Those two representatives of Juddmonte and Darley respectively live within a mile of each other as the crow flies over the stud farms encircling Newmarket. Add to that mighty pair the names of Kingman (GB) at £125,000 and Baaeed (GB) at £80,000, and you have four of the top ten European stallions by price all within that square mile of excellence. 

It's not all about Newmarket, of course, with the Aga Khan Studs standing the most expensive stallion in France, Siyouni (Fr), at €200,000, the same fee commanded by their Sea The Stars (Ire) in Ireland, where he matches Wootton Bassett (GB), who heads the Coolmore roster. The lucky ones among us were those who jumped aboard the Siyouni and Wootton Bassett supporters' buses when those two stallions started out at €7,000 and €6,000 respectively. In bloodstock, as in life, there's a lot to be said for those who have carved out their own lofty niches from humble origins. 

Of course, with this level of sire power, one needs a mare of equally high standing, whether on the racecourse or as a producer or both. Many of the resulting offspring are retained to race by major owner-breeders, and those that do make it to the sales ring can be expected to fetch the level of return that could make even these high fees look good value. It's all relative. 

Dependable

At a more reachable level for many breeders comes this dependable trio – two we can most certainly call stalwarts and one who stamped his presence on the business with his first few crops. 

We discussed Yeomanstown Stud's Dark Angel (Ire) in greater depth in TDN last August. For 2024, he remains at €60,000, which was his fee for the preceding three seasons and down from three years at €85,000 between 2018 and 2020. Admittedly, his yearling sales average, which was in six figures for seven straight seasons, has dipped a little in the last few years and to a certain degree he is perhaps a victim of his own success, with various sons and other younger stallions of a similar profile encroaching on this popular sprinter/miler territory. But he had 77 yearlings sold at an average of £88,637 in 2023 which isn't bad going and, now 19, he was also third in the general sires' table behind Frankel and Dubawi.

From one O'Callaghan family farm to another, we switch to Tally-Ho Stud. At 23, Kodiac (GB) is into veteran territory but he is also at his lowest fee for nine years at €35,000. You pretty much know what you're going to get with him because he's been there, done that, siring plenty of fast colts and fillies and regularly providing the highest number of winners in a season. He hasn't lost his touch, as demonstrated last year by his Group 1-winning son and now stable-mate Good Guess (GB) and the G2 Lowther S. winner Relief Rally (Ire).

Before Good Guess gets a shot at the title, the most credible threat to Kodiac's crown within the Tally-Ho empire comes from Mehmas (Ire), who tore up the first-season sire record books in 2020 and has continued to build on that great start. His European results are backed up by some notable success in America, which should put his sales stock, whether as yearlings or horses in training, on the radar of a wider range of buyers, and at €50,000 in 2024, his fee has come down from last year's high of €60,000. 

His two-year-olds of this year were conceived in his first book after that break-out season of 2020, so we can expect the level of of his mates that year to have risen in line with his fee. That is not always a guarantee of increased success but I wouldn't want to bet against Mehmas continuing to be one of the most exciting younger sires in the European ranks. His equable temperament, and that of many of his offspring, appears to be what sets him apart.

Versatile

If you're looking for a stallion with the potential to get you a Classic winner at a mid-level price then the names of Teofilo (Ire) at €30,000, Sea The Moon (Ger) at £32,500, and Galiway (GB) at €30,000 should all be considered.

It would be wrong to compartmentalise Teofilo as a staying stallion, though he is very good at that, as his Melbourne Cup-winning sons Without A Fight (Ire), Twilight Payment (Ire) and Cross Counter (GB) show, not to mention the Ascot Gold Cup winner Subjectivist (GB). But there is much more in Teofilo's playbook than that, and he remains a hugely dependable sire across the distances, and of fillies too, from the Irish 1,000 Guineas winner Pleascach (Ire) to Irish St Leger winner Voleuse De Coeurs (Ire). If you also factor in some of his achievements as a broodmare sire – Coroebus (Ire), Mac Swiney (Ire), Cachet (Ire) and Dreamloper (Ire) are among the Group 1 winners in that category – and a case can be made for Teofilo being an elite sire at a much more affordable fee than some in that category. 

Sea The Moon has defied the level of commercial acceptability usually granted to winners of the Deutsches Derby and throughout his career to date has posted very consistent sales returns via his yearlings. His fee has remained sensible – starting at £15,000 for the first six seasons, and then rising steadily to £22,500, then £25,000 and to his current high of £32,500. No doubt helped by the fact that he tends to get very good-looking stock, Sea The Moon has a following in both hemispheres despite never having left Lanwades since retiring to stud, and he coasts into 2024 having sired the winners of the equivalents of the Derby and the Oaks in his native Germany, where he is the champion sire.

Climbing up the ranks in France is Galiway, whose two Group 1 winners are the full-brothers Sealiway (Fr), who was also busy last year at Haras de Beaumont, and Classic prospect Sunway (Fr). We can perhaps expect Galiway to make as much of an impact at the Cheltenham Festival as he may do at Chantilly or Epsom, and that has increased his appeal to the National Hunt crowd, with another of his sons, Kenway (Fr), having recently joined Coolagown Stud in Ireland. 

But it is the Flat with which we are chiefly concerned here, and Galiway's French yearling results last year – six sold at Arqana in August for an average of €131,667 and 23 in October for a €44,761 average, all from his 2021 fee of €12,000 fee – make him a stallion worthy of closer attention. Since 2021, his price has increased to €30,000.

The Next Step

This year is a critical one for the two young stallions who made the biggest impression with their first-crop runners in 2023. Understandably, both Blue Point (Ire) and Too Darn Hot (GB) have been given fee increases, the former from €35,000 to €60,000 and the latter from £40,000 to £65,000. Getting a mare in to either of these Darley stallions might have been the toughest first challenge for the many breeders who wanted to use them at their higher fees. There is plenty of sales-ring and some racecourse evidence to back up those decisions, and a Group 1-winning three-year-old, preferably a Classic winner, will be required to keep these reputations soaring.

A year ahead of them is Coolmore's Sioux Nation, whose juveniles of this year were conceived at his lowest fee of €10,000. He is now at €27,500 thanks to the exploits of the hugely likeable Brave Emperor (Ire) and Matilda Picotte (Ire) among his 10 Group winners from his two crops of runners to race. Sioux Nation was third in the second-season sires' table last year behind Ace Impact's sire Cracksman (GB) and Havana Grey (GB), and while the latter had the highest number of black-type winners (11), Sioux Nation was represented by the most Group winners of this intake (7). He is definitely a horse to watch, even though his fee has increased by €10,000 in the last year.

Everything to Prove

I'm going to pitch in two names here who are teetering on the brink of triumph or disaster. That's not actually true, of course, but such is the knee-jerk reaction to the early results of stallions by industry people who really should know better, that some horses can be commercially 'dead' before we have even had a proper chance to see what they can do. If mass desertion by breeders follows then it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy that the stallion will fail, sometimes through no actual fault of his own, other than the fact that he is unlikely to get you a Brocklesby winner. 

Anyway, as I climb down off my soapbox for the umpteenth time with the fading hope that folks will just wait'n'see awhile, I will put forward Ghaiyyath (Ire) at €25,000 and Hello Youmzain (Fr) at €22,500 as two of the more interesting names among those with first runners in 2024. 

A dual Group 1-winning son of Kodiac, Hello Youmzain's yearlings were in demand in Deauville last year and he must be odds-on to be France's leading first-season sire this year. He covered 140 mares in his first season at Haras d'Etreham at his opening fee of €25,000.

Ghaiyyath's fee has also been trimmed slightly from his starting point of €30,000. Not all sons of Dubawi are created equal, of course, and there is now no shortage of them at stud, but Night Of Thunder (Ire), bred on the same cross as the 130-rated Ghaiyyath, and Too Darn Hot, bred on a similar cross, have set the bar high. 

Both Hello Youmzain and Ghaiyyath became Group winners themselves for the first time in the second half of their juvenile seasons. If their offspring can follow suit, it is easy to imagine that both stallions could be more expensive by this time next year.

TDN Value Podium

Bronze: Acclamation (GB), Rathbarry Stud, €25,000

If we are spruiking Dark Angel and Mehmas in this piece, then we must have their sire on the podium. At 25, Acclamation is still going strong and is an increasingly significant influence. As last year's G1 Hong Kong Cup and G1 Cox Plate winner Romantic Warrior (Ire) showed, he is far from just a one-trick pony, though he is obviously best known as a sire of sprinters, with the brilliant Marsha (Ire) among them. Al Shaqab's Orne (Ire), who was bred at home by Rathbarry, has Classic claims ahead of this season, and with Acclamation's fee sliding down from his career-high of €40,000 in 2018 and 2019, he's very much still one to keep on your side. 

