Friday, November 25, 2022
3rd-Meydan, AED82,500 ($22,464), Maiden, 2yo, 1400m
SERAJ (Nyquist) cost $72,000 at last fall's Fasig-Tipton October Sale and the Apr. 29 foal matured into a $200,000 OBS April juvenile after breezing a furlong in :10 flat. The chestnut is the second foal to the races out of Hawana (War Front), whose unraced dam Tare Green (Giant's Causeway) produced French listed winner and Group 3-placed Ocean Atlantique (American Pharoah), runner-up in Aqueduct allowance company Nov. 19. The colt's third dam was responsible for Eclipse Award winner Leroidesanimaux (Brz).

Seyouff (Flatter), a $180,000 Keeneland September yearling, is out of an unraced daughter of Life Happened (Stravinsky), the dam of two-time champion and six-time GI/G1SW Tepin (Bernstein) as well as MGSW/MGISP Vyjack (Into Mischief). The colt's dam Azara (More Than Ready) fetched $875,000 from Bridlewood Farm in foal to Into Mischief at KEENOV in 2016.

High Everest (Honor Code) is out of She Be Striking (GB) (Smart Strike), a winning daughter of Eclipse Award-winning 2-year-old filly She Be Wild (Offlee Wild). The March-foaled dark bay was sold for $32,000 at FTKOCT last fall and returned better than three times that amount when hammering for 80,000gns at this year's Tattersalls Craven Breeze-Up Sale (breeze-up video).

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Well, he must have spent the last year under a rock.

Pretty universally, all that anyone in the European industry sought from the new breeze-up cycle at Newmarket this week was a renewed sense of stability. And, while the closing session of the Craven Sale at Tattersalls proved somewhat tougher going for vendors than the first day, there remained plenty of encouragement.

Last year, Tattersalls eventually put together a diminished Craven Sale the week after Royal Ascot. So direct comparisons are pretty pointless. But while average and median at the second session dipped to 70,116gns and 60,000gns respectively, for as many as 56 sold from 61 into the ring, the aggregate performance of this auction definitely felt like something to build on. Above all, the clearance rate—92% yesterday, 88% overall—was giddy even by the standards we learned to expect in the unnerving trading environment of 2020. A two-day median of 68,000gns put the market within hailing distance of the 70,000-77,500gns range achieved through four of the first five years of the bull run that started in 2014. The average of 85,897gns, on the other hand, has more ground to recover on consistent six-figure yields through that period. But at least the rollercoaster seems to be levelling out—and we know that the breeze-up specialists are a resilient lot.

Edmond Mahony, the Tattersalls chairman, took heart at the end of proceedings—being especially pleased with the reception of the £250,000 Royal Ascot/Group 1 bonus introduced this year, to supplement the £15,000 Craven bonus scheme.

“It is clear that owners have embraced these unprecedented bonuses,” Mahony said. “We have seen solid and diverse demand at all levels of the market from start to finish, producing the best Craven Breeze-Up clearance rate since 2000 and key indicators which have held up well, especially when taken in the context of the COVID-related challenges and restrictions which we are all still grappling with, and which continue to hinder international travel.

“Nevertheless, to hear consistently positive feedback from owners, trainers, agents and consignors about the bonuses has been gratifying, and reinforces our commitment to exploring as many innovative ways as possible to reward owners who buy at Tattersalls with extra prizemoney. There is no doubt that we will see plenty of this crop of Craven Breeze-Up graduates performing at a high level and it would be even more pleasing than usual if the Royal Ascot and Group 1 bonuses were won in the coming months.

“Despite the prolonged difficulties with international travel, overseas buyers have again demonstrated their appetite for high class Tattersalls breeze-up 2-year-olds. Buyers from America, Bahrain, Dubai, France, Italy, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Singapore have all been active, many of them using the live internet bidding platform. As well as paying tribute to the consignors, who have as ever presented an outstanding collection of 2-year-olds, we must again commend everyone for their patience with the regulations and determination to overcome the obstacles we continue to face. We are still having to conduct sales under strict guidelines, but as well as looking forward to the forthcoming Guineas Breeze-Up and Horses-in-Training Sale, we are also looking forward to returning to more normality in the not-too-distant future.”

