Tag: Lucky Vega

Over 5.5million Spent On Mares To Visit Lucky Vega At Goffs

The mammoth support of Lucky Vega (Ire) continued at the Goffs November Breeding Stock Sale when connections of the young stallion snapped up 19 mares to the tune of €5,625,000, headed by €790,000 purchase Aspiring, with the majority set to visit the Group 1-winning juvenile next year. 

Led by BBA Ireland's Mick Donohoe, who did most of his bidding online, the Lucky Vega Syndicate were continuing their recruitment drive for mares to visit the Irish National Stud-based sire after similarly strong sales this year and last. 

Aspiring (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), an unraced half-sister to Danedream (Ger) (Lomitas {GB}), was sold in foal to Wootton Bassett (GB). She is also a full-sister to Venice Beach (Ire) and Broadway (Ire).

He said, “I thought she was a lovely physical, she has a great cover and she's from a fantastic family. She's going to go to Lucky Vega. Mr Zhang is doubling down on his support this year by buying some select mares. He sent 30 mares to him last season and he'll probably send the same number next year but is going to up the quality on the strength of what he's seen from his foals on the ground in Australia.”

Lucky Vega stands the Northern Hemisphere season at The Irish National Stud for €15,000, and the Southern Hemisphere season at Yulong's farm in Victoria for AU$19,250 inc. GST. On the track he carried the green and white colours of Zhang Yuesheng, who has been a familiar face on the sale circuit this year, and was in attendance at Goffs again on Friday. The Chinese businessman's horses in Ireland are concentrated in the Jessica Harrington yard, which is where Bocca Baciata (Ire) (Big Bad Bob {Ire}) was based when she recorded Group 2 success. 

The Kiltinan Castle Stud-consigned mare, who is foal to Mehmas (Ire), was another to join the Lucky Vega Syndicate for €530,000.

Donohoe said, “Obviously Mr Zhang has horses in training with Jessie [Harrington] and she trained her so she recommended the mare to him. Jessie is high on the two-year-old sister [Foniska (Ire) (Galileo {Ire})] that she trains, too. He actually bought Lucky Vega's sister as well. It's undecided where she'll go next year but she'll go to stud in Ireland.” 

 

Donohoe went on to underbid the top lot Ladies Church, who sold to Dermot Farrington for an undisclosed client for €970,000, where he did most of his bidding online through his iPad on the balcony directly opposite the rostrum. That was until he appeared to lose signal and, alongside Mr Zhang, was forced to bid the old-fashioned way. 

Alas, it wasn't to be on Ladies Church but, on bidding online, he said, “Obviously Mr Zhang is quite familiar with the online bidding in Australia, the online bidding format there has a couple of years head start on Europe, so he feels comfortable bidding that way. That's the way they do it in Australia and that's the way it's going here because you can bid in a nice relaxed atmosphere.”

Donohoe added, “We can nip down and look at the horses in the parade ring and do our final checks, then go up and have lunch and bid in comfort. We value the horses and we bid to what we think their value is, so it doesn't really matter who's bidding against us. Sometimes when you're bidding in the ring you can maybe go one or two bids that you might regret afterwards when you've been wrapped up in the theatre of it. It's all a bit more composed doing it this way.”

The Lucky Vega Syndicate remained strong deep into the evening, spending €1.23 million on back-to-back lots [1314 and 1315] Pleasant Dreams (Ire) and Eaves (Ire), both of whom are by Galileo. 

Pleasant Dreams, who made €630,000, was consigned by Grenane House Stud and was sold in foal to Starspangledbanner (Aus) while Eaves made €600,000 in foal to Wootton Bassett (GB). All told, BBA Ireland signed for six Galileo mares to visit Lucky Vega for €3,195,000. 

The aggregate was up 19% to €16,525,500 while the average was ahead 17.6% to €82,328. The median of €42,000 represented a 35.5% rise while the clearance rate was 83%.