Silver: Pinatubo (Ire), Dalham Hall Stud, £35,000

Perhaps boosted by the success of his fellow son of Shamardal, Blue Point, last year, Pinatubo seems to be many people's idea of this season's leading freshman in waiting. If you had the chance to see him last week during Darley's open days, then it would be hard to disagree, as he has swagger and substance in spades. 

His yearling average of almost £154,000 for 41 sold tells of his commercial popularity to date. It's up to him now, and up his sleeve he has the fact that he is from the same family as Invincible Spirit and Kodiac. 

Pinatubo has remained at £35,000 throughout his stud career and that could look very reasonable if his stock live up to expectations this year. 

Gold: Sottsass (Fr), Coolmore, €25,000

We hear a lot about 'stallion-making races' and I'm not sure I believe in the concept, but all we need to know about Sottsass is that he won the G1 Prix du Jockey Club and the G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe – two races that most owners would give their eyeteeth to win – not to mention the G1 Prix Ganay and G2 Prix Niel. He was also third in the Arc as a three-year-old behind the older horses Waldgeist (GB) and Enable (GB).

Sottsass is from one of the current 'it' families, with his half-siblings including the stellar Sistercharlie (Ire) and My Sister Nat (Fr), while full-brother Shin Emperor (Fr) looks a Grade 1, or even Classic, winner in the making in Japan this year.

He is the first cab off the rank when it comes to Coolmore's sons of Siyouni (Fr). In general, his first yearlings looked athletic and together, and they may raise a few eyebrows by coming to hand sooner than expected. More importantly, however, they should go on, and as we know, it's best to rely on a Classic winner to get you a Classic winner.

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From Frankie Dettori returning to the saddle in Europe to Wathnan Racing continuing its march in Britain, here are 10 predictions-some fun and some serious-for the new year. 

Dettori's Groundhog Day To Continue Into 2024

We've all seen the movie Groundhog Day, haven't we? The one where Bill Murray gets caught in a time loop? Well, if you haven't, the same script could well be playing out for real through Frankie Dettori's retirement [or lack thereof].

For all the people who had convinced themselves that Dettori had achieved a dream send-off when guiding King Of Steel to victory in the Champion S. at Ascot, there were just as many people rolling their eyes at the idea that one of the world's greatest riders was ready to set off into the sunset. 

Of course, Dettori has committed to ride on in America for the winter but, what happens after that? What happens if a big-ticket ride becomes available for a Guineas or a Derby? Don't tell me that Dettori, who arguably rode as well last year as he has in years, is going to give up on that opportunity for the sake of staying true to his word?

The farewell tour served its purpose and generated a subplot for almost every major meeting that Dettori rode at in 2023. However, the thought that we have seen the last of Frankie in Europe is not something I'd be taking short odds on this year. 

Classic Glory On The Cards For Blue Point?

From a bloodstock perspective, Blue Point hogged just as many headlines as Frankie did throughout 2023. Tipped by many to scoop first-season sire honours, Blue Point delivered in no uncertain terms, coming up trumps with two genuine top-notchers in Big Evs and Rosallion. 

The latter has real claims of bagging Classic glory for his young sire sensation this year and is just 12-1 to land the 2,000 Guineas. Big Evs proved he is a classy sprinter to look forward to when bagging the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf and the likelihood of him landing a major sprint in Europe is strong. 

It's worth noting that Blue Point's most famous triumphs, his back-to-back Royal Ascot successes in the King's Stand S. and Diamond Jubilee S. back in 2019, came in his five-year-old campaign. The best may yet be to come from his progeny in 2024 and beyond and, if he is to bag a breakthrough Classic success, perhaps it may come through Rosallion in the Irish 2,000 Guineas provided City Of Troy stays away. 

Bank On Sangster To Have A Big Year

Oliver Sangster | Keeneland

Speaking of breakthrough successes at the highest level, there is a chance that up-and-coming trainer Ollie Sangster can bag a first Group 1 or even Classic victory with stable star Shuwari this season. 

Grandson of the late Robert Sangster, Ollie has done his bit to keep the family name in lights and enjoyed a stellar debut season as a trainer by sending out 13 winners from 81 runners, highlighted by the Fillies' Mile runner-up Shuwari. 

According to those who know Sangster best, there are few trainers who work as hard as the 27-year-old, who would be thoroughly deserving of a major day in the sun in 2024. Here's hoping Shuwari can provide Sangster just that and her 1,000 Guineas claims would be greatly aided by the word soft appearing in the going description. 

Tough Task For City Of Troy To Live Up To Lofty Reputation

City Of Troy proved himself to be something out of the ordinary as a two-year-old by going unbeaten in three starts, culminating with a jaw-dropping performance in the Dewhurst. 

It was after the Dewhurst where Aidan O'Brien described City Of Troy as being the best two-year-old he has ever trained while Michael Tabor took it up a notch or two by comparing the horse to Frankel.

City Of Troy has generated much debate since that brilliant Dewhurst display but perhaps it might be wisest to side with Mick Kinane, who, in acknowledging the awesome talent the Ballydoyle-trained colt clearly has, said that he still has a lot to prove in order to be compared with the likes of Sea The Stars and Frankel. 

Certainly at this juncture, City Of Troy would appear the most likely winner of the 2,000 Guineas, which his general even-money odds reflects. However, whether we will be speaking of him in the same ilk as Frankel come the end of the season, now that is a big ask. 

One thing that isn't up for debate is that Justify is quickly confirming himself as a very serious stallion, not only in America and Australia, but also in Europe. Not long after City Of Troy recorded his Dewhurst demolition, Justify's daughter Opera Singer did something similar in the Prix Marcel Boussac.

Both horses sit at the head of the 2,000 and 1,000 Guineas betting respectively and it will be fascinating to see how their careers progress this term. 

Japan To Win The Derby

Yoshito Yahagi | Emma Berry

Now this would be a bit of fun; what if Japan were to win the Derby? Or, if I was to be more specific, what if trainer Yoshito Yahagi was to take out another major prize on the international circuit by sending out a brother to Sottsass to score at Epsom? You know, it's not impossible. 

Shin Emperor is clearly bred for the job. Bought by Yahagi, who has recorded major success at the Breeders' Cup, Dubai World Cup and Saudi Cup meetings in recent years, for €2.1 million at Arqana in 2021, Shin Emperor has always been held in high regard. 

A Group 3 winner already in Japan, he went down by less than a length in the G1 Hopeful S. at Nakayama over the festive period, doing his reputation no harm in the process. 

Yahagi is famous for travelling his horses all over the world and, in Shin Emperor, he has a colt who clearly fits the Derby profile being a brother to the Arc winner Sottsass. In betting terms, this is one of the more fanciful predictions for 2024, but what a story it would be. 

Pinatubo To Emulate Blue Point 

Sottsass, of course, is one of the first-season stallions that many enthusiasts are looking forward to this year. While his stock has gone down extremely well, highlighted by the sale of a €525,000 colt at Arqana last year, it seems as though everyone who is anyone is tipping Pinatubo to emulate Blue Point by coming up trumps for Darley yet again. 

Many of the top industry judges hitched their wagon to Blue Point's wheel last year and we all know how that ended. The same theme developed at the yearling and foal sales last year with Pinatubo and to a similar extent with fellow Darley stallions Earthlight and Ghaiyyath. One thing's for certain: Darley appears to hold all the aces with a view towards this year's first-season sires' championship and, while it is only January, few people will be betting against Pinatubo being a big success. 

It should also be noted how well Hello Youmzain performed with his stock at the sales in France. He could be well placed to clinch champion first-season honours in France. 

Breeze-Up Market To Stay Strong Despite Market Correction

There were some tough moments in 2023 and it's fair to say that the yearling and breeding stock sales were a struggle for many. Market correction was a term we heard plenty of as many of the key figures at some of the major sales in Europe settled back into pre-Covid levels. 

With that in mind, there is understandably some apprehension heading into the new year and the first major metric into how well things are going in 2024 will come at the breeze-up sales.

But just how much of a correction can we expect to see here? There seems to be a huge demand for the ready-to-run horses and the breeze-up sales have never been a more popular shopping outlet for international buyers than it is now. 

It should also be noted that unbeaten two-year-old and dual Group 1 winner Vandeek, who sold to Anthony Stroud for 625,000gns at the Craven Breeze-Up Sale at Tattersalls last year, did his bit to fly the flag for this sector of the market. 

In many ways, the breeze-up market could be viewed as something of an anomaly as, similar to the point-to-point sphere, there should, in theory, always be a demand for a good horse. 

The middle to upper tiers can be expected to be solid at the breeze-up sales come the spring but it will be interesting to see how the median and clearance rates hold up. 

