The inaugural Tattersalls August Sale finished with a flourish with a top price of 220,000 guineas (US$304,980) and five lots selling for 100,000 guineas (US$138,627) or more. Once again, the clearance rate was in the high nineties, with the final session's turnover exceeding 3 million guineas (US$4,158,051), taking the three-day total to more than 8 million guineas (US$11,088,138).
The leading buyer for the sale was Voute Sales who purchased four lots for 650,000 guineas (US$900,888) on behalf of Saudi Arabian operation Najd Stud.
Leading the way was the four-year-old Walkinthesand who was knocked down to Voute for 220,000 guineas (US$304,980) after a spirited online bidding duel. Onsite bidders included Stuart Boman who made a strong play to secure the Richard Hannon trained son of Footstepsinthesand but it was Voute who was successful for the East Everleigh consigned colt.
Walkinthesand was offered with a 'Timeform' rating of 113. Following the purchase, Voute commented;
“They fit the profile and have all been bought for a new stud company called Najd Stud Ltd, which is based in Riyadh. They will ship immediately, as soon as the next flight is available.”
Expanding on the purchase plans, Voute said: “They have been bought for King's Cup races and series. The Saudi Cup day needs very good international horses, not that these aren't good horses, and they might develop into that if they act on the surface.”
Voute, who did all his bidding online, also secured the 3-year-old colt To Nathaniel for 185,000 guineas (US$256,424) on behalf of the same owners. The son of Nathaniel was consigned by The Castlebridge Consignment on behalf of John Gosden's Clarehaven Stables and offered with a 'Timeform' rating of 95.
Explaining the process ahead of the live internet bidding, Voute said: “We vetted a whole slew of them and then I came up to Tattersalls yesterday, looked at all the horses who made the short, short list.
“And we said we'd do it on the internet. It was very easy to do, I registered at the beginning of the week, it has been great. There was no need to be up there today.”
When asked if he felt he missed out anything by not being in the sales ring, he added: “For form horses it is perhaps slightly different, it is there for everyone to see – other than taking a lame step in the ring prior, but we had a vet there to cover that eventuality, the same vet who has vetted them all.”
At the conclusion of the inaugural Tattersalls August Sale, Tattersalls chairman Edmond Mahony commented;
“Another post-COVID Tattersalls sale with a clearance rate around the 90 percent mark has to be regarded as a success. We made the observation after the recent Tattersalls July Sale that this sort of clearance rate would be noteworthy under normal circumstances, but in the face of the multiple challenges that everyone currently faces these sort of returns are little short of miraculous.
“From the Tattersalls perspective, we salute all those who have supported this new fixture and made it such a success. Vendors, purchasers, vets, farriers, stable staff, the list is endless and everyone, whatever their role, has worked incredibly hard to ensure the smooth running not only of this week's August Sale, but of all our recent sales.
“In addition to the extraordinary clearance rate, the other notable feature of the August Sale has been the huge impact of our recently introduced live internet bidding facility, which is particularly well-suited to sales of this nature. From start to finish there has been sustained internet bidding from throughout the world at all levels of the market and it has been fantastic to see this technology being so quickly and widely embraced. It certainly bodes well for the forthcoming sales at Park Paddocks and we will continue to ensure that the platform is as simple and easy to use as possible.
“Naturally there has been plenty of discussion about whether this new August Sale will become a more permanent Tattersalls fixture and the success of this week has certainly demonstrated enthusiasm from vendors and purchasers alike. In a normal year there would be a major yearling sale taking place this week, but we will see how the rest of the Tattersalls sales season unfolds, have a look at the calendar and assess how best to proceed once we have a clearer picture.”
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