Best For Last At Broodmare Sale

Book 1 of the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale came to a close on the Gold Coast on Thursday and the best was indeed saved for the last day, with the Group 2 winner and multiple Group 1-placed Gregers (Aus) (Commands {Aus}) (lot 1240) topping the three-day sale with a bid of A$1.75-million from Yu Long Investments. That toppled the A$1.7-million commanded by Nurse Kitchen (NZ) (Savabeel {Aus}) during Tuesday's opening session.

With two mares bringing seven figures on Thursday, the cumulative gross for 711 sold reached a record A$105,530,000. The clearance rate finished at 83.5% compared to 82% last year when 178 fewer horses were offered and 155 fewer sold. The average was up 10.5% to A$148,425, while the median climbed 14.3% to A$80,000. Thirty-seven were sold for a half-million or more compared to 26 last year.

“The overall figures for the sale are just stunning,” Magic Millions Managing Director Vin Cox said. “We're sitting on an average of over A$148,000, a gross of A$105.5-million and a clearance rate of 83.5%–if you had told me that a month ago I would have looked at you like you had four heads.”

“It's just a spectacular result for all those who participated,” Cox added. “There was a lot of international competition on horses. Obviously the domestic market was very strong on the back of the huge year of results from the yearling sales around the country. The results speak volumes for the Australian industry generally and I'm just so very proud of the Magic Millions team. We threw a lot more horses onto every session and our auctioneers stepped up and sold at a quicker rate and as a result we got through the days a lot earlier than we anticipated. It was a big effort from everyone and I'm just so proud of everything that has happened.”

The 6-year-old Gregers, who contested the Blue Diamond at two before winning the G2 Thousand Guineas Prelude at three and finishing third in the G1 Thousand Guineas, added further placings in the G1 Robert Sangster Classic and G1 William Hill Classic at three and four. The half-sister to G3 Sportingbet S. winner Girl Guide (Aus) (Churchill Downs {Aus}) was sold in foal to Written Tycoon (Aus) by Burke Bloodstock. G1 Coolmore Classic winner Ofcourseican (Aus) (Mossman {Aus}) and South Africa's G1 Queen's Plate winner Gimmethegreenlight (Aus) (More Than Ready) appear under the second dam.

Victorian-based bloodstock agent Sheamus Mills, speaking on behalf of Yu Long's Yousheng Zhang after outbidding Arrowfield's Jon Freyer acting on behalf of Katsumi Yoshida, said, “It's a family that has really been developing over the last 10 years or so and Mr. Zhang just loves the family. She was his favourite mare in the sale–he'd obviously missed out on a couple [of high profile mares]. There was a push there from Arrowfield to get her also.”

“These mares with a record like hers, especially fast mares, good-looking young mares, are hard to get,” Mills added. “She's a rare offering.”

Former part-owner Colin McKenna was on-hand for the sale with his wife Janice, and they were celebrating a good week after another mare they were involved in, Petits Filous (Aus) (Street Boss), made A$1.15-million on day one.

“We didn't think she would quite make that,” an emotional McKenna said. “It's a very big price. We don't like selling them but sometimes you have to sell them–it's not about the money, it's just they get too valuable walking around at home.”

One additional mare reached seven figures late in the day on Thursday and at A$1.6-million, was good enough for the third-highest price of the sale. That was Widden Stud's Polska (Aus) (Encosta de Lago {Aus}) (lot 1504), the 9-year-old dam of Group 2 winners Catch A Fire (Aus) (Sebring {Aus}) and Seaburge (Aus) (Sebring {Aus}) who was offered in foal again to Widden resident Sebring. Signing the ticket was the New Zealand-based Dean Hawthorne, who has been busy buying mares at the top of the market this week.

“We waited all day for her,” Hawthorne said. “We've got a really international market, we just decided we have to buy these really good mares. These types of mares don't come along very often. We're happy to get her.”

“What a gorgeous mare she is,” Hawthorne added. “You can see why her foals run. We are amping up the quality in our broodmare band. You have to pay for these types of mares. It's an international market and you've got to put the gloves on.”

The result was a homerun for Polska's former owner, local businessman David Henderson.

“We're very, very excited with that,” Henderson said. “It's a great result. She's been an excellent mare for me. It's sad to see her go but there's economics in this business and I thought it was the right time to put her on the market. The result was above expectations.”

Also among Hawthorne's Thursday haul was the A$800,000 Zurella (NZ) (Zabeel {NZ}) (lot 1696), three times a group winner and Classic-placed and from the family of champion racehorse and sire Lonhro (Aus) (Octagonal {NZ}). The 8-year-old was sold in-foal to first-season covering sire Vancouver (Aus), who also had the mare Blueberry Hill (Aus) (Myboycharlie {Ire}) reach A$600,000 on Wednesday.

Agent James Harron signed for the only other mare to surpass half a million on Thursday: Dormello Stud's Martimo (NZ) (Pins {Aus}) (lot 1393), a 4-year-old stakes winner carrying her first foal, by Tavistock (NZ).

The Dubai-based investment company Phoenix Thoroughbreds has been busy at the broodmare sale this week, and its Thursday haul included Lovetorn (Giant's Causeway) (lot 1360) in-foal to Fastnet Rock (Aus) for A$450,000; Madam Belle (Rock Hard Ten) (lot 1376) in foal to I Am Invincible (Aus) for A$425,000; and a pair for A$400,000: Newgate's Lindisfarne (City Zip) in foal to Tapit, and Lady Oracle (GB) (Medaglia d'Oro) in foal to Not A Single Doubt. Six of the seven mares offered in foal to American champion sire Tapit sold for an average of A$290,000.

Five mares were offered in foal to Frankel (GB), and four sold for an average of A$365,000. Three of the four were bought by Paul Willetts Bloodstock.

The National Broodmare sale wraps up with a single-session Book 2 on Friday.