Wathnan Racing To Continue Its March

Richard Brown: buys on behalf of Wathnan Racing | Zuzanna Lupa

One man who is sure to be out in force at the breeze-up sales is Blandford Bloodstock's Richard Brown but, perhaps most interesting of all, will be the bloodstock agent's buying on behalf of Wathnan Racing. 

Wathnan Racing embarked on ownership in Britain with a number of statement victories, none more so than when private purchase Courage Mon Ami won the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot on just his fourth career start. 

It's likely that Wathnan Racing, which is the ownership vehicle of the Emir Of Qatar, can go from strength to strength in 2024. 

Tough Times Ahead For Smaller Breeders 

Ed Harper of Whitsbury Manor Stud said something frightening in a recent TDN Q&A. When commenting on some of the smaller clients of his who enjoyed a touch when selling foals by the stud's superstar stallion Havana Grey, he revealed that for many, their big payday would be just enough to keep them going for just a few more years, such are the choppy waters the smaller breeders are navigating through right now. 

If you were to take an x-ray of the breeding game in its current form and peg it into the light, it wouldn't make for pretty reading, especially in Britain. That was there for everyone to see on the first and last days of the foal sales at Tattersalls in December where many key stakeholders voiced their concerns about the future of the smaller breeder in Britain. 

Of course, this is not a problem exclusive to Britain, but Brexit and the lack of small-time buyers and pinhookers getting into the game compared to Ireland clearly contributed to some of those frightening figures. 

It begs the question; for how long can this continue? Where there is a will there's a way, and in that same Q&A, Harper called on smaller breeders to take a look at themselves in the mirror when it comes to breeding horses for the sales ring. 

Some will take that advice and reinvest but, inevitably, more will slip away. It appears as though there could be some tough times ahead for the smaller breeders. 

No Sign Of Polarisation Slowing Down Over Jumps

On a similarly depressing theme, there doesn't appear to be any pause to polarisation in the markets, particularly when it comes to the National Hunt game. There could be a different winner to ever race at the Cheltenham festival and, chances are, people will still be honing in on the same two stallions at the major store sales. 

King George hero Hewick once again reminded that a good horse can come from anywhere. Shark Hanlon's 800 quid wonder is by Virtual, a son of Pivotal and, without doing the horse a disservice, is what many would describe as a non descript stallion. 

But here he is, siring the winner of one of the most important jumps races of the year, and once again proving that the love is more readily shared than what some would lead you to believe over jumps.

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Little Big Bear (Ire), winner of the G1 Phoenix S. at two followed by the G2 Sandy Lane S. this year before finishing runner-up in the G1 Commonwealth Cup, will stand for €27,500. The Antarctic (Ire), a dual Group 3-winning brother to Battaash (Ire), joins Castle Hyde Stud at €6,000.

Of the current Coolmore residents, Wootton Bassett (GB), who covered 218 mares this year, leads the field at €200,000, up from €150,000 in 2023. He was represented with a new Grade I winner at the Breeders' Cup by Unquestionable (Fr) in the Juvenile Turf. His other top-level winners this year include King Of Steel and Bucanero Fuerte (Fr).

No Nay Never, who stood at €175,000 in 2023, is advertised at €150,000 for next season. He stands alongside four of his sons on the roster: Arizona (Ire) (€5,000), Blackbeard (Ire) (€20,000), Little Big Bear, as above, and Ten Sovereigns (Ire) (€17,500).

The European champion 2-year-old and 3-year-old St Mark's Basilica (Fr) will have his first foals for sale from later this month and his fee has been trimmed to €50,000. He has stood at €65,000 in his first two seasons at stud. Another son of Siyouni, the Arc winner Sottsass (Fr), will have his first runners on the track next year and will remain at €25,000.

Coolmore's David O'Loughlin told TDN Europe, “We're delighted to have three new exciting prospects for the coming season in the shape of Siyouni's brilliant son Paddington, No Nay Never's European champion 2-year-old Little Big Bear and Battaash's well-performed own-brother The Antarctic. Many of our stallions have enjoyed fantastic seasons but, in line with prevailing market conditions, we've decreased the fees of 10 of the 18 which remain on the roster from last year.”

A decision on whether Saturday's GI Breeders' Cup Turf winner Auguste Rodin (Ire) remains in training next year at four or retires to stud will be made next week.

The full list of Coolmore fees for 2024:

Arizona (Ire) €5,000
Australia (GB) €17,500
Blackbeard (Ire) €20,000
Calyx (GB) €12,500
Camelot (GB) €50,000
Churchill (Ire) €30,000
Footstepsinthesand (GB) €8,000
Gleneagles €17,500
Holy Roman Emperor (Ire) €8,000
Little Big Bear (Ire) €27,500
Magna Grecia (Ire) €10,000
No Nay Never €150,000
Paddington (GB) €55,000
Saxon Warrior (Jpn) €25,000
Sioux Nation €27,500
Sottsass (Fr) €25,000
St Mark's Basilica (Fr) €50,000
Starspangledbanner (Aus) €45,000
Ten Sovereigns (Ire) €17,500
The Antarctic (Ire) €6,000
Wootton Bassett (GB) €200,000

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Trying an 1800-metre trip for this first go, the son of Starlet's Sister (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) was first to break the line and could have led had they chosen, but Takeshi Yokoyama elected to allow the colt to find his feed and settled in a handy fourth behind a steady tempo for the long run down the back straight. Patiently handled on the circle just behind the speed, Shin Emperor traveled strongly and had to be pulled off heels with the real running about to begin, but he split rivals decisively and sprinted his final 600 metres in a strong :33.8 for an easy victory as the $4 (3-1) second favourite.

“He was stronger than I imagined, and I thought he was a good horse from the start,” said Yokoyama. “He's still a kid and he's still a challenge, but he's a horse I'm looking forward to.”

Added winning trainer Yoshito Yahagi: “I'm relieved to see such a performance from a new horse with such a deep pedigree.”

While not specifying any future targets, Shin Emperor would certainly be on a trajectory towards the 2024 Japanese Classics, which begin with the G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas) in April. There are two top-level opportunities for 2-year-old males in December in Japan, the Asahi Hai Futurity over a mile and the Hopeful S. going 2000 metres.

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Those closer to the business end of the stallion market will appreciate the fine line that had to be walked by Kamel Chehboub and his daughter Pauline in making their decision either to continue the racing career of the unbeaten colt they share with Serge Stempniak, or hasten his departure to their brand new stallion operation at Haras de Beaumont. In the end, heads trumped hearts, and while Ace Impact's retirement is racing's loss, it is also very much French breeding's gain.

The man who had the most right to feel aggrieved at Thursday's confirmation of the end of Ace Impact's racing career is Jean-Claude Rouget, who first set eyes on him as a yearling at Arqana two summers ago, and has delivered a masterclass, from Cagnes-sur-Mer to the Bois de Boulogne, in how to train a top-class racehorse. Rouget, though, understands the demands of both sides of the industry all too well, and is magnanimous in regard to the decision that has been taken to stand Ace Impact in Normandy, where the trainer himself was born 70 years ago. 

“I was very pleased to sell the share [in Ace Impact] to Kamel because he is very audacious and he is taking a lot of risk, and in France we need people like that,” Rouget says in a pause between recruiting the next batch of yearlings at Tattersalls.

“I was very pleased that the horse was going to stay in France at stud. It's a wonderful opportunity for the breeders. I am not a breeder myself but I think about the French breeders always going to England and Ireland every year, and we need a better stallion roster than we have. We had Siyouni and Wootton Bassett but Siyouni is getting old and Wootton Bassett has left, so we need some young horses.

“I hope he will become a good stallion, but nobody knows. A new book will open.”

The old book, let's call it the first in the series, was more novella than novel, but it was epic all the same. All we can do now is watch scenes from the story of the season on replay, and we are not alone in so doing.

Last year he was just asking me to give him time.

“What I did the other night as I was trying to get to sleep was to review Ace Impact's six races in fifteen minutes,” says Rouget, as much in awe of the horse as the rest of us.

“It was very interesting. He always had quality. Last year he was just asking me to give him time. He had very bad skin in the summer, which is not usual, so I decided to wait until the winter to start with him.”

Lucky for Ace Impact that he was bought – at €75,000 – by a trainer who has been around long enough to listen when a horse finds his own method of communication. Rouget is of course no stranger to success. In 1991, he set a French record with his 178 wins for the season, but quality has long surpassed quantity.

Three years after that, Millkom (GB) was his breakthrough star, from little heard-of provincial tracks to the big city, winning the Prix Jean Prat and Grand Prix de Paris and becoming the trainer's first runner in the Arc. It took another quarter of a century for Rouget to win that race, but in the last few seasons his impression on the Arc has been emphatic, with victory for Sottsass (Fr) in 2020 followed this year by Ace Impact. In the interim he had a second and fourth with Vadeni (Fr) and Al Hakeem (GB).