Patience Rewards Yeomanstown's Roll of the Dice

Yeomanstown Stud recorded two of the biggest sales of the session, albeit both had involved some pretty high stakes. If the yield was relatively conservative, that doesn't alter the fact that both were valued among the best prospects on offer.

Indeed, a glistening Caravaggio colt presented as lot 143 registered the top price of the day at 240,000gns. A half-brother to Group 2-placed Wall Of Fire (Ire) (Canford Cliffs {Ire}) out of a daughter of G2 Cherry Hinton S. winner Jewel In The Sand (Ire) (Bluebird), he was bought in this ring for 155,000gns as a foal but that punt did not initially pay off when he was retained for 130,000gns at the October Sale. Patience was rewarded this time, however, with Alastair Donald identifying him to meet a pretty intriguing brief for this type of sale.

“He'll be going into pre-training here but has been bought for a new client to race in Hong Kong,” the agent explained. “He's a lovely big horse with a nice pedigree. The sire looks like he has got a very nice 2-year-old already and I did like the yearlings, they're particularly good walkers, and this horse's movement is very good. He breezed well for a big horse. They don't start racing until they are 3-year-olds in Hong Kong, so we didn't need a 'here-and-now' horse.”

David O'Callaghan of Yeomanstown explained: “We brought him back to Book I, but it did not quite work out. He is a beautiful colt, breezed real well. He has a great attitude and hasn't missed a day.”

The other project concluded by the farm concerned lot 117, a Night Of Thunder (Ire) colt out of listed-placed Vitoria (Ire) (Exceed And Excel {Aus}) bought as a Goffs November foal for €120,000. He realized 125,000gns from Mark McStay of Avenue Bloodstock, to enter training with Hugo Palmer.

“He was my pick of the sale,” McStay said. “I am a massive fan of the stallion, ever since my time at Godolphin. I bought Storm Legend (Ire) at the breeze-ups last year [for £160,000 at the Goresbridge sale] and he was John Oxx's last winner first time out at Naas last autumn. And I remember the dam, she was pretty quick. That gave me a little bit of extra encouragement.”

But so, too, did the grounding the colt has received. “This horse comes from a great farm,” McStay stressed. “They do a super job, and he was recommended by David. He is a big, strong, mature horse, but wouldn't be one to pitch up at Royal Ascot. He'll be a horse that will take a bit more time, you'd love to see him run in the autumn. But he's an exciting horse and I'm thrilled to get him.”

A New Dream for Williams

Hometown trainer Stuart Williams had arrived with a spring in his step after saddling a daughter of Oasis Dream (GB) to win the opener up the road during the afternoon, his first ever juvenile winner on the Rowley Mile. “A slightly dubious stat, to be fair,” he protested with a smile. “Usually we can only really take them up there for the experience.”

But while he may typically lack the kind of youngsters eligible to win maidens at that level, Williams is a good deal better resourced than many other trainers in ways that are arguably more precious yet. And the shrewd eye that had picked out Desert Dreamer (GB) for just 20,000gns in Book II last October was happily able to go as high as 150,000gns for lot 96, an Aclaim (Ire) half-brother to listed winner Lady Penelope (Ire) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}).

Williams was acting for Opulence Thoroughbreds, as when active at the March Sale recently improvised here. “I'm helping them with the buying but they do have other trainers so he's not 100% certain to come to me,” he noted. “But he's a good strong horse, and athletic, and looks like he will be able to run as a 2-year-old. Unfortunately you have to pay plenty to get those.”

The colt, from the same family of Charm Spirit (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), was picked up by consignors Tally-Ho Stud as a Goffs November foal for €95,000 and proved worth their perseverance after failing to meet his reserve at 68,000gns in Book I here last October.

Williams also gave 125,000gns for lot 128, a Dark Angel (Ire) half-brother to Group 3 winner Feliciana De Vega (GB) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) consigned by Church Farm and Horse Park Stud.

