Four horses made six-figure prices during Thursday's final session of the Goffs UK Spring HIT/PTP Sale, most notably the six-year-old Minella Premier (Shantou) (lot 620), who caused a lively bidding battle before being knocked down to Stroud Coleman Bloodstock and O'Neill Racing for £300,000.
Minella Premier was offered as the winner of each of his three starts to date, first a Ballindenisk point-to-point for John Nallen and then bumpers at Fontwell and Wetherby for Richard Hobson.
“Minella Premier is a lovely horse. We actually underbid him here as a pointer. We were very keen to get him that day and we're delighted to finally introduce him to Jackdaws Castle now,” said AJ O'Neill, who will train the son of Shantou in partnership with his father, Jonjo.
“There's no owner for him yet. Would anyone like a share in a racehorse? Look, we had a fantastic spring and we want to continue in that vein. You need the right horses to do so and I think we've bought some lovely horses this week to help us achieve that. I'm delighted to get him – these are very exciting times.”
In all, £11,004,400 was spent over the two sessions, representing an increase of 24% from last year's renewal and setting a new record for the Spring HIT/PTP Sale at Doncaster. The average climbed by 13% to £29,823 and the median rose by 5% to £17,000, while the clearance rate came in at a robust 89%.
On Wednesday, 17 lots sold for £100,000 or more, which contributed to a record aggregate for a day of point-to-point trade.
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