It is the Prix du Jockey Club which Rouget can these days just about call his own, however. Since his first win in the Classic with Le Havre (Ire) in 2009 – the year in which he became champion trainer for the first time, having also won the Poule d'Essai des Pouliches and Prix de Diane with Elusive Wave (Ire) and Stacelita (Fr) – he has now won it six times. Ace Impact's track-record-breaking success in this year's Jockey Club may well go down as one of the most visually impressive of all time. He broke the hearts of supporters of Big Rock (Ire) as he sped past, gathering a head of steam as if propelled by slingshot from the back of the pack. This was the first time the wider racing world outside France had woken up to the colt's extraordinary talents, but Rouget was already firmly of the opinion that he had a good 'un on his hands. 

Casting his mind back to January 26 and Cagnes-sur-Mer, he says, “We gave him a nice first race and he showed good acceleration. At that time it wasn't the same as we saw later in the year, but it was enough to win.

“After that we gave him two months because I knew we had to continue to give him time, expecting a good spring and summer. In Bordeaux he won well, he didn't have the best trip on the outside and he was pulling a bit, but he won easily. After that we started the process to make him into a Group 1 winner.”

He adds, “We passed by Chantilly to show him the track. In the Prix de Suresnes he was blocked inside but again he won very easily and that was the confirmation that he was a very good horse.”

Rouget, whose training career began in Pau in south-west France, has in recent years increased his satellite stable in Deauville. But he sensibly still steers the easiest route possible to the metropolitan tracks if he can. Of the decision to start Ace Impact at the seaside in the south of France, he says, “We had to choose a path: to run at two a couple of times or to start in March. To me, it's very difficult to start in March and to have a Group 1 horse. I did it with Valyra and she won the Diane two months later, but it is very rare. 

“I prefer to give them experience and, to me, Cagnes-sur-Mer is a very good track. I used to send 30 or 40 horses every winter. I did the same with Raabihah. She should have won the Diane for me. She was a close fourth, and after [Cagnes] she won [a Listed race] in Longchamp. I consider running in January to be the same as running in November. I don't push my horses to start. First time out I want there to be no risk.”

He continues, “Deauville is very interesting but I like Pau, I prefer to have the yearlings there, because Deauville is racetrack. Pau is a special training centre beside the racetrack.

“I think it is better for them to start in the provinces where racing is less strong at the beginning and you can give them one or two races to build their confidence. After that you can go to Deauville to try to win a Listed race. I prefer that route to starting in Longchamp or Deauville with a knife in their teeth.”

Ace Impact brought his own weapon to his tussles at Chantilly, Deauville and Longchamp in his killer turn of foot. He retires as the European champion three-year-old of 2023, having blazed, comet-like, through a career which spanned a little over eight months. 

He had been under the tutelage of Rouget and his team since the August of 2021, however. By then, his half-brother Alessandro (Fr) (Australia {GB}) had been second on three starts for Rouget, including in the Prix du Suquet on debut, the same race won by his sibling two years later on his own first visit to the races. 

I am very happy to choose my horses myself and to train them,
and to understand why I did well or why I did badly.

Rouget, then, was not entirely unfamiliar with the offspring of Absolutly Me (Fr) (Anabaa Blue {GB}). The 14-year-old mare is owned by German breeder Waltraut Spanner and resides at Barbara Moser's Haras du Long Champ – about as prophetic a birthplace for a future Arc winner as there could be.

Alessandro went on to win three races and finish second in a Listed contest, while his younger brother moved between Pau and Deauville, his trainer just biding his time.

Recalling his impression of Ace Impact at the yearling sales, Rouget says, “It was his conformation. He was very pleasing to watch, and his dam was doing well.”

Anyone who has seen the trainer in action at the sales will know that watching is what he does best. A regular presence ringside, he selects his own horses, and is analytical while accepting the blame if things don't go to plan. Such a lesson in scrutiny would be well learned by prospective bloodstock agents.

“It's my premiere passion to buy yearlings, maybe more than to train horses,” he says. “I am very happy to choose my horses myself and to train them, and to understand why I did well or why I did badly. Year after year I watch what I bought and ask myself, 'why is this one no good?' It's very interesting.”

Rouget was among the buyers last week at Tattersalls, and he will certainly feature prominently at Arqana this week, a sale which is a home from home for him in Deauville. It will be hard to find one to match Ace Impact, but the trainer will not be deterred from trying to unearth a fledgling racehorse with similar qualities.

“He has a tremendous stride,” Rouget says in attempting to pinpoint what set his newly retired star apart. “The same acceleration with a horse who doesn't move as well as he does is less effective. But his allows him to go very fast; he is covering a lot of ground, with an engine, and as the year went on he became more and more impressive.”

While he awaits the first offspring of Ace Impact at the sales, Rouget this year has had a chance to peruse yearlings by his first Arc winner, another home-grown French star, Sottsass. 

“I try to stay neutral but I have to accept that his horses walk well and seem, like him, to have good minds,” he says. “I have bought a few and Peter Brant will send me a few that he has bred. We will try to help Sottsass to become a good stallion.”

In the meantime, Ace Impact has helped his trainer to become champion for the second year running, having snatched the title back from his arch rival Andre Fabre last year. Since Rouget's first championship in 2009, it has passed to and fro between the pair, with Rouget's impending coronation marking his fifth time at the top of the table. 

He says, “There has been a challenge between Andre Fabre and me for a long time, especially in the last four or five years. Before, he was always in front, but I beat him in 2009, and 2016 was for me the best year with plenty of good horses. 

“For me, when I was a young trainer in Pau I couldn't even imagine that. I am very proud of it. Step by step we have built up the stable over 45 years.”

Step by step, too, he built the career of the best racehorse we have seen in Europe this year, one which was shrewdly not started too early, but which finished all too soon. It was brief, he was brilliant, and boy did he make an impact. 

The post Rouget: ‘It’s My Premiere Passion to Buy Yearlings, Maybe More Than to Train Horses’ appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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DEAUVILLE, France–As the co-breeder of the outstanding matriarch Urban Sea, Maurice Lagasse will forever be famed in the racing world but it is another family that has put his Gestut Zur Kuste in the spotlight of late, and on Saturday night his Dubawi (Ire) half-sister to two Group 1 winners topped the August Sale at €2.4 million.

Oliver St Lawrence is no stranger to plucking expensive yearlings from Arqana's flagship sale and it was his name on the docket for lot 214 after he outbid Anthony Stroud on behalf of Bahraini interests for the sibling of last weekend's G1 Keeneland Phoenix S. winner Bucanero Fuerte (GB) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) and his full-brother, the G1 Prix de l'Abbaye winner Wooded (Ire). The transaction put the seal on a memorable day for Nicolas de Chambure of Haras d'Etreham, who clinched the G2 Prix du Calvados with co-owner Craig Bernick and their filly Les Pavots (Ire) before racing back to the sales grounds to oversee a momentous evening for his Etreham draft, which consigned the filly on behalf of longstanding client Lagasse.

The filly's dam Frida La Blonde (Fr) is a daughter of the late Etreham stallion Elusive City and was co-bred by Lagasse before racing in his colours.

Reflecting on the family, and the filly's second dam Firm Friend (Affirmed), Lagasse said, “I loved her immensely. She was ordinary looking, but she broke her maiden at two at Evry, and she beat a very good filly in Sky Paradise, and then she won a Listed, she beat a Breeders' Cup winner in Lit De Justice, and a multiple graded stakes winner in Borodislew.  

He added of Frida La Blonde, “The dam is empty this year, but she should be going back to Wootton Bassett because Dubawi is too expensive.” 

The Dubawi half-sister to recent Group 1 winner Bucanero Fuerte and Wooded is knocked down to @OStLawrence for €2.4m @InfoArqana. Big result for @Haras_d_Etreham. pic.twitter.com/x1PptIxUpv

— Brian Sheerin (@BrianSheerin91) August 19, 2023

After being slapped on the back by almost everyone who passed him on his way out of the ring, a beaming de Chambure added, “There was more excitement than pressure, and I'm glad she's going to a great home. Maurice was a friend of my grandfather and has been with us for many, many years, so it was a great thrill to have this filly for him.”

Etreham was also the vendor of Bucanero Fuerte at last year's sale, for €165,000 to Robson Aguiar, as well as €90,000 October graduate Wooded. 

St Lawrence, whose clients have purchased the filly as a future foundation mare, said, “She is a nice filly. She has her few little faults but so did her brother here last year. Hopefully he can go on and win a few more Group 1s; he won very easily the other day at the Curragh.”

He added, “We knew that she had to be making somewhere around two million-plus. I don't know how much more was in the tank. She's worth virtually that if she wins an ordinary race.”

