Strong Trade Continues At British Breeze-ups

The Guineas Sale, last of the British breeze-up season and the second in a fortnight at Tattersalls, concluded in a similarly buoyant fashion to its more illustrious predecessor in Craven week, with record-breaking figures meaning increases in all sectors.

A strong clearance rate has been the hallmark of the breeze-up sector in 2017 and this sale was no exception, with 85% of the 179 juveniles offered being marked as sold at a solid average of 35,933gns, representing an improvement of 12%, while the median rose by 25% to 25,000gns. The aggregate recorded the biggest percentage boost, up by xx% at 5,497,700gns.

Thomond O'Mara of Knockanglass Stables has enjoyed a terrific breeze-up season and was the leading Guineas vendor, with the pick of his draft on prices being the session leader (lot 298), a colt by Kodiac (GB) out of the winning Green Desert mare Greenflash (GB). O'Mara teamed up with Geoffrey Howson and Matthew Houldsworth at least season's yearling's sales, with this colt having been purchased by the agents at Goffs UK for £28,000. After Stephen Hillen set his mind on buying him for Pat Gallagher and saw off fellow bidders David Redvers and Richard Knight, the colt's value had increased to 240,000gns.

“He's by a tremendous stallion and he really attacked the hill in his breeze and galloped out strongly, which is what we want to see,” reported Hillen, who added that the colt will be trained by Richard Hughes.

Peter Kavanagh understandably has high hopes for Daban (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}), whom he bred and sold at last year's Guineas Breeze-up Sale for 260,000gns, in tomorrow's QIPCO 1,000 Guineas. The breeder was back in the limelight on Friday at Tattersalls via another graduate of his Kildaragh Stud, lot 214, a first-crop son of Dawn Approach (Ire).

The athletic chestnut colt was offered by Kavanagh's son Roderick, making his consigning debut under the Glending Farm banner, and was sold for 170,000gns to Dick O'Gorman on behalf of Godolphin after Stephen Hillen opened the bidding with a bang at 100,000gns.

“We withdrew him from the yearling sales as we had to remove a high testicle but he's developed really well since then and has been nothing but a pleasure to deal with,” said Peter Kavanagh. “He breezed well which had to be class in his case rather than precocity. Roderick has done a terrific job with him.”

A son of the unraced Whisp (Ger) (Rainbow Quest), the late April-born colt hails from a deep German family, his Listed-winning grandam Wild Romance (Ger) (Alkalde {Ger}) having produced three Group-winning daughters who have helped to establish an impressive black-type dynasty.

Looking ahead to Daban's run in the 1,000 Guineas, Kavanagh added, “It's fabulous. It's a dream becoming reality to raise a filly like her. I wasn't sure if I'd make it to Newmarket as we've all been waiting for her dam to foal and she finally produced a filly by Free Eagle (Ire) yesterday.”

Joining the Dawn Approach colt at the 170,000gns mark was lot 223, a colt by Daban's sire Acclamation who posted an impressive breeze on Thursday for consignors Roger Marley and John Cullinan of Church Farm & Horse Park Stud and was also bought by Godolphin.

Richard Frisby conducted the bidding on Godolphin's behalf and said after signing for the first son of juvenile winner Zibeling (Ire) (Cape Cross {Ire}), “He'll go home and I'm sure Sheikh Mohammed will decide in the next few days which trainer he will go to. He's very well bred and has a stallion's pedigree if he's good enough.”

As lot 262 came into the ring, Dick O'Gorman was sent back into bat for Godolphin and bought the Dandy Man colt for 160,000gns. The half-brother to G3 Prix des Reservoirs runner-up Turf Laurel (Ire) (Footstepsinthesand {GB}) was an £18,000 vendor buy-back at the Goffs UK Premier Sale and was later bought privately by Thomond O'Mara, whose eight juveniles sold on the day for a total of 753,000gns at an average of 94,125gns.

A tussle between Chris Richardson and Jeremy Brummitt for a colt by Cheveley Park Stud's freshman sire Lethal Force (Ire) resulted in the third juvenile to bring the hammer down at 170,000gns. Lot 254 had caught Brummitt's eye as a yearling but he settled for the role of underbidder when the colt brought €55,000 at the Goffs Sportsman's Sale. This time he stuck to his guns to have the final say over Richardson.

“I really liked him as a yearling and he has done everything right since then,” noted the agent of the son of the unraced Cool Catena (GB) (One Cool Cat). “He will be exported to Hong Kong. My client is looking for a 3-year-old so it doesn't matter that he didn't do the fastest time, but he's a really nice colt.”

The significant breeze-up spending of David Thompson of Cheveley Park Stud continued, however, with the purchase of lot 216, a Kodiac (GB) half-brother to the Group 3-placed Snoano (GB) (Nayef), at 150,000gns. The May 30 foal was bred by Willie and Elaine Carson of Minster Stud and sold as a foal to Tally-Ho Stud for 38,000gns.