Ladies Church To Stay In Training 

Billed as one of the star attractions of the sale, Group 2-winning sprinter Ladies Church (GB) (Churchill {Ire}) was knocked down for €970,000 to Dermot Farrington who could not reveal the new connections. 

However, Farrington did confirm that Ladies Church, trained by Johnny Murtagh to win three times, including that career highlight in the G2 Sapphire S. at the Curragh in July, would race on as a four-year-old. 

Farrington said, “I can't say who she was bought for but she will definitely stay in training next year.”

Ladies Church was consigned by Murtagh's Fox Covert Stables and, as well as being a high-class racemare with a rating of 110, she boasts a strong page being a daughter of the French listed winner Rioticism (Fr) (Rio De La Plata).

Having been bought as a foal at Tattersalls in November 2019, she was then sold to Murtagh and agent Peter Nolan the following year for 160,000 at the Goffs Orby Sale in 2020. 

She was one of seven horses owner Mark Dobin, who spreads his small but select string between Murtagh, Gavin Cromwell, Joseph O'Brien and Ger Lyons, ran in Ireland this season.

Maljoom's Dam Makes €450,000

BBA Ireland's Adrian Nicoll was also busy, signing for Nictate (Teofilo {Ire}), the dam of Maljoom (Ire) (Caravaggio), from Limekiln Stud for €450,000. 

Maljoom has not run since going down by less than a length in fourth in the St James's Palace S. at Royal Ascot back in June. Nictate was sold in foal to Tally-Ho's Starman (GB) and Nicoll was flanked by Paul Shanahan's son Charles when the gavel fell. 

Nicoll said, “She's for an Irish partnership so she'll stay here. She's bred a good horse, she's a nice mare but I don't know which stallion she'll go to next. She's top of the range and when you're buying the dam of a black-type winner you've got to expect to pay that sort of figure.” 

Nagle Pays €520,000 For Smart Shadwell Mare

David and Diane Nagle of Barronstown Stud went to €520,000 to secure Shadwell's listed-placed Yasmeen (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), already the dam of listed winner Shaara (GB) (Shamardal) and in foal to Night Of Thunder (Ire)

Yasmeen is from a deep Shadwell family, with her dam Wissal a sister to Bahhare, and Nagle revealed that he planned on injecting some speed into the pedigree next year.

The post Over 5.5million Spent On Mares To Visit Lucky Vega At Goffs appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Hotter Than July At Tattersalls

NEWMARKET, UK–The legacy of Sheikh Hamdan still casts a long shadow over the bloodstock world, and the influence of his bloodlines was once more evident at Tattersalls on Wednesday when Rihaam (Ire), a 9-year-old daughter of Dansili (GB) in foal to Dark Angel (Ire), led the first day of the July Sale at a new record price of 540,000gns.

With a buying bunch greatly enhanced by the returned freedom of international travel, several records were set at Park Paddocks, which saw the two top prices ever at a July Sale along with the highest turnover for a single session.

For that new record-breaker Rihaam, it was Tom Goff, standing with Paul Shanahan, MV Magnier and Timmy Hyde, who secured the unraced mare (lot 179). Her current 3-year-old Ribhi (Ire), a full-brother to the foal she is carrying, won twice last year and was third in the Listed European Free H.

“Of her age group she was the outstanding broodmare here,” Goff said. “It's an absolutely fantastic Sheikh Hamdan pedigree that goes back to Bahri. There's numerous stars all over the pedigree, and she's by Dansili.

“[Ribhi] is a good colt and she's carrying a full-brother to him. The Invincible Spirit (Ire) [2-year-old] is with Marcus Tregoning and is apparently showing some speed. The Blue Point (Ire), who is now a yearling, is a nice filly. It was a very good package and one that doesn't come along too often, and it's one of the reasons that the Shadwell dispersal continues to be of such interest.”

Indeed it does, and Shadwell was one of the leading consignors of the day with four sold for 696,000gns, but it was the Godolphin draft which really turned heads, with three of the day's top 10 lots emanating from the royal blue team, which, with 42 horses sold for 2,624,500gns, accounted for 30% of the day's total aggregate of 8,740,785gns–an upturn of 47% on last year's opening session.