The Sons Also Rise

It wasn't just the progeny of Dubawi that was in high demand as his stallion sons Night Of Thunder (Ire) and Ghaiyyath (Ire) played star roles with yearlings selling for €660,000 and €600,000 respectively. 

The Night Of Thunder colt (196) was consigned by Ecurie des Monceaux on behalf of breeder Guy Heald and benefited from a major recent update when his three-parts-brother Arabian Crown (Fr) (Dubawi {Ire}), who made €600,000 at this sale 12 months ago, won the Stonehenge S. for Godolphin and Charlie Appleby on Wednesday. 

The future looks bright for Classic candidate Arabian Crown, as indeed it does for the stallion sons of Dubawi, with Blandford Bloodstock's Richard Brown lauding Night Of Thunder after signing for the colt on behalf of his existing and successful client.

He said, “I thought this was an absolute smasher. Night Of Thunder, for me, is a stallion who is going to explode in the next few years. The mare has done it all–she had a very impressive two-year-old winner by Dubawi the other day.”

Blandford Bloodstock has signed for four yearlings for a total spend of €2,180,000 over the past two days and Brown added, “This colt has come from an exceptional farm. I haven't bought many horses from Henri [Bozo] over the years because I haven't been able to but the record of Monceaux speaks for itself. He's for the same existing client and he will go back to England and then we will make plans.”

It was Anthony Stroud, buying on behalf of Godolphin, who snapped up the Ghaiyyath colt from Haras des Capucines for €600,000. Out of Dubai Opera (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), an own-sister to Group 3 winner Lockwood (Ire), lot 195 was the third yearling Godolphin bought from as many offerings by the stallion on the day, having snapped up lot 176 and 160 earlier in the session. That worked out at a total spend of €1,365,000 on yearlings by Ghaiyyath by the powerful operation. 

€600,000 from @godolphin secures lot 1️⃣9️⃣5️⃣, a colt by first crop sire #Ghaiyyath @DarleyEurope out of DUBAI OPERA from the family of Group performer LOCKWOOD. He was offered by @HarasCapucines at the #AugustSale. pic.twitter.com/AR2VUNo00H

— ARQANA (@InfoArqana) August 19, 2023

Day Two Talking Points

• The figures were similarly strong to those posted on Friday. Comparing Saturday's trade to the corresponding day 12 months ago, the aggregate, average, median and clearance rate all climbed. Of the 82 lots offered on Saturday, 70 were sold, resulting in an 85% clearance rate compared to 81% in 2022. The average also rose 2.6% to €239,914 and the aggregate was up 10.49% to €16,794,000.
• Al Shaqab has certainly made its presence felt over the past few days. Sheikh Joaan Al Thani has been spotted on the sales ground and he clearly means business given the operation has already added eight yearlings for a total spend of €2,885,000.
• Godolphin's support of Ghaiyyath (Ire) was noticeable with the operation signing for all three yearlings by the Darley freshman stallion for €1,365,000.
• It was perhaps unsurprising for a sale held in Blue Rose Cen's home country, but the progeny of Churchill (Ire) held up well. He's hot at the moment, which was evident in the fact that three of his yearlings sold for an average of €226,667.
• Helped by the rip-roaring €525,000 sale of the Sottsass (Fr) colt by Coulonces to Mitsu Nakauchida, the progeny of the Arc winner continued to make a big impression among buyers. He's had eight yearlings sell for an average of €227,125, which sees him performing favourably against a lot of proven sires.
• It shouldn't go unnoticed the excellent start that Pinatubo (Ire) has made, either. He's holding up at a rock-solid €207,857 for seven yearlings sold over the past two days.
• Romanised had just one horse in the sale but it was a notable one with a filly by the Irish 2,000 Guineas and Jacques le Marois winner, who stands at Haras de Bouquetot for €7,000, making €170,000 to Haras de Meautry. In an era where high-class sprinters are rushed off to stud much quicker than even classy milers like Romanised, it would be nice to see the former Ken Condon-trained star do well at stud. 

Family Ties Run Deep for Coulonces and Sottsass

As the last yearlings by the late Le Havre (Ire) go through the ring in Arqana, there was a special moment for his breeders the Sundstrom family, who, in partnership with long-term friend Charlotte Hutchinson, bred the most expensive member of the first crop of Sottsass (Fr). The colt (lot 183) out of Dalakania (Ire) (Dalakhani {Ire}) will race in Japan after being bought by trainer Mitsu Nakauchida for €525,000.

Like Le Havre, Sottsass won the Prix du Jockey Club, and he also has close ties to Anna Sundstrom's Coulonces operation, in which she is assisted by her daughters Moa and Lillie.

“I thought Sottsass was one of the most tremendous racehorses, but also, when Moa was little, the first mare that she presented [at the sales] was Premiere Creation, who is the dam of the dam of Sottsass. So the dam of Sottsass was born at our place,” said Sundstrom. 

“It's been an amazing family and when we do our matings with Charlotte we take into account a lot of things that we think will be good for us. It's not always about the market, and this was very close to the heart.”

She continued, “Sottsass is a beautiful horse and we really wanted to use him. When [this colt] was born we then decided that we had to cover another mare with him and we have a stunning foal out of a Wildenstein mare that will come here next year, and we have mares in foal to Sottsass. There's a lot of emotion behind these coverings, there's always a story behind it.”

Emotional moments for breeders Charlotte Hutchinson (leading up) and Anna, Moa and Lillie Sundstrom after their Sottsass colt sold for €525,000 to Mitsu Nakauchida. pic.twitter.com/2JDOAN9pGM

— Emma Berry (@CollingsBerry) August 19, 2023

Wiping away tears, she added, “It's life-changing. [This colt is] so much like Le Havre. He has the same intelligence. I can't wait to see him run.”

Charlotte Hutchinson was for a long time a familiar face on the French scene and an integral part of Coulonces Sales. In recent years she has returned home to England but still keeps six mares in partnership with Sundstrom, including Dalakania, whom they bought from the Wertheimer family in 2014 for €16,000.

 “We have a long history and the whole team at Coulonces has done a great job prepping him. They are excellent at what they do,” Hutchinson said after making a star guest appearance on the shank to take the Sottsass colt through the ring, her smile growing wider as he neared his final sale price.

“Anna has made it possible for all of us. I'm working back at home with my family on the farm but it's nice to come back and be part of the team again.”

Superpowers Do Battle for Bourgeauville's Colt

Juddmonte and Godolphin locked horns for a colt by Camelot (GB) from the select draft of his breeder Haras de Bourgeauville, with Juddmonte's Simon Mockridge having the final say at €520,000 for lot 154.

The colt is the second foal of the treble winner Bella Bollide (Fr) (Rock Of Gibraltar {Ire}), herself a half-sister to Es Que (GB) (Inchinor {GB}), the dam of three group winners. The third dam Bellarida (Fr) (Bellypha {GB}) has also produced the Group 3 winner In Clover (GB) (Inchinor {GB}), who in turn is the dam of three Group 1 winners for George Strawbridge, including We Are (Ire) (Dansili {GB}).

“He's been very popular the whole five days he's been here,” said Philip Lybeck, who runs Haras de Bourgeauville with his parents Amelie and Robert Ehrnrooth. The family moved to France from their native Finland, and the farm close to Deauville has been in their ownership from 1992. 

Lybeck continued, “He's a homebred and his dam is a homebred, so it's now the second generation. We've had a lot of the family and we still have. It was two superpowers involved in the bidding and we are delighted that we could breed a horse good enough to attract them.”

He added, “We're the only Finnish Thoroughbred breeders in the world as far as we know.”

On behalf of @JuddmonteFarms, @SackvilleDonald goes to €520,000 to secure lot 1️⃣5️⃣4️⃣ a colt by Camelot?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Camelot @coolmorestud out of the maternal family of WITH YOU and WE ARE. He was offered by Haras de Bourgeauville at the #AugustSale. pic.twitter.com/5oOvJKbBQ9

— ARQANA (@InfoArqana) August 19, 2023

The Next Blue Rose Cen? 

Superstar French filly Blue Rose Cen (Ire) has done her bit to raise the profile of Churchill (Ire) by storming to three Group 1 successes and American bloodstock agent Ben Gowans is hoping that he found the latest top-class filly by the sire on Saturday.

Gowans went to €340,000 to secure Camas Park Stud's Churchill filly [lot 151], who is a half-sister to six individual winners, including the Grade I winner Bayrir (Fr) (Medicean {GB}).

Gowans purchased the Churchill filly on behalf of Mark Grier, who was a late non-runner on the trip to Deauvlle for the sale due to illness, but the owner won't have to wait long to see his latest acquisition given she will race in America. 

