all the progeny of their resident stallions were received with yearlings by Kodiac, Cotai Glory, Kessaar, Galileo Gold, Mehmas and young sire Inns Of Court doing well. 

Night Of Thunder Stars

But the star of the show, without question, was Darley's Night Of Thunder. Along with Tally-Ho's sales-topping filly, the Mountarmstrong Stud-drafted Night Of Thunder [170] colt out of Pious Alexander, which ended day one on top at £230,000, ensured it was a memorable sale for the sire.

Mark McStay landed the day one leader, after which, the leading agent labelled Night Of Thunder, the sire of last week's spellbinding G1 Nunthorpe S. winner Highfield Princess (Fr), as a solid source of top-class talent. 

Classy Siblings On Show

Some pedigrees leapt off the page. The Galileo Gold half-brother [280] to Nunthorpe runner-up The Platinum Queen (Ire) (Cotai Glory {GB}) made £170,000 to join Richard Spencer, the Ulysses (Ire)  half-brother [213] to Coventry S. winner Bradsell (GB) (Tasleet {GB}) was knocked down to Dance Thoroughbreds for £150,000 and Whitsbury Manor's Havana Grey (GB) half-sister to Sandy Lane S. scorer El Caballo (GB) (Havana Gold {Ire}) was all the rage at £230,000 with Jack Warren of Highclere doing the buying. 

Havana Grey Shines

Of the 22 horses offered by Havana Grey, all bar one were sold for a total of £1,089,000, averaging at £51,857. Whitsbury's Ed Harper revealed that his performance is exceeding the wildest dreams but, with nine individual black-type horses in his first crop, perhaps buyers were cottoning on to the fact that they have been witnessing something special.

Soldier's Answers The Call

This game is all about looking towards the future and the early signs are that Joe Foley has another real one at Ballyhane Stud in Soldier's Call (GB). 

The man knows how to launch a stallion and must have taken great credit about how Soldier's Call cleared £563,000 from 13 yearlings sold at an average of £43,308. 

What's more, Foley was prepared to put his money where his mouth is, and bought the top lot [212] by the sire for £105,000 off Tinnakill House Stud for Steve Parkin. 

The post The Major Talking Points From The Premier Yearling Sale At Doncaster appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Lightning Strikes Twice For Night Of Thunder At Doncaster

With another 60 yearlings standing out in the field at home in Westmeath, it was important for the team at Tally-Ho to begin the domestic sales season with a bang, and that's exactly what they did in sending out the top lot at the Goffs UK Premier Yearling Sale–the Blandford Bloodstock-bought lot 278, a filly by Night Of Thunder (Ire). 

Mark McStay went to £230,000 to secure a colt by the stallion [170] on Tuesday but it was Tally-Ho's first foal out of the five-time winner and listed-placed Thiswaycadeaux (Ire) (Theywayyouare) that topped proceedings. 

Finishing the sale as the leading consignors, the Mullingar-based stud played a significant role in the excellent figures posted over the two days at Doncaster. 

Of the 406 horses offered at the sale, 363 were sold, representing a clearance rate of 89%. The aggregate was up by a whopping 20% to £15,987,500 while the average was up 8% at £44,043 and the median rose 9% to £35,000.

 

Goffs UK Managing Director Tim Kent said, “The last few days have been absolutely outstanding and, on behalf of the team, we must thank everyone that has made this sale such an incredible success. We were confident we had a good catalogue coming into this week but you can only hope that others agree and whilst one noted industry professional said that we 'were not missing anyone', another noted that there were 'better horses here this year'. 

“These comments are great to hear in the build up to any sale, but the level of the market can only really be measured in the sales ring and those comments certainly came to fruition with an outstanding trade from start to finish and a wonderful atmosphere throughout the sales complex. “This helped to deliver 23 horses that sold for a six-figure sum whilst seven made £200,000 or more. This was matched by an impressive 89% clearance rate and a top price of £240,000.”

He added, “Our focus for this sale was quality, precocity and athleticism and the feedback from buyers is that we achieved exactly that. We had a complex full of the traditional 'Donny rockets' which is very much true to the mantra on which this sale was founded and has thrived. To our vendors, we want to extend a huge thanks for their support. They got the brief, delivered the goods and we are delighted to have been able to produce a strong sale which has generated some sizable gains in the key figures.

“To our buyers, it was a huge turnout from everyone involved, it made for a brilliant atmosphere. We have had countless positive comments on the quality of the catalogue and the type of horse here, and that the sale is back where it belongs, praise that means a lot to the Goffs team. We extend our sincere thanks and we look forward to seeing our athletes tearing up the tracks as 2-year-olds next year.”