That was achieved through the sale of 226 of the 262 lots offered and, though the clearance rate dropped to 86% from last year's opening-day high of 93%, the figures for average and median both soared. The former was up by 54% at 38,676gns, while the median rose to 14,000gns (+27%).

 

 

Wild Rose Another To Pass Record

Wild-card entry See The Rose (Fr), a Group 3-winning daughter of Kendargent (Fr) and sister to listed winner Xaarino (Fr), was another to pass the previous high at the July Sale when bringing the hammer down at 500,000gns. Signing the ticket in the name of his London Thoroughbred Services for lot 271A was James Wigan, an accomplished breeder in his own right but this time acting on behalf of an undisclosed client.

Bred by John O'Connor of Ballylinch Stud, the daughter of the Xaar (GB) mare Xaarienne (GB) originally sold for €180,000 as a yearling at Arqana, and won three times in France for Andre Fabre as well as finishing fifth, beaten less than two lengths, in the G1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches. She was unsold at 450,000gns at the most recent Tattersalls December Sale.

“She's very elegant filly,” said Wigan. “I saw her last December and she is a breeding prospect now rather than a racing prospect.”

 

Yulong Support Continues

The determined spending of Yuesheng Zhang of Yulong Investments continued apace at Tattersalls as the July Sale got underway, with the owner/breeder bidding more than 1.8 million gns for 10 broodmares or broodmare prospects through Michael Donohoe of BBA Ireland.

This group included the day's third-top lot at 450,000gns, Shining Bright (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), an unraced sister to this season's G2 King Edward VII S. and G3 Chester Vase winner Changingoftheguard (Ire). The 4-year-old was sold in foal for the first time to Starspangledbanner (Aus) and was bought by Michael Donohoe of BBA Ireland for the Lucky Vega syndicate.

“Mr. Zhang was in Ireland last week and saw Lucky Vega and is keen to support him next season and is determined to give him every chance,” said agent Michael Donohoe of BBA Ireland of the owner's G1 Keeneland Phoenix S winner and G1 S James's Palace S runner-up who is now resident at the Irish National Stud.

“[Yulong CEO] Sam Fairgray will decide but this mare will probably go back to Ireland and be covered by Lucky Vega next spring. There was obviously a nice update to the pedigree at Royal Ascot and we have his 2-year-old full-brother, too.”

Lucky Vega will also have the Galileo (Ire) mare Footprints (Ire) pencilled in for next year's book after Donohoe went to 340,000gns to secure the 3-year-old on Zhang's behalf. The unraced sister to the four-time group winner Armory (Ire) was covered in May by Wootton Bassett (GB) and was sold by The Castlebridge Consignment as lot 271.

Matt Houldsworth made a determined effort within the ring to buy lot 33, the 3-year-old filly Le Designe (Ire) (Siyouni {Fr}), but in the end it was the online bid, again made on behalf of Yulong Investments that brought the hammer down at 180,000gns. In training with Ralph Beckett for Marc Chan, the daughter of G3 Park S. winner Oh Goodness Me (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) never made it to the racecourse but she has plenty on her page to recommend her as a broodmare. Her first three dams are all black-type winners and her half-sister by More Than Ready is already a black-type producer in Australia, and that is where Le Designe will be heading eventually.

 

“Siyouni has done very well in Australia,” said Donohoe. “She will be covered here on Southern Hemisphere time and she will then ship. The Siyouni and Galileo cross has done very well in Australia, she is a very good-looking filly and there are not too many Siyounis on the market.”

By the day's end, 10 horses had been bought under a number of banners through BBA Ireland for just over 1.8 million gns.

“It's been a busy day but I'm really pleased with the mares we've got,” said Yulong's chief operating officer Sam Fairgray. “Some will head to Australia, some will be bred up here to Southern Hemisphere time and then head down and others will stay here and visit Lucky Vega.