Gowans said, “I work for Gainesway and they are very nice to allow me to do some business on the side. We are here for the first time on behalf of Mark Grier, who lives in New Jersey in the United States, and they have long been planning on coming over here to experience the sale. Unfortunately, Mark was diagnosed with Lyme Disease a few weeks ago so he couldn't make the sale, but his wife Jackie and son Jack are here and are having a great time. We're pretty happy with the filly we have bought them.”

He added, “Obviously Blue Rose Cen is a very good filly and Churchill seems to do well with fillies in particular. His stock is rising at the moment. This is a strong and athletic filly. She is well built and moves well. She's got the pedigree and she's got the looks. She will go back to America and she'll go to Arnaud Delacour in Fair Hill.”

Buy of the Day

By Brian Sheerin

Lot 168, B, C, Persian King (Ire)-Cap Verite (Ire) (Cape Cross {Ire})
Vendor: La Motteraye Consignment
Buyer: Joseph O'Brien
Price: €70,000

Joseph O'Brien may have got himself a bit of value in lot 168, a nice colt by Persian King (Ire), who fetched €70,000. 

There is a lot to like about this colt on pedigree and looks. Offered by the La Motteraye Consignment, he is out of the listed winner Cap Verite (Ire) (Cape Cross {Ire}) and hails from a deep black-type family that includes the brilliant Tally-Ho Stud-based sire Mehmas (Ire).

A big-walking son of the French 2,000 Guineas winner, lot 168 boasts a big hip, plenty of power, and looks sure to run at two, but is likely to progress beyond his juvenile season. 

He has gone to one of the best hotels there is and is probably one to make a note of with regards to an Irish maiden this time next year or even beforehand. 

Of the nine Persian Kings to sell here at Arqana over the past two days, they have averaged €74,556, with Freddy Head going to €160,000 for a filly by him and Peter and Ross Doyle paying €135,000 for a colt by the freshman sire. 

Time might prove that the €70,000 outlay of O'Brien, operating at such a competitive sale, as being a decent bit of business for the horses purchased under the €100,000 bracket this week. 

Of those that made a lot more, the Sottsass (Fr) colt sold by Coulonces to Mitsu Nakauchida for €525,000 really was a belter. It will be fascinating to follow his career in Japan and he could be a high-class colt. 

The post Elation For Etreham As Well-Bred Dubawi Filly Makes €2.4m  appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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“We were campaigning Sistercharlie at the time, and we knew how good she was because she had run second in the Prix Diane after getting into a lot of trouble. She almost got knocked down, and then looked like she would be absolutely nowhere. And then she came flying and made second. I knew then she just had to be a really good horse. We owned her going into the Prix Diane. And so we were very encouraged and then we brought her back to the United States and she ran in the Belmont Oaks. She lost by a nose. And she had just arrived and really never even had the chance to work or anything.”

Michel Zerolo had recommended Sistercharlie to Brant after her win in a conditions race at Saint-Cloud in April, and bought her for him after her win in the G3 Prix Penelope later than month. It was the first horse he had recommended to him.

Sistercharlie was the first foal out of Starlet's Sister, who has gone on to be a remarkable producer for Henri Bozo's Ecurie des Monceaux. Sistercharlie, the champion turf female in America, was followed by the multiple-group winner and $1 million-plus earner My Sister Nat (Fr) (Acclamation {GB}), and Sottsass (Fr), driving the prices for her subsequent foals into the stratosphere in the Arqana sales ring.

But that hadn't yet happened when Sottsass came up for sale that summer at Arqana, and Brant asked Zerolo to take a look. “Monceaux was selling him; they have the mare, Starlet's Sister, and so Michel Zerolo went to see him and he said he was really beautiful. He was a really big, strong, beautiful horse.”

Champion Sistercharlie wins the 2018 Breeders' Cup F/M Turf | Breeders' Cup/Eclipse Sportswire

Recalled Zerolo, “The obvious thing was that I was going to look at a brother of Sistercharlie, so it was a fairly easy pick. He was a very good-looking horse. He was very athletic. He was he was a good mover. The pedigree was a happening pedigree at the time. And Siyouni was a sire that I love.”

They purchased him for €340,000. Brant left him in France with trainer Jean-Claude Rouget.

Sottsass would go on to wins at two, and three, and four, including three Group 1s. He broke the track record in the Prix du Jockey Club (French Derby) at a mile and a quarter, won the Prix Ganay, and then Prix de l'Arc Triomphe at four in his final career start. He won at distances from eight furlongs to a mile and a half.

This week, 11 of his first yearlings are expected to pass through the ring at the Arqana August sale. Six of them will be offered by Zerolo and Eric Puerari's Haras des Capucines.

“I've seen a reasonable number of his first yearlings,” said Zerolo. “I wouldn't say they're all of a type. He does get some bays, he gets some chestnuts. I've seen a few that are on the smaller side, more on the Polar Falcon side. Otherwise, they all seem to have a good disposition, good mind, easy horses to be around, good-looking, scopey, correct. Very correct, the way he was.”

Brant named the horse after his friend, Ettore Sottsass, a well-know Austrian-Italian architect, furniture, glass, and home-products designer, whose bright red Olivetti Valentine Portable Typewriter has earned a spot in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. “He was one of the great people in design in the 20th century,” said Brant. “And I knew him very well. I collected his furniture and his glass. I like to try to name my horses after 20th and 21st century culture.”

And though Sottsass the horse remained in Europe for his racing career, Brant was on hand for some of his best moments.

“I was there at the French Derby and it was a very, very impressive race,” he recalled. “Jean-Claude Rouget thought he was going to run very well. There were some great horses in there. Persian King was the favourite and there were a number of really well-bred French horses from the big barns and families in France as well as from England. And he just ran a powerhouse.”

The Arc took place during the first fall of the Covid pandemic in 2020, forcing Brant and his wife, Stefanie Seymour, to miss the race.

“My wife and I watched it in Connecticut and we got all dressed up as if we were there,” he said. “But it was a great thrill. I mean, if there were any neighbors close by, they could hear us yelling, that's for sure.”

Sottsass winning the Arc | Scoop Dyga

Brant-currently in the midst of an epic season with another son of Siyouni, Paddington (GB), who he owns in partnership–has heavily supported his stallion with some top mares, including sending him to his Eclipse Award-winning mare Uni in his third year at stud. His pedigree deserves those mares, he said.

“Very few mares have thrown horses like Sistercharlie, Sottsass, My Sister Nat. My Sister Nat (whom Brant purchased privately in October, 2018) lost the Breeders' Cup by a neck and she lost the Flower Bowl by a nose. She was also very, very good. But I think that Sistercharlie could be the best horse that I ever owned. They were all really good-looking. So I'm very anxious to see his babies run next year. We bred 12 mares to him because we really believe in him.”

His offspring will go to Jean-Claude Rouget, Aidan O'Brien and Chad Brown in the U.S., Brant said.

“I'm getting very good reports from the French, English and Irish breeders,” he said. “They look a lot like him. They're scopey, the majority of them are chestnut, as he is. They're very handsome horses with a good head. He stamped that in them. And they look like horses that are going to be Classic kind of horses, seven-furlongs to a mile-and-a-quarter, maybe a mile-and-a-half horses.”

Brant is in Saratoga this week keeping an eye on his U.S. runners, but has an affinity for European racing, and keeps about half his mares in Europe, primarily at Coolmore Ireland.

“I like the racing in Europe very much,” he said, sitting outside Chad Brown's Saratoga barn. “I feel like the facilities where you're training are superb. And I like the way they train those babies going straight and not doing too many turns at the beginning. I believe that horses need to run when they're two years' old and you have less risk of hurting them if there are no turns at the very, very beginning as their bones are getting set. And so I do like it.

“But I come from America and I grew up in Queens, near Aqueduct, and we used to sometimes skip school and go there. I really learned a lot about American horse racing and watched horses like Kelso and Carry Back, the great Dr. Fager, all the great, great horses running against each other. And I really love dirt racing as well. And of course, winning the Kentucky Derby (in partnership) with Claiborne in 1984 with Swale was one of the great thrills of my life. It's hard to top that,” he says, and then laughs a wry laugh. “But the Arc de Triomphe was pretty close.”

And while Sottsass won at two, Zerolo isn't sure that his yearlings are going to be “super-precocious,” he said. “They're going to cater to a type of buyer, people who want Classic horses. But I think they should sell very well. I think they'll make us as proud, and I think they should make Peter and Coolmore proud.”

Additional reporting by Katie Petrunyak

The post Full Circle: First Yearlings for Arqana-Grad Sottsass Sell at Deauville appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Of the 2017 lots offered, 128 were sold, which represented a clearance rate of 59% and an aggregate spend of €2,056,250. The average for day one of first sale for 2023 at Goffs was €16,064 with Cox explaining that the nice horses had no trouble in finding new homes.

