NZB Select Closes On Par
NZB SELECT CLOSES ON PAR
New Zealand Bloodstock wrapped up its three-day Select Yearling Sale yesterday with figures nearly on par with last year. A total of 391 horses changed hands for NZ$18,304,000 (down from NZ$19,224,000 last year but with 25 fewer horses sold). The buyback rate of 24.9% was down marginally from last year’s 25.1%, and the averaged climbed 1.3% to NZ$46,813. The median was unchanged at NZ$35,000. The select sale topper at NZ$525,000 marked a new record for the sale and highlighted the strength at the top of the market; five horses sold for NZ$200,000 or more this year, compared to one last year.
“We had a solid three days of selling here at Karaka,” said NZB’s Co-Managing Director Petrea Vela. “By all accounts buyers were very happy with the selection on offer and we saw good competition across the three days, with figures showing this session was very much on par with last year’s successful sale.”
The top lot yesterday was a NZ$160,000 son of Savabeel (Aus), currently New Zealand’s leading sire. Consigned by Little Avondale Stud, lot 999 is a half to the Group 3-placed Waikaha (NZ) (Towkay {Aus}), and was hammered down to the Hong Kong-based Peter Ho Leung.
“He’s a lovely type of horse, he’ll take a bit of time and hopefully he’ll be able to run in a Derby someday,” said agent Gary Carvill, who did the bidding on behalf of Leung. “Peter’s got probably the best Savabeel in Hong Kong called Flame Hero. This colt’s half-brother and half-sister are racing very well, the family is very current and just keeps producing winners.”
Savabeel was responsible for another six-figure transaction on the day when lot 887, a colt from Rich Hill Stud, was purchased by Paul Moroney for NZ$120,000.
Darley shuttler Iffraaj (GB) currently sits third on New Zealand’s sire table, and he was in demand yesterday as well, with lot 1016 selling for NZ$150,000 to Michael Stedman Bloodstock.
Pins (Aus) was also the sire of a pair of six-figure lots yesterday, namely lots 1033 and 883, a pair of colts that sold to Wexford Stables and WC Lim for NZ$140,000 and NZ$125,000, respectively. Australian trainer Tony Noonan spent NZ$115,000 on a colt by first-season sire Jimmy Choux (NZ), a winner of five Group 1s. The leading first-season sire of the sale was Coolmore’s Pour Moi (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}), who shuttles to Windsor Park Stud in New Zealand and had 13 sell for an average of NZ$51,923 and a top price of NZ$140,000.
Local trainer Donna Logan, who conditions last weekend’s Karaka 3YO Mile winner Volkstok’n’barrel (NZ) (Tavistock {NZ}) was the leading buyer at the Select sale, with eight purchased for NZ$551,500.
“It’s been a great sale today with some great quality and some really outstanding individuals,” she said. “Volkstok’n’barrell was obviously bought here but I think if you look at our records for the past 10 years we’ve done some very good purchasing out of this sale.”
She continued, “I’ve spent more than I’ve ever spent but I’ve got the client base to back me and people have got more confidence in us as we have got good results out of horses that we’ve bought through these sales.”
The final session of the NZB National Yearling Sale Series takes place tomorrow with the one-day Festival sale. For catalogues, results and live streaming, visit www.nzb.co.nz.