“I'd imagine they'll all make their way down to Australia in time but we want to support Lucky Vega. He had a fantastic first season here and we want to continue that support. I'd imagine a couple will be covered by Frankel (GB) before heading down but we haven't decided which ones yet. We'll sit down and work out where we go from here.”

The Yulong team visited Frankel (GB) earlier in the week at Banstead Manor Stud and Zhang has special reason to continue his support of the Juddmonte star, having bred and raced his Australian Group 1-winning Hungry Heart (Aus). The filly's dam Harlech (GB) (Pivotal {GB}) was the first purchase made by the breeder at the Tattersalls July Sale, for 60,000gns in 2016. She remained temporarily in Newmarket to be covered by Frankel to Southern Hemisphere time.

 

Chachamaidee to Chasemore

Andrew Black's Chasemore Farm is enjoying a fruitful season on the track and its paddocks will welcome a new recruit from the July Sale in the form of G1 Matron S. winner Chachamaidee (Ire) (Footstepsinthesand {GB}), who was bought on Black's behalf by agent Tom Goff at 200,000gns.

A star performer on the track for Sir Henry Cecil and Tony Evans, for whom she won four group races and was also runner-up in the G1 Sun Chariot S., the 15-year-old mare has produced two stakes winners, the G3 Pinnacle S winner Klassique (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) and recent listed winner Valiant Prince (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), who struck in York's Ganton S. for Charlie Appleby after publication of the catalogue. Sold as lot 97 through DVA Equine Services, Chachamaidee has unraced youngsters by Sea The Stars (Ire), now two and three, and was sold with a Mar. 10 cover to young Shadwell sire Mohaather (GB).

“We've followed this mare for a while; I know this family very well,” said Goff. “She's a lovely old mare and I thought she looked amazing for her age. I liked the cover to Mohaather–I think he's an exciting young sire.

“I remember her Sea The Stars [2-year-old] as a yearling; he was a nice horse and is now with Hugo Palmer and he likes him. He has a Derby entry. So it's a great package and we're delighted to get her. We'll try to breed some fillies out of her.”

Chachamaidee was succeeded in the ring by her daughter For Henry (GB) (lot 98), an 8-year-old sister to Klassique who was offered in foal to Advertise (GB) and knocked down at 100,000gns to BBA Ireland.

 

Family Ties Tempt Buyers To Godolphin

The sizeable draft from Godolphin had been well perused since the horses arrived at the sales ground and the ring quickly filled as the first batch came through around lunchtime. Tally-Ho Stud, which has no shortage of stallions available for their broodmare purchases, came out on top at 180,000gns from a prolonged bidding exchange for the juvenile winner First Smile (Ire) (lot 127), a daughter of the G2 Queen Mary S winner Jealous Again (Trippi) and Dark Angel (Ire).

After signing for the 4-year-old mare, who is in foal for the first time to Profitable (Ire), Tally-Ho's Tony O'Callaghan said, “We already have her half-sister and it's the type of family that just works for us, with her dam being a Queen Mary winner. She'll go to a Tally-Ho stallion.”

The sibling already in the paddocks in Co Westmeath is Covetous, an 8-year-old daughter of Medaglia d'Oro bought from Godolphin at Goffs five years ago. Her daughter by Kodiac (GB) was sold at last year's October Yearling Sale for 300,000gns.

Two men who are more than familiar with the Godolphin/Darley families are John Ferguson and Mark McStay, now independent agents in their own right who made significant purchases from the draft.

Ferguson's investment scheme Natalma Bloodstock opted for lot 130, Rainband (Medaglia d'Oro), a winner and listed-placed in France and out of the German Group 3 winner Fitful Skies (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}). With Nelson Bunker-Hunt's outstanding racemare Dahlia (Vaguely Noble) as her third dam and the Group 2-winning Wajd (Northern Dancer) as granddam, plus a foal by Invincible Spirit (Ire) in utero, the 4-year-old looks to have been well bought at 135,000gns.