He said, “A few people said to me that the horses we had here stood out. The Sottsass was a good, straightforward colt who had good X-rays and a good scope. He was a homebred of China Horse Club and sold very well to Tally-Ho Stud. He'd plenty of fans–he had six or seven vets and there was plenty of action on him.”

Baroda offered 11 horses on Wednesday, of which nine were sold to the tune of €321,000 at an average of €35,667. They included another China Horse Club homebred by New Bay (GB) (lot 186), knocked down to Camas Park for €85,000, and a Magna Grecia (Ire) filly (lot 200) snapped up by MAB Agency for €58,000.

Cox added, “The New Bay was another homebred by China Horse Club and the sire is flying so he definitely attracted plenty of attention before selling to Camas Park. The Magna Grecia filly was lovely. She's a homebred by the Niarchos family and the half-sister [Burning Topic (Ger) (Ulysses {Ire})] is doing well in France.”

He added, “This is a sale where, if you put a good foal in here, it will stand out and sell well. We're happy with how the day went.”

Rogues Snap Up Night Of Thunder Colt

One of the major subplots to the 2022 sale season was the strength of Night Of Thunder (Ire)'s progeny at public auction and the Rogue's Gallery Syndicate, best known for owning listed winner Rogue Millennium (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), gave €110,000 for a colt by the Darley sire.

The Night Of Thunder colt was consigned by Ringfort Stud and signed for by the syndicate's Tony Elliott, who was standing alongside bloodstock agent Billy Jackson-Stops. Elliott revealed that lot 109 would be offered for resale later in the year.

He said, “This horse has been bought to pinhook. We had three for pinhooking last year and we've three this year as well. We've got some nice horses.”

Elliott added, “We thought he was the standout and it was exactly what we wanted to give for him. That would have been our last bid I reckon.

“We're really pleased to get him because he's a lovely-looking horse and, being by Night Of Thunder, he could be anything. Sometimes we buy them back into the syndicate, which we did last year with a Zoustar (Aus).

“If we really like this lad and he's going the right way we could look at buying him back into the syndicate. There's two syndicates–a pinhooking syndicate and a racing one. We've got some nice horses for the coming years.”

Shared Wish For Shamrock Thoroughbreds And Team Valor

The Joseph O'Brien-trained Dundalk winner Tosen Wish (Ire) (New Bay {GB}) (lot 35) provided some early interest when selling for €100,000 to Shamrock Thoroughbreds and Team Valor.

Tosen Wish overcame a 469-day absence to win a seven-furlong handicap off 82 at Dundalk last week, justifying 9-4 favouritism in the process.

The 4-year-old, who is now two from three, boasts a rating of 89 and will be aimed at a turf campaign by Ado McGuinness, according to the trainer's assistant Stephen Thorne.

He said, “Tosen Wish won well on the polytrack at Dundalk last week. He'd been off for a good while but we made plenty of enquiries about him and put the picture together and I think he's a nice lightly-raced horse moving forward. We've partnered up with Team Valor on this one so it is an exciting new partnership and hopefully he will be lucky for us.”

Asked how the new partnership with Barry Irwin's Team Valor came about, Thorne added, “We made contact with him and we've had a few conversations with him. He's obviously seen the success Ado has had on the track. He's a dual Group 1-winning trainer now and we're delighted to have Team Valor on board. We were waiting to find the right type of horse to pitch to Barry and he obviously liked him. He was a standout at this sale by a mile. I thought we'd get him a little cheaper but there was strong competition in the ring. We've no major plans but I think he'll be a nice horse for the turf.”

Tosen Wish was consigned by Castlebridge, who also offered the placed Arabian Legend (Ire) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}) (lot 37), sold for €48,000 to Italian owner Mr. Ciampoli to be trained by Grizzetti Galoppo.

Another horse with form, the Cormac Farrell-trained and consigned Seven Hills (Ire) (Camacho {GB}) (lot 40C), who placed a couple of times at Dundalk, sold for €40,000 to the New Racing Factory.

Walk In The Park Colt Comes Up Trumps

The Flat-bred weanlings may have dominated but once again the progeny of Walk In The Park (Ire) proved to be in high demand with Coolmore's Gerry Aherne going to €56,000 to secure a well-bred colt (lot 209) by the sire from Thistledown Stud.

The colt is out of a sister to Felix Desjy (Fr) (Maresca Sorrento {Fr}), a classy performer for Gigginstown House Stud and Gordon Elliott at one point, and was the highest-priced National Hunt-bred lot through the ring on Wednesday.

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At the top end of the market, Kingman (GB) dominated with three foals by the Juddmonte-based stallion selling for a combined €1,540,000 and one of Europe's leading pinhookers Philipp Stauffenberg signing for the €550,000 top lot by the sire. 

Tally-Ho Stud may be best known for being sellers but they pipped Stauffenberg for the biggest spenders title by signing for 19 foals for €1,429,000. Juddmonte, Yeomanstown, BBA Ireland and Camas Park Stud were also on the front foot at Goffs. 

Away from the top end, there were interesting trends to emerge last week that could well impact how this week's December Foal Sale plays out at Tattersalls.

What first-season sires do the buyers want? Who are the emerging forces in the stallion ranks and where might the value lie at Tattersalls? We've examined all of that and more.

Stock In Mehmas And New Bay Is Booming

It's been a breakout year for Mehmas (Ire) and New Bay (GB), who have had their fees for 2023 hiked off the back of memorable campaigns for their respective progeny and, judging by how well their foals went down at Goffs, they can again be expected to play a leading role at Tattersalls.

Let's start with Mehmas, a horse who began his stud career at Tally-Ho in 2017 at a fee of €12,500 and has justified his bump to €60,000 after another memorable campaign, highlighted by Group 1-winning sprinter Minzaal (Ire).

New Bay has done something similar at Ballylinch in that he has climbed the ranks the hard way. He also entered the stallion ranks in 2017, standing for €20,000, but has had his fee for 2023 increased to €75,000 from €37,500 with Bay Bridge (GB), Bayside Boy (Ire) and Saffron Beach (Ire) doing their bit to advertise their stallion's prowess at the highest level this season.

Nine New Bays sold at Goffs for an average of €80,750, headed by colts who sold for €145,000 and €140,000, while Mehmas enjoyed a similarly productive sale with 26 foals selling for an average of €62,455. Four foals by Mehmas broke the €100,000 mark with BBA Ireland going to €160,000 to secure a colt by the stallion.

What's clear about last week's results is that Mehmas and New Bay are the emerging forces in the European stallion ranks. There are 30 foals by Mehmas and 16 New Bays at Tattersalls this week and it will be interesting to see how they perform.

Sergei To Make A Splash?

The Whitsbury Manor Stud team got to dip their toe into the market with some of the first foals by Sergei Prokofiev (Can) going under the hammer at Goffs. How that will prepare an operation who excelled itself with leading first-season sire Havana Grey is hard to know given the amount of foals due to be sold by Sergei Profkofiev at Tattersalls this week. 

The Goffs offering went down well; one colt made €52,000 while the WH Bloodstock team paid €45,000 for another. Of the six foals that sold at Goffs, they averaged at €34,167. Not bad going for a stallion who stood at £6,500 in his first season at stud. 

Indeed, Sergei Prokofiev hails from that Scat Daddy line that is proving so popular. He was clearly quite the looker, too, given he fetched $1,100,000 as a yearling before carving out a decent career without managing to win a Group 1 for Aidan O'Brien. 

There are 60 foals by Sergei Prokofiev at Tattersalls this week. They should provide a better sample size into the standing in which he is held in with the buyers.

Najd Stud Snap Up Foals

We have become accustomed to Najd Stud playing a major role at the horses-in-training sales but it was interesting to see the Saudi Arabian-based outfit sign for four foals at Goffs. Is that a sign of things to come at Tattersalls this week?

Najd Stud didn't shoot the lights out, either, at Goffs. A Ghaiyyath (Ire) colt topped the total spend of €134,500 across five foals. Interestingly, a filly by Shadwell's Commonwealth Cup winner Eqtidaar (Ire), who has his first runners next year, was among the purchases at €36,000 as was a €3,500 Belardo (Ire) colt on the final day of the sale. 

Kildangan-Based Sires Come Up Trumps

Speaking of Ghaiyyath, the Kildangan-based freshman sire enjoyed a rock-solid start at Goffs with 11 of his first foals selling for €824,000 which averages out at €74,909.

Leading pinhookers Pier House Stud bought the top two colts by the stallion for €185,000 and €145,000 respectively and few would be surprised if the offerings by the four-time Group 1 winner go down well at Tattersalls as well. 