Aguiar Proves a 'Dab' Hand

One of the “touches” of the session concerned lot 133, a Dabirsim (Fr) colt picked up by consignor Robson Aguair at the Arqana sale last summer for just €22,000 despite boasting none other than All Along (Fr) as his fourth dam. Here he weighed in at 140,000gns from Richard Brown on Blandford Bloodstock, to join David Simcock.

“I bought a horse at the breeze-ups last year from Robson called Cordouan (Fr) Shalaa {Ire}),” Brown said, referring to a £105,000 purchase made at Arqana's transferred sale. “And he won very well for John Gosden at Newcastle last night. So I'm going back the same hotel: I think John's horse is very nice and I hope this one is, too. He came across the track a little bit green, but breezed very nicely and he's a good-looking horse. He'll need plenty of time, but he will get that with David. We'll give him a break now, and hopefully he'd be an August-September, seven-furlong starter.”

We revisited the evolution of Dabirsim as a breeze-up force in coverage of the opening session, when his only other representatives in this catalogue both excelled at 240,000gns (another for Aguair) and 140,000gns, respectively. He's certainly doing a precious service for the Sunday Silence line in Europe.

Another grand pinhook was completed moments later when lot 137, a Prince Of Lir (Ire) half-brother to listed winner Royal Address (Ire) (Dandy Man {Ire}) picked up by George Peckham as a £15,000 private sale at Doncaster last year, was sold for 105,000gns to the Cool Silk Partnership. This was exceptional work by the former trainer and it's good to see his talents proving viable in this sphere.

Transatlantic Trade Pays for Whitehead

The European industry will owe a big debt to breeze-up pinhookers, in the long term, if they remain ahead of the game in importing the kind of American stock that has so often invigorated the gene pool over here. On the other hand, the sale-topping Practical Joke filly who had dominated the opening session was purchased for immediate repatriation, and that is also understood to be the probable strategy with the Union Rags colt who raised 185,000gns from Sheikh Abdullah Almalek Alsabah as lot 145.

He's certainly bred to excel on dirt, as a son of GI Alabama S. winner Careless Jewel (Tapit) from the family of the brilliant City Of Light (Quality Road). He was bought for $115,000 by P.B. Bloodstock for Tom Whitehead of Powerstown Stud at Keeneland last September, on the same trip where he found a son of Practical Joke at Fasig-Tipton for $75,000.

Offered here as lot 90, that colt gave the Ashford sire yet another hit when making 140,000gns from Irish trainer Michael O'Callaghan. It will be good to see whether the Into Mischief line can transfer its brilliance to the European theatre.

“These are both nice horses and I am very pleased,” Whitehead said. “The Union Rags will be a lovely horse later in the year. It was touch-and-go whether we'd get to the U.S. last year, but the sales company was very good and organised it all. That has been a great start, but we are only halfway there! We have another seven or eight to sell.”

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At the best of times, breeze-up pinhookers have a precarious window of opportunity. After a long winter of preparation, their horses get a few, fleeting seconds between those timing lasers–and if for any reason they misfire then very few prospectors nowadays, whatever they may claim, will give them the benefit of the doubt. And, unlike with foals and yearlings, there is no second chance. All you can do is put the horse into training yourself, and hope to sell off the track.

On the one hand, then, it was especially hard on this sector that it should have been the first exposed to the terrifying economic uncertainties that accompanied the outbreak of the pandemic this time last year. On the other, you could argue that the resilience and adaptability routinely demanded of its practitioners made them more eligible than anybody, once the time came for the industry to send someone back up that ladder and over the parapet.

The belated resumption of the breeze-up calendar, then, was not just an exercise in damage limitation in terms of their own profit and loss. It also became a gesture of perseverance on behalf of horsemen everywhere. They would absorb the shock and, so long as they could still afford it, they would be back in the autumn to restock.

In the event, that actually proved a somewhat more expensive process than they might have imagined in the summer. But the confidence that had returned to much of the market, by the time of the yearling sales, at least entitles consignors to return to Newmarket on Tuesday with some hope of due reward for their exposure last year.

