Covert Love Sold To Northern Farm

Classic and dual Group 