Of the 11 foals cataloged by Ghaiyyath at Tattersalls, a filly out of a sister to New York Girl (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}) and a half-brother to Global Giant (GB) (Shamardal) stand out on paper at least.

Fellow Kildangan-based stallions Blue Point (Ire) and Earthlight (Ire) also performed well. Earthlight had 17 foals sell for €942,500 at an average of €55,441 with Tally-Ho, Lynn Lodge Stud, Peter and Ross Doyle among the significant buyers of his progeny.

Even more impressive were figures posted by Blue Point, who had 20 lots sell for €1,011,500 at an average of €56,194. Top of the pops were colts knocked down for €200,000 apiece to Camas Park Stud and Katsumi Yoshida.

Blue Point's yearlings were similarly well-received. Famous for winning the King's Stand and Diamond Jubilee S. in the same week at Royal Ascot in 2019, Blue Point will have his first two-year-olds hit the track in 2023, with yearlings by the sire averaging over €100,000 this year. 

His stats performed favourably against proven sires Dark Angel (Ire), Showcasing (GB), Kodiac (GB), Starspangledbanner (Aus) and Acclamation (GB) in terms of average for a similar number of lots through the ring at Goffs last week. It will be interesting to see if he can carry over that sort of momentum at Tattersalls. 

First-Season Sires

Next year's race to be crowned champion first-season sire is being billed as one of the most exciting renewals for a long time with Too Darn Hot (GB), Blue Point, Waldgeist (GB), Magna Grecia (Ire), Ten Sovereigns (Ire), Calyx (GB), Advertise (GB), Invincible Army (Ire), Land Force (Ire) and Soldier's Call (GB) having their first runners in 2023.

As mentioned above, Blue Point performed well at Goffs while a number of leading pinhookers got behind the progeny of a number of the first-season sires. 

Advertise was one who came out nicely on the figures from a relatively small sample size at Goffs and one would imagine that Tattersalls will provide a more accurate barometer given he has 19 foals there.

But the Goffs results read well. Six foals sold for an average of €32,167 which was more than Invincible Army [14 for €29,773], Ten Sovereigns [15 for €26,833] and Soldier's Call [14 for €26,417]. Those figures could well average out this week. Time will tell.

First Crops Of Note

Along with Ghaiyyath, Earthlight and Sergei Prokofiev, who we have already mentioned, a number of stallions had their first crop go under the hammer at Goffs. 

Some of the more interesting results were posted by Arizona (Ire), perhaps unsurprisingly given he is a son of the sire of the moment, No Nay Never, while King Of Change (GB), Mohaather (GB), Sottsass (Fr) and Without Parole (GB) caught the imagination. 

Peter Nolan paid €60,000 for an Arizona half-brother to Eldrickjones (Ire) (Cotai Glory {GB}) while the Coolmore-based freshman sire, who stands for just €5,000, averaged a respectable €20,192 for 13 foals.

Sottsass was a classier racehorse than most of his first-crop rivals and it told in the figures at Goffs with the former Arc winner posting averages comparable with Mehmas, Invincible Spirit (Ire) and Dark Angel. There were 11 foals by Sottsass at Goffs and they sold for an average of €61,100 and a top price of €180,000. 

G1 Sussex S. winner Mohaather created a good impression with five foals selling for an average of €49,250 including a top lot of €95,000 while Without Parole had four foals sell for an average of €27,000 and a high of €70,000.

King Of Change was subject to a recent transfer after being snapped up by Starfield Stud from Derrinstown and it looks like it could prove to be a decent move given how his first foals performed. 

Peter and Ross Doyle paid €50,000 for a colt by the sire who averaged a solid €24,714 for seven foals sold. That's a good return for a Group 1-winning stallion who is set to stand for just €5,000 next year.

Coolmore Can Count On Wootton Bassett And No Nay Never

Wootton Bassett (GB) and No Nay Never flew the flag for Coolmore at Goffs while demand for the progeny of Saxon Warrior (Jpn) was evidently up off the back of an excellent autumn for the first-season sire. 

Wootton Bassett was bettered only by Kingman and Galileo, who between them accounted for just four foals at Goffs, for the highest averages posted. 

The sire of brilliant G1 National S. winner Al Riffa, Wootton Bassett clearly captured the imagination last week, with seven foals selling for €1,345,000 at an average of €224,167 which earned him a top-three finish in that particular table. 

No Nay Never enjoyed an eighth-place finish in averages posted on €134,800 and, while Saxon Warrior was down on that list at €52,263, he posted a chunky aggregate with 21 foals selling for €993,000. That was the seventh-highest aggregate recorded by any stallion. 

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No Nay Never has had an exceptional year. Older filly Alcohol Free (Ire) landed the G1 July Cup at Newmarket, but it has been his Coolmore-owned and Aidan O'Brien-trained juveniles that have set tongues wagging this term. 

Like his father, Blackbeard landed the G1 Prix Morny in Deauville before doubling his tally at the highest level in the G1 Middle Park S. at Newmarket. 

While he was prematurely retired due to a training injury, Group 1 scorers Little Big Bear (Ire) and Meditate (Ire) sit at the head of the ante-post markets for the 2,000 and 1,000 Guineas respectively. 

Coolmore's director of sales, David O'Loughlin said, “No Nay Never has had an unbelievable year. The quality of the mares he got off the back of his success has really been shining through and, to have three individual Group 1-winning two-year-olds in the one year, he has caught the attention of a lot of people. 

“It has been another big week for him with Meditate winning the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf and she is now a leading fancy for the 1,000 Guineas. Little Big Bear is favourite for the 2,000 Guineas, so No Nay Never has a big chance for the first two Classics of the season. That means a lot for us because we are trying to win the Classics.”

Sioux Nation hails from the same sire line being a son of Scat Daddy, and enjoyed a terrific debut season at stud at Coolmore with 43 winners. He will have his fee increased from €10,000 to 17,500 next year. Blackbeard is being backed to make a similar splash in his debut season by O'Loughlin. 

He said, “To get a horse like Blackbeard on the roster is hugely exciting as well. Breeders love fast horses and he proved himself of the highest quality this season and was reminiscent of his father when winning the G1 Prix Morny is some style before following up in the G1 Middle Park S. at Newmarket. That was the icing on the cake of another big season. 

“Blackbeard is very like his father-the same colour, shape and he has the movement. Everything a breeder wants, he has. He's also out of a very fast mare who Eddie Lynam trained [Muirin (Ire) (Born To Sea {Ire})] so I think a lot of people will be keen to use him.”

O'Loughlin added, “Commercially, what is driving the market is international appeal. When the international market zones in on a particular sire line, it puts a lot of value on that, much more than the domestic market can. No Nay Never is a good example of that as he has international appeal.

“Take Justify as another example, he has had two Group winners in Europe and three stakes winners in America. It's obvious that he is working both sides of the Atlantic-he has the dirt horses and horses who can do it in Europe as well. For breeders, it will help when they use Arizona, Blackbeard and Sioux Nation because they all hail from that exceptional Scat Daddy line. It's all the one line.”

Like Sioux Nation, Coolmore's Saxon Warrior (Jpn) made a big impression with his first crop of runners. As well as having the highly-touted Auguste Rodin (Ire) to look forward to this season, Saxon Warrior came up trumps with Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf winner Victoria Road (Ire), one of 21 international winners in his first season. 

O'Loughlin said, “Saxon Warrior had an exceptional year. Again, he's a horse with international appeal being a son of Deep Impact (Jpn), who was the best horse to stand in Japan. Auguste Rodin is a very special horse and Victoria Road crowned a remarkable year with his victory in the Breeders Cup Juvenile Turf. 

“It's remarkable because Saxon Warrior wasn't the most precocious of horses and, for him to be getting all of these top-class two-year-olds is a big statement. He has some very good two-year-olds and who's to say that Greenland (Ire) won't be the best of them all. I know that a lot of people think he is a high-class horse to look forward to next year. Some big breeders have latched on to him after his debut season and I even sold a nomination to him out here in Keeneland the other day. They think the horse is great value at €35,000.”

Wootton Bassett will stand for €150,000, St Mark's Basilica's 2023 fee is €65,000, and Camelot (GB) is at €60,000. Churchill (Ire), the sire of dual Group 1 winner Vadeni (Fr), has had his fee increased to €30,000, Starspangledbanner (Aus) will stand for €50,000, Australia (GB) and Sottsass (Fr) for €25,000 and Ten Sovereigns (Ire) and Gleneagles (Ire) for €17,500. 

Footstepsinthesand, Circus Maximus, Calyx and US Navy Flag are set at €10,000, Arizona (Ire) is €5,000 and Gustav Klimt (Ire) will be available at €4,000. 

The post Coolmore Fees: No Nay Never Up To 175k and Blackbeard To Start At 25k appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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