For all the Covid protocols still to be observed, the Tattersalls Craven Sale is not only restored to its customary slot–having last year been staged the week after Royal Ascot–but coincides with the latest easing in national restrictions. Just to be here, renewing such familiar rituals, heightens a sense that things may finally be getting back onto an even keel.

Yes, the calendar remains in a state of flux, not least given the contrasting Covid picture in France and Ireland. Yet those present for the breeze show were nonetheless heartened to renew one of the most timeless spectacles anywhere on the Turf: the silhouette of a young Thoroughbred pulling up against the horizon of the Rowley Mile. Pandemic or no pandemic, the skylarks remained delirious as ever; and the slow clouds, hanging high in the East Anglian sky, alternated the lingering chill of winter with samples of brighter days ahead.

True, the number of spectators appeared down on years past, but then this is hardly the only environment where remote retail has matured in consumer trust over the past year. Besides, we know how many people nowadays view even breeze videos through a prism of evidence gleaned by their timers, stride-counters and all the rest. Quite how many buyers are still incorporating old-fashioned horsemanship into their shortlisting is another matter. As always, it was fascinating to observe the observers: which agents, for instance, didn't bother to make a single note all morning; and which, equally, sited themselves to pick up any “straws in the wind” as the horses were eased.

Tattersalls, for their part, have assisted the regrouping process by introducing a twin bonus scheme, worth £125,000 to any graduate of the sale who can first win a juvenile race at Royal Ascot; and another £125,000 to any who can first win one of the 15 European Group 1 races open to 2-year-olds. (This would be split in a ratio of £100,000 and £25,000 to owner and vendor, respectively.) Consignors are complimenting Tattersalls on looking to their laurels, regarding this sale, with Doncaster having made such an effective play for the precocious types likely to be ready for Ascot, and Arqana muscling in on pedigrees that might take a little longer but also reach a little higher.

As ever, of course, it all boils down to flesh and blood and the associated roll of the dice. Few consignors ever get a pleasant surprise at the breeze show, and there were the usual cases of stage fright and/or soreness reported here. But at least those are familiar challenges. By the time this sale was eventually staged last year, with many horses sold to regular clientele off the home gallops, a catalogue of 154 had shrunk to 84 in the ring. Of these, 70 sold for a 61,000gns median and 94,993gns average, down from 85,000gns and 121,682gns, respectively the previous year–and from sale records of 110,000gns and 144,082gns in 2017. Yet it was a relief just to get the cycle renewed in some form.

Overall, the salvaged calendar contrived what was generally considered an acceptable return in the circumstances. Many had feared real carnage.

“It was all little bit nervous, to say the least,” recalls Brendan Holland of Grove Stud. “Would there be a marketplace at all? And if so, how would it happen? And not only was there a marketplace, but an amazing increase of about 20% in the amount of individual buyers.”

The clearance rate was strong, too, though it must be said that would prove a trend in every sector, suggestive of a “fire sale” mentality.

“For sure, there was a higher-than-normal level of pragmatism in the valuation of stock,” concedes Holland wryly. “And possibly there was an element, in the increased number of purchasers, of people seeking value as a result. But ultimately it was about the success the horses have had on the track. Even in an uncertain year, that over-rode everything. There was bigger participation than you'd ever have imagined, and that was because the track end is what it's all about. The breeze-up horses are performing consistently at a higher and higher level every year.

“It's so important for the overall health of the industry that our particular part held up, because we're such important investors in the yearling market–and of course that feeds into the foal market, feeds into the mare market. I'm also a yearling seller, so a healthy breeze-up market was as important for me in that way as it was as a breeze-up seller. They're all links in the same chain and thankfully it held up.”

Holland found Book 2 of the October Sale as strong as ever, but did feel that restocking was slightly less expensive elsewhere.

“The other sales, worldwide, were all back a little bit,” he says. “Back by acceptable margins, but still back: it was a little bit easier to buy. Because I think people in the autumn were still in that pragmatic mood, with their valuations, and there was still uncertainty.”