Similar comments apply to lot 122, the treble juvenile winner Autumn Lily (Street Cry {Ire}), who went the way of McStay's Avenue Bloodstock at 125,000gns. Now 11 and the dam of Group 1-placed Botanik (Ire) (Golden Horn {GB}), Autumn Lily is a half-sister to dual Group 3 winner Alexandros (GB) (Kingmambo) and a granddaughter of the Group 1 winner and Classic-placed High Hawk (GB) (Shirley Heights {GB}), whose offspring include treble Group 1 winner and sire In The Wings (GB).

“She comes from one of the great families: High Hawk, In The Wings, and Alexandros up there very close,” McStay commented. “It's a family I knew very well during my time with Darley and these families don't come up very often so you have to bid bravely when they do. She's a nice mare and she has bred a Group 1 performer already.”

The mare was sold with an early cover to Derby winner Masar (Ire), who has already found favour with McStay.

“His foals were nice and we pinhooked two of them last year for our foal syndicate,” he added.

 

BUY OF THE DAY

by Brian Sheerin

Dermot Dwan of Kellsgrange Stud did not have to spend much to take home the prize for buy of the day.

Dwan went to 13,000gns to secure lot 67, the twice-placed Brush Creek (GB) (Twilight Son {GB}), whose page was boosted by Royal Ascot winner Holloway Boy (GB) (Ulysses {Ire}) a few weeks before the sale.

Holloway Boy's Listed Chesham S. success did not feature on the catalogue page but Dwan couldn't be accused of being asleep at the wheel.

Brush Creek's dam Resort (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) is a half-sister to Sultry (GB) (Pivotal {GB}), the dam of Holloway Boy, who achieved the rare feat of winning at Royal Ascot on debut last month.

Given that Holloway Boy is open to any amount of improvement, and his place in the pedigree may have gone unnoticed by many, time might prove the 13,000gns Dwan parted with to be money well spent.

The post Hotter Than July At Tattersalls appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Yulong Backing Lucky Vega

When a colt retires to stud, a regular theme of the promotional drive to attract mares involves a bullish statement by the owner pledging to support the stallion with their own mares, as well as a commitment to invest in the stallion's progeny at the foal and yearling sales. Yulong Investments' Yuesheng Zhang has hit the ground running with his commitment to his young sire Lucky Vega (Ire), who kicks off his Northern Hemisphere stallion duties at the Irish National Stud early in 2022. Spearheaded by BBA Ireland's Mick Donohoe, Zhang's Yulong Investments began a shopping spree for mares in earnest at Goffs last month, where its near €2-million spend included the €825,000 sale topper Plying (Hard Spun)–already the dam of a brilliant performer in Alcohol Free (Ire) (No Nay Never)–along with a number of other 'blue hen' types all purchased to visit Lucky Vega.

The investment continued at Tattersalls and Arqana, where again seven-figure sums were put on the table to assemble what looks like being a stellar book of mares for the Group 1-winning son of Lope De Vega (Ire).

“In fairness to Mr. Zhang, he's a great man and he realises the potential Lucky Vega has in both hemispheres and he wants to give him the best chance of being a success at stud,” Mick Donohoe said. “He wanted to target those nice stakes-producing mares, and obviously Plying was an standout one to try and buy. She is still a young mare and already is the dam of two stakes winners including Alcohol Free, who is a Group 1-winning 2-year-old and a proper top-class filly, and there aren't too many first-season sires being sent that type of mare.”

Lucky Vega's first Irish book will also include €330,000 Goffs purchase Eytarna (Ire), whose two stakes winners include G2 Blandford S. victress Eziyra (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}), who won five group races in total. The stakes-placed So Unique (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) and a pair of Galileo (Ire) full-sisters, Grenadine (Ire) and Sapphire Ring (Ire), were also snapped up at Goffs.