Confirming that Thompson was monitoring the sale online at home, Richardson, who signed for seven 2-year-olds throughout the day for a total of 582,000gns, said, “This colt will be going to John Gosden. He trained the dam and liked this horse very much. [The mare] is by Pivotal, who is such a good broodmare sire.”

He had earlier secured a colt by Zebedee (GB) (lot 199), whose 100,000gns price tag represented a good pinhooking coup for the London-based syndicate of Seven Hills Bloodstock, who bought the colt privately for £12,000 and offered him at Tattersalls through Johnny Hassett's Bloodstock Connection.

“The Zebedee colt goes to Hugo Palmer, a new trainer for us,” Richardson added. “Henry Candy will train the Equiano [lot 121] and the Iffraaj [lot 207] colts. He, of course, trained Kyllachy (GB) and Twilight Son (GB) for us.”

Whether or not Churchill (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) wins the QIPCO 2,000 Guineas today, two Ballydoyle work-riders had plenty to celebrate on Friday when turning a €24,000 yearling into a 140,000gns breezer. Alan Crow and amateur jump jockey Nina Carberry bought lot 281, a colt by Sepoy (Aus), in partnership and consigned two juveniles this season, including one at Ascot, as Thomastown Corner Stables.

“It's my first year doing this and we're absolutely delighted with that,” said Tipperary-based Crow. The colt is out of 3-year-old winner Fifty (Ire) (Fasliyev), a daughter of the G1 Irish 1,000 Guineas runner-up Amethyst (Ire) (Sadler's Wells), and was bought by Oliver St Lawrence on behalf of Fawzi Nass. The Bahrain trainer struck again a little later when going to 100,000gns for a colt from the final crop of the pensioned Bahamian Bounty (GB) (lot 294). The Howson & Houldsworth €28,000 pinhook was another consigned to the breeze-up by Knockanglass Stables.

Two fillies made it into six-figure territory, the first being Baroda & Colbinstown Studs' homebred daughter of Acclamation (lot 112)–the fastest breezer of the session according to purchaser Stephen Hillen–out of the dual-winning Dubawi (Ire) mare La Reine de Pearls (Ire). Hillen went to 110,000gns on behalf of Kenny Bruce, with the filly set to be trained in Newmarket by Mick Quinn.

“She's a homebred but she got a bad stone bruise as a foal and we did not even enter her for a yearling sale,” said David Myerscough, who consigns in partnership with David Cox. “She's very straightforward and has taken all of this well.”

A filly by popular Australian-American shuttler Lonhro (Aus) consigned by Friars Lough Stables also fetched 110,000gns and will race in the colours of Sheikh Juma Dalmook Al Maktoum after being secured by Richard Brown for 110,000gns.

“We've said it before: it's all about the breeze and this filly did a lovely breeze,” said the Blandford Bloodstock agent of lot 171. “She is a lovely quality filly. What we loved is that she finished her breeze really well. She is not yet even a 2-year-old and we will probably give her a break now.”

Born on May 18, the daughter of the Storm Cat mare She's A Beauty was bought for $38,000 at Keeneland last September is a half-sister to the stakes-placed Beautiful Song (Unbridled's Song) as well as two other winners in America.

A small session of horses in training preceded the breeze-up section of the Guineas Sale, led by Steve Rogers (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}) (lot 91), who sold for 105,000gns.

The 6-year-old half-brother to G1 Al Quoz Sprint winner The Right Man (GB) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) will move across Newmarket from Roger Varian's Calrburg Stables to Michael Bell's Fitzroy House after being bought by Ed Ware of the betting company 32 Red.

“This horse is very consistent, he has been in good hands and all the lads in Roger's yard liked him which is always a good sign,” said Bell. “He should be a lot of fun and has relatively low mileage fro a 6-year-old. At Ascot he could be one for the Queen Alexandra S. and then further down the line for the Ebor.”

A total of 655,100gns, which represented an increase of 19% in aggregate, was added to the day's tally for 51 horses sold at an average of 12,845gns (+17%) and median of 8,000gns (+19%).

As Park Paddocks prepares for a quiet spell until the July Sale, Tattersalls Chairman Edmond Mahony reflected on a string start to the sales year in Newmarlket. He said, “The extraordinary trade at the recent record-breaking Tattersalls Craven Breeze-up demonstrated the global demand for quality breeze up 2-year-olds and it has been encouraging to see the momentum sustained at the Guineas Breeze-up and Horses-in-Training Sale.

“We have welcomed buyers from throughout Europe and further afield to today's sale and they have combined with strong domestic representation to produce increases in turnover, average and median as well as a record number of six-figure transactions and lots selling for 50,000gns or more.”

He continued, “The key to the popularity of both the Craven and Guineas Breeze-up Sales is the combination of supremely professional consignors and consistent top-level success on racecourses around the world. Both elements have played a major part in today's sale with some spectacular pinhooking triumphs paying tribute to the horsemanship of the consignors.”