His biggest concern, as an Irish consignor, is that the business has jumped straight from the frying pan of Covid into the fire of Brexit.

“And that, to me, is much more challenging even than Covid,” he argues. “It has different and long-term implications, for the economy and for the ability to do business. Covid will pass. Brexit's not going to pass. You couldn't describe the headaches it's causing, in unnecessary paperwork and cost.”

Routines that Holland has been following for 20 years have suddenly become complicated and expensive.

“I had the Department of Agriculture checking my horses coming here,” he says. “Then we had another check for Doncaster. Because I'm now exporting to a 'third country' outside the E.U., by law they have to check all these horses before they can travel. Brexit is adding costs not just to the British economy but to other economies as well, and there's no gain: only extra cost, extra bureaucracy. People give out about E.U. bureaucracy but it's been replaced by even more.”

But if the goalposts keep moving, then you can fall back on one constant.

“Your job is to produce nice horses,” Holland stresses. “That's what keeps you in business. Your job is not to forecast trade, economies, currency differences. You can't start thinking about things that you have no control over. Producing the horses is what will get you out, in good times and bad.”

Holland himself has started the cycle with familiar challenges. Only three of his original six entries made the journey, thanks to untimely setbacks. One will make another sale, but the other pair will have to go into training. But it's precisely because such experiences are so familiar that this sector has its reputation not only for resilience and adaptability, but also for world-class horsemanship.

“This is an extremely tough way to make a living for many reasons,” Holland reflects. “First of all because you're dealing with something so unpredictable, in livestock. But also because of who you're competing against. When most people go to work in the morning, they're not competing against the best in the world. But we are: every sale we go to, Europe and America. So you just have to make the most of your good luck, and hope that you have a proper card somewhere in your deck. Because some years you won't–and you will always have the other kind!

“It wasn't just our industry that faced challenges last year. It was the whole world. So you just had to be accommodating, had to be flexible. And yes, I'd say we are flexible by nature anyway. When you work with animals, you're being challenged daily, never mind annually. So it was a big deal, but we coped.”

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Replays of the breezes will also be available for viewing on the Tattersalls website shortly after each breeze. The catalogue features 169 2-year-olds, with all lots eligible for the £250,000 Craven Royal Ascot/Group 1 Bonus, as well as the £15,000 Craven Breeze Up Bonus. In the last five years, the sale has produced 49 stakes winners.

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An extra twist to the Royal meeting was that one of the dominant trainers of the week was a man better known in jumping circles: Alan King. It is always worth taking note, however, when the master of Barbury Castle sends out a Flat runner, and those who followed Scarlet Dragon (GB) (Sir Percy {GB}), Coeur De Lion (GB) (Pour Moi {Ire}) and Who Dares Wins (Ire) (Jeremy) will have enjoyed the week all the more. 

All three of those horses are winners not just on the Flat but, as one might expect from King, also over hurdles. Subsequently, their stable-mate Tritonic (GB) (Sea The Moon {Ger}), who embellished King's Ascot record with a close second in the Golden Gates H., has followed their example with two unbeaten runs over hurdles this season. He heads to the Cheltenham Festival as current second-favourite for the G1 Triumph Hurdle. 

Tritonic, owned by the McNeill Family and Ian Dale, can be considered the perfect flagbearer for a project which King has worked on successfully with bloodstock agent Anthony Bromley of Highflyer Bloodstock in recent years. While the boutique sales for horses with form in point-to-points or bumpers have seen prices skyrocket for some of the best National Hunt stock, Bromley and King have explored another avenue for to recruit youngsters with the potential to go jumping: the breeze-up sales.

“The second-hand market is remarkably strong for the staying horse and they do hold British and Irish staying form on a pedestal,” says Bromley of the increased overseas participation at the horses-in-training sales, which were once an obvious port of call for National Hunt trainers looking to convert a horse from the Flat with enough stamina on the page.