“We all know what Galileo can do as a broodmare sire; I don't think there will be an equal to him for many years so we were keen to stock up on them,” Donohoe said. “We then bought seven or eight high-end mares at Tattersalls, including a few more by Galileo as well as mares by Pivotal (GB) and Siyouni (Fr), so it is very exciting.”

Among the Tattersalls acquisitions was Class Act (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), a half-sister to stakes winner Most Beautiful (GB) (Canford Cliffs {Ire}) offered in foal to Wootton Bassett (GB); and Rose D'Etoile (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}), a stakes-placed mare carrying to the same sire. Donohoe said some of the foals the mares are currently carrying could go through sales rings.

“Mr. Zhang is running a business and in Australia he sells a lot of yearlings, so I imagine he will follow a similar path over here,” he said. “Obviously I'll have to talk to Mr. Zhang and Sam [Fairgray] and see what the long term goal is, but I would say a lot of the progeny would be offered for sale. He is a trader and he wants it to be as viable a business as possible, so I imagine that will be the plan.”

Galileo was again to the fore when an energised Donohoe continued on to Arqana for Europe's final flat breeding stock sale of 2021, and it was two daughters of the late, great stallion that featured among another significant spending spree. The stakes winner Ame Celeste (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and It's Magic (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), a half-sister to Mukhadram (GB), are both slated for Lucky Vega when they deliver their respective Siyouni (Fr) foals early next year. Donohoe again went down the tried and tested route of buying a Pivotal (GB) mare when purchasing the well-bred Duet (GB) (Pivotal {GB}), who is in foal to Blue Point (Ire).

“We bought some gorgeous mares in France and as well as the Galileos and the Pivotal, we also got a lovely mare called Pink Paint (Fr) by Redoute's Choice (Aus) from the family of Peintre Celebre,” Donohoe said. “She cost €130,000 in foal to Almanzor (Fr) and we think she was well bought, as she is a winner and comes from a fantastic deep family. They are all lovely purchases and being in foal to such high-class stallions, they could be carrying future champions already.”

“Mr. Zhang is very much of the mindset about breeding Classic horses rather than just early maturing fast 2-year-olds, hence the investment in the Galileo mares,” Donohoe added. “We know Lucky Vega could probably have stayed a mile and a quarter if we had asked him to, but he was more of a speedy miler than anything. He showed amazing speed to win his Group 1 over six furlongs as a 2-year-old when he sprinted away from them, so he should be a good speed influence for those Galileo mares.”

Despite such an accumulation of stock in recent times, Yulong has not yet dipped its toe into land investment in Ireland, preferring instead to outsource the boarding of mares and young stock.

“The majority of the mares are with Bill Dwan in Castlebridge and Mr. Zhang doesn't really have the appetite at the moment to buy his own farm in Ireland. His main interest is in Australia and there hasn't been any talk of buying somewhere here. There are around 30 mares in Ireland and at that level he's happy enough to board them with top-class people such as Bill.”

If Zhang were someday to develop a European base, one can be sure it would be a project carried out to the highest standards, Donohoe said. “I've seen it already with other projects he has undertaken, whether it's building that magnificent farm in Melbourne, acquiring some top-class stallions like Written Tycoon (Aus), or developing that fantastic training facility in mainland China; Mr. Zhang has the means and the expertise to get things done and to do them right,” he said. “He also has a very good guy, Sam Fairgray, working with him in Australia, where as I mentioned already his main bloodstock interests lie.”

What this means for Lucky Vega is that he will continue to shuttle between both hemispheres as long as he stays healthy and well, and unusually for a horse born, raised and raced in Ireland, he is technically a reverse shuttler, having been launched in Australia.

“He's done his first season in Australia and he was very popular, especially with anyone who got to see him as he's such a good physical,” Donohoe said. “He is the type of horse that appeals to both Europe and Down Under, as he has that great hindquarter, hip and walk and a lot of those attributes that Australian breeders put importance on.

“As popular as he is in Australia, I think he will be received even better in Ireland as people got to see him run here.”