Tally-Ho Steal The Show

The top lot was bought by Blandford Bloodstock on behalf of Jurgen Sartori and that sale ensured Tally-Ho finished up as the leading consignor. 

Sartori is perhaps best known for owning horses in Germany, including Penja (Fr) (Camelot {GB}), who he bought out of Jean-Claude Rouget's yard at the Arqana Arc Sale last October for €1.2 million.

Roger O'Callaghan is not in the business of counting chickens but he knows what a good horse looks like and, perhaps the most pleasing aspect of the stud's performance over the two days was the fact that a wide range of their own stallions produced the goods. 

Notably, the newest of them all, Inns Of Court (Ire), whose yearlings were purchased by a host of top breeze-up consignors-Star Bloodstock, Longways Stables and Kilminfoyle House Stud–with the most expensive of them all going to Robson Aguiar. 

“A lot of the breeze-up people have bought yearlings by him, and rightly so. Hopefully it's a sign of things to come,” O'Callaghan said.

Aguiar went to £125,000 to secure lot 77 by Inns Of Court on behalf of Amo Racing on day one. However, O'Callaghan predicted the best was yet to come for the stallion. 

“He's not the only nice horse by him. The lads who look after him in the yard every day bought one, Gary Halpin and Sean Davis bought another off our farrier Matty Smith, so hopefully they get rewarded.”

Halpin and Davis are not exactly new faces on the breeze-up circuit, given the jockeys have ridden breezers at the sales for many of the top consignors in recent years, but the pair are hoping to grow their own operation this year. 

After selling a Galileo Gold (GB) filly last season, Halpin and Davis now plan on putting together a string of breezers to go with the Inns Of Court colt [127] bought from Baroda Stud for £55,000.

Halpin explained, “We underbid a few and the Inns Of Court was the only one we got in the end. He's a nice colt with a good page so he should get into any of those classy sales next year. Myself and Sean have been riding breezers for a few years now and we sold a Galileo Gold filly last year for a few quid. Hopefully we can grow the operation.”

Of the 17 yearlings offered by Inns Of Court, all of them found new homes for a total spend of £623,000. That averages out at a respectable £36,647 per yearling sold.

It was not just the first-season sire Inns Of Court who punched in respectable results for Tally-Ho. Their resident stallions Kessaar (Ire), Cotai Glory (GB), Kodiac (GB) and Galileo Gold (GB) did well in the ring, launching what O'Callaghan revealed would be a busy couple of months. 

“Kessaar is going well because he's short on numbers, they want a bit further than most people expected, but yea, he's holding his own. They're taking a bit of time but sure that's nearly a good thing. They're more valuable if they go further unless they're very good.”

He added, “The sale has been very good. I can't imagine anyone will be complaining. Everything we brought, we sold-but that's nearly always the case. But hey, we've about 60 yearlings out in the field at home. We've 40 to breeze and then there's about 15 more for the next yearling sales.”

Tally-Ho sold 24 horses at Doncaster over the two days. They cleared £1,544,000 and averaged £64,333. 

Only Baroda Stud, who sold 14 yearlings at the sale, came close to those figures with David Cox's operation netting £793,000 at an average of £56,643, highlighted by the New Bay (GB) colt [lot 211] that was knocked down to Peter and Ross Doyle for £200,000 on day one. 

Havana Grey Lights Up Sale

The sun hasn't stopped shining down on Whitsbury Manor Stud ever since the progeny of their first-season sire sensation Havana Grey (GB) hit the track this season. 

The knock-on effect of the brilliant season that the young stallion is enjoying with his first runners was felt in the sales ring, not more so than when the stud sold lot 234, a Havana Grey filly to Jake Warren for £230,000. 

A daughter of the Showcasing (GB) mare Showstoppa (GB), who has already produced four winners, including Group 2 Sandy Lane S. Winner El Caballo (GB), is set to join Clive Cox.

 

However, Whitsbury's Ed Harper revealed that, away from lot 234, he derived a huge sense of satisfaction at seeing all of the yearlings by the stallion netting respectable sales for their owners and breeders. 

That included lot 295, a Havana Grey colt who is also heading to Cox, after selling from Jenny Norris for £85,000.

Harper said, “The satisfaction we have experienced extends beyond the headline filly. We have got a huge amount of pleasure out of seeing loyal breeders who have supported our stallions down through the years doing well out of Havana Grey. 

“For example, Jenny Norris has been a big supporter of ours, and she got £85,000 today for lot 295, a lovely colt by Havana Grey. Jenny is based just down the road from us so that was fantastic to see. When our stallions are doing well, our breeders are, too.”