He continues, “It doesn't suit Alan's system to buy too many Flat yearlings in October. We have done but because he is dual purpose and his boxes are full through the winter with the jumpers, it does suit him really well to come to the breeze-ups. Initially it was always just the Guineas Sale in May but we have also come to the Craven in April in the last few years. That's a time when a lot of the winter jumpers are going for their breaks and it's good to bring the 2-year-olds in as it keeps the staff busy. It has worked really well.”

He adds, “We do buy a few yearlings every year but we tend to buy between six and 10 at the breeze-ups, depending on the demand.”

In some ways, the coronavirus pandemic actually worked in the favour of Bromley and King when the breeze-up sales were delayed. What had looked like being a lean year for orders suddenly perked up as the Ascot winners rolled in. 

“Having the sales in July meant that the horses had been got ready for an April or May breeze then they had to be let down again for a time. By the time we bought them we didn't have to give them too much of a break, which suited Alan's system very well as they'd already had a sort of mini-break,” Bromley says. 

“It was a worry for the breeze-up fellas with more precocious types but it wasn't a worry for us with the type of horses we were after and we enjoyed those sales last year. If they had gone ahead in April or May we may not have had any orders.”

Tritonic, who was bred and sold by Kirsten Rausing as a foal, was pinhooked for the breeze-up sale by Tally-Ho Stud, with Bromley signing for him at the Tattersalls Guineas Sale of 2019 at 55,000gns. Though trainer and agent typically look for a progressive type who might at their best at three and up, Tritonic was ahead of the curve and showed early promise, winning a Ffos Las novice race on his second start at two, followed by victory in the Haynes, Hanson & Clark Conditions S. a month later. Last season, he was runner-up in the listed Glasgow S., achieving a Flat rating of 99.

Bromley says, “Alan hasn't got the clients with the cheque books to really try to buy leading prospects for the Triumph Hurdle but that is a race that we like to target, and a horse like Tritonic is a dream horse. He was placed at Royal Ascot as a 3-year-old, won a graded race over hurdles the next spring and is second-favourite for the Triumph Hurdle. That is a dream purchase for us and you could say he is the poster boy for what we have been trying to do.”

Tritonic's most recent outing last Saturday resulted in a 10-length triumph in the G2 Close Brothers Adonis Juvenile Hurdle—undoubtedly his most polished performance to date.

“He was very impressive,” Bromley agrees. “Alan had made no secret of the fact that he wanted to get two runs into him before Cheltenham and it was a little bit of a rush to get him to the first [hurdles] run at Ascot. He felt that there was a lot of improvement to come in the horse and that was apparent on Saturday.”

Now it's all systems go for the Triumph Hurdle, a race King has plundered in the past with the former Flat winners Penzance (Ire) (Pennekamp) and Katchit (Ire) (Kalanisi {Ire}). The latter went on to glory in the following year's Champion Hurdle.

Whatever Tritonic achieves at the Festival, he has a strong challenge to his poster-boy claims from Trueshan (Fr) (Planteur {Ire}), a 31,000gns purchase from the previous year's Guineas Sale who usurped all of his aforementioned current stable-mates at Ascot in October when winning the G2 QIPCO British Champions Long Distance Cup.

“Trueshan has almost achieved too much to go jumping,” says Bromley. “They have big plans for him this season as a 5-year-old. Hurdling could have been on the agenda for him but it has now been taken off. There were enquiries made for Trueshan and Tritonic at different stages of their careers but their owners have stuck with them and they are reaping the pleasure of that. Even if they are not reaping the big prize-money, they are reaping the pleasure of having a good horse in their own country.”

The two current stars are by no means the only success stories from the breeze-up project. King also won the Adonis Hurdle back in 2017 with Master Blueyes (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}), a 42,000gns purchase and an 85-rated dual Flat winner. Rainbow Dreamer (GB) (Aqlaam {GB}), still on the go at the age of eight and a winner on his last start on Feb. 6 off a mark of 110, has now won eight Flat races and twice over hurdles.