While that statement is true, there did appear to be an element of unfinished business on the track for Lucky Vega, as he ran only three times as a 3-year-old before he was summoned to Australia in mid-summer for their breeding season. Despite not getting his head in front, he ran with great credit finishing third in the G1 2000 Guineas, then fourth in the Irish version before posting a runner-up spot again behind Poetic Flare (Ire) in the G1 St James's Palace S. at Royal Ascot.

“He retired sound and it was a commercial decision made by Mr. Zhang to send him to Australia, in part to capitalise on the popularity of Lope De Vega down there,” Donohoe said. “The team in Ireland were obviously disappointed to see him go, but we understood the rationale behind the decision. Mr. Zhang is buying these yearling colts and our job is to make stallions out of them, and he was a prime candidate to go and do that even though we firmly believed he could have won at least another Group 1 in the second half of the season.

“I hope Jessie [Harrington] won't mind me saying, but I'm not sure her horses were firing on all cylinders in the early part of the flat season and we might not have even seen Lucky Vega at his very best. He ran a smashing race at Royal Ascot and he proved that he trained on to be a high-class 3-year-old, and that he wasn't just a top juvenile.”

Lucky Vega's placement at the Irish National Stud is also a feather in the cap of Cathal Beale and his team in Kildare. Explaining the link up, Donohoe said, “Mr. Zhang was looking for someone to stand the stallion on his behalf. Apart from that, though, he has been a big supporter of the National Stud over the years, particularly with Invincible Spirit (Ire), a horse he has bought a lot of yearlings by and also sent mares to. Also, the Irish National Stud is a state body, something that Mr. Zhang puts a lot of importance on, so we are very happy with the arrangement. Even from a BBA Ireland point of view, the INS has stood stallions for Ms Patino, who is a long-standing BBA client so it ties in well for all involved.”

With such a powerful and determined team behind him, coupled with Lucky Vega's own inherent credentials, it should be exciting times for all involved, and Donohoe is already looking further down the line. “I'm very much looking forward to buying Lucky Vega's progeny in the coming years and the instructions from Mr. Zhang are to go and try to buy the best of his foals and the best of his yearlings,” he said.

The post Yulong Backing Lucky Vega appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Lucky Vega To Stand For €15,000

Lucky Vega (Ire) (Lope De Vega {Ire}), who stands his first Northern Hemisphere season next year at the Irish National Stud, will debut at €15,000. Raced by Yulong Investments, Lucky Vega won the G1 Phoenix S. at two and placed in this year's G1 2000 Guineas and G1 St James's Palace S. before retiring to stand at Yulong's Australian headquarters.

Also new at the Irish National Stud for 2022 is last year's G2 Coventry S. winner and G1 Prix Morny and G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere runner-up Nando Parrado (GB) (Kodiac {GB}). He will stand for €6,000.

Invincible Spirit (Ire) once again leads the Irish National Stud roster, and his standout performers in 2021 included Group 3 winner and Group 1 performer Pearls Galore (Fr) and G2 Rockfel S. scorer Hello You (Ire). Invincible Spirit, at the age of 24, is available for €60,000 next year, down from €80,000 in 2021.

G1 Irish 2000 Guineas winner Phoenix Of Spain (Ire), whose first foals were born this year, will stand for €12,000 in 2022. National Defense (Ire), whose first-crop runners this year were highlighted by the GII Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint scorer Twilight Gleaming (Ire), will stand for €8,000.

The later-developing triple Group 1 winner Decorated Knight (GB) has supplied 10 first-crop winners this season, and he will stand for €7,500 in 2022. Free Eagle (Ire), whose high-class Dancing King (Ire) was one of the highlights of the Tattersalls Autumn Horses-In-Training Sale at 380,000gns, is available for €5,000.

Equiano (Fr), Elusive Pimpernel (Ire) and Dragon Pulse (Ire) will all stand for €2,000.

The post Lucky Vega To Stand For €15,000 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Verified by MonsterInsights