He added, “Havana Grey got off to an excellent start at stud but, if we are being honest, we didn't expect the good results to be so consistent. It's been every week with him. Be it winning stakes races or big sales races, it's been great. He has had nine individual black-type horses which really is exceptional. That compares well with not only the first-season sires but some of the best stallions around.”

When Nick Bradley opened the bidding at £100,000 for lot 234, the secret was out that something special was walking around the ring, and Harper says any sadness in parting with the filly dissipated in seeing her join one of the best trainers in the country. 

He said, “It was very tempting to keep her but we try and offer as much of our good stock as is possible in order to give everyone a chance. 

“Any slight sadness experienced in letting her go is heavily mitigated in seeing her join Clive Cox. He's an excellent trainer and has done very well with the family before so we're really excited to see how she gets on with him. I'm sure she will do very well.”

He added, “The dam has a Sergei Prokofiev (Can) filly foal at foot. It's a bit of a cliché to say that the foal is very nice but she is so nice that we decided to send the mare back to Sergei Prokofiev.”

Of the 22 horses offered by Havana Grey, all bar one were sold for a total of £1,089,000, averaging at £51,857.

Hughes Sticks His Neck Out 

One of the most fascinating subplots that developed over the two days was Richard Hughes strengthening his string with the addition of a broad selection of yearlings. 

From a £200,000 Frankel (GB) colt consigned by Highclere Stud [lot 269] to a more affordable filly like the one by Kodiac that he picked up from Tally-Ho [lot 216], Hughes landed something for every type of an owner at Doncaster. 

 

The trainer bought 11 yearlings for a total of £744,000, which averaged out at £62,000, all without the help of an agent. 

Hughes said, “I find that myself and Fanny [Hannon, sister in law] are buying the right type of horses that suits me. It's working really well.”

Hughes is operating at a 25% strike-rate with his 2-year-old this term but the former top-class jockey admitted that it took time to get a feel for training juveniles at his Lambourn base.

He explained, “When I was working in Richard Hannon's, they had their own gallops, then you go to a totally different training centre and it takes a bit of time to get used to it. I have a great team at home but I do think myself and Fanny are scouring these sales and buying the ones that we really like.”

Hughes added, “In other years, I'd come here and underbid a few of the ones I really liked and then go and buy something else. This time I have been putting my neck on the line a bit more and buying the ones that I love. When you are buying on spec and bringing the ones home you like, you will sell them a lot easier, because you believe in them. But if you buy a horse because you couldn't buy the one you really wanted, it's very hard to have the heart to go and sell that to a client, you know?”

Nobody bought more horses on spec than his old boss Richard Hannon Senior did when he was in his pomp. The yearlings would all have been sold by Christmas and the Hannons would have an army of 2-year-olds to go to war with every spring. Hughes is not exactly adopting the same modus operandi but he is definitely being braver with his approach. 

“Most of the sales that I go to, I buy a lot of horses on spec. I bought 10 horses here two years ago and got them all sold by Christmas. We bought a horse here last year for £125,000 on spec. I got him sold in November. They are sleepless nights, I can guarantee you that. “Owner-breeders aren't sending me 10 or 12 horses every season. Other people have that luxury. Now, maybe I will some day, but I don't at the moment. Every horse I have in my yard, I have to go and get them myself and, if I didn't, I'd have nothing to train.”

By that token, Hughes is different to most trainers. He doesn't employ an agent and is therefore willing to die on his own sword. 

He said, “They [agents] are there when the horses are winning but it's a lonely old place when they are no good. Normally, when I bring them home, it's me who has to sell them to these owners anyway. We've done really well in the past couple of years with the horses I've bought myself so we're sticking to that. 

“I was up here on Sunday and Monday, which isn't great because you miss out on being in the yard, but it's all about building towards the future and my owners understand that.”

Hughes added, “I bring the yearlings home and we have an owners' day in November. We have a bit of a party and people get together and come in on horses together. A lot of my owners know each other so it's a good way of doing things.”

The priciest yearling Hughes picked up was lot 269, a Frankel colt for £200,000, that was consigned by Highclere Stud. He also picked up some well-bred fillies, including the highly-sought after Ten Sovereigns [lot 21] filly consigned by Jamie Railton on day one. 

He said, “I thought that she [21] was a very good buy for her ovaries alone. Like, her pedigree was super. She was a gorgeous filly. The Cotai Glory [lot 253 for £40,000] was a gorgeous horse. He'll be more of a 3-year-old. I think I have someone for him. Jaber Abdullah came in for some of the very well-bred fillies. Two of the fillies are out of a Shamardal mare so, if they win a race, they can go breeding.”

 

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