One of the early purchases at 20,000gns, Chatez (Ire), won seven races, two of which were over hurdles—a rare feat for a son of Dandy Man (Ire). He, like Trueshan, was a graduate of Thomond O'Mara's Knockanglass Stables.

“I get quite excited when the catalogue arrives and I pick out a long list to look at,” Bromley explains. “I will look at sprint sires as long as the female family has got some stamina in it. We are looking for something to run over a mile and a quarter as a 3-year-old, and if it can do that you have a horse who can go over jumps if things didn't work out.

“Last year we bought a horse by The Last Lion (Ire),” he says of juvenile winner Rafiki (Fr), another Knockanglass breezer. “We like him a lot and he's a big stamp of a horse, but being by a son of Choisir he wouldn't necessarily jump out at you as being one for Alan. But he's going to be a nice horse who we think can do all sorts of jobs. You need to have bit of stamina on the female side. And then obviously the physique of the horse is the main thing once we actually get to the sales. They have to have some sort of scope. I've bought for Alan since he started training and I know exactly the sort of horse he's after. We're not trying to buy a National Hunt store, we still do need to have a Flat racehorse there as well. We're looking for an athlete with a bit of scope about him.”

Trueshan, who has “all the big targets that you'd imagine” could yet emulate another star of the Guineas Breeze-up Sale, the Gold Cup winner Trip To Paris (Ire) (Champs Elysees {GB}), whose relatively lowly price of 20,000gns was doubtless connected to the fact that he didn't clock a particularly fast time when breezing on the Rowley Mile.

“I don't bother with the times,” says Bromley. “Many moons ago, before it got really professional, I had an assistant for the sales and we got the times. It was the worst breeze-up sale I ever bought at because I was referring to the times and I think it stopped me buying some horses because they hadn't clocked a good time. I think it clouded my opinion of the horse I saw with my eyes.”

He continues, “When I get one out that I've liked in the gallop and then the vendor says he clocked in the top ten of the day I always groan. One, the horse is going to be expensive, and that's not good for me if I haven't got the big money to spend, and more importantly, with the individual's pedigree and physique I don't want to be hearing that he had clocked a good time as it might mean that we are going to have to take a lot of time to unwind the horse. A horse not bred to do that may have been pushed to record a fast time.”

More important to Bromley is the trust he has built up with vendors with whom he has had past success.  “It's not done us any harm just to go with our gut feeling, and as we've been doing it year after year we do like to go back to vendors we've done well with before,” he says. “You go with your own eyes and you go a little bit on vendors' recommendations—and they have to see you again next year.”

A number of King and Bromley's breeze-up purchases have been for Max McNeill, the co-owner of Tritonic whose previous high-class horses with Alan King include Grumeti (GB) (Sakhee), the archetypal dual-purpose performer with his wins in the Cesarewitch and the G1 Anniversary Hurdle at Aintree.

“Fair play to Max McNeill as there have been a lot of enquiries about Tritonic throughout his career, right from when he won the Haynes, Hanson & Clask as a 2-year-old, and again after his run at Royal Ascot last year,” Bromley says. “It's very good for them to support Alan, who is desperate to keep the horse, but you can't argue if the owner is being offered a serious amount of money for a horse. 

“Max has been a great supporter and he's bought a couple of 2-year-olds every year and has had plenty of winners, but this has been the best we've had going this route.”

While Cheltenham is the major focus for every big jumps stable at this time of year, King and Bromley may well have to accept that they will be donning their morning suits as frequently as they reach for the tweed these days.

“The Flat didn't use to be the main day job for Alan but it is becoming part of his daily life now,” Bromley admits. “Alan is a dual-purpose trainer in the old-school style and I think he really punches above his weight because we rarely have six figures to spend on any horse for jumping or the Flat, and in this day and age that's what everyone is trying to achieve at the top table.”

He adds, “It isn't easy to keep playing in the big races with smaller budgets. This is still quite a lot of money, don't get me wrong, but when you are trying to get to the Cheltenham Festival it can be tough. The breeze-up route is one angle that we tried a few years back and it's exciting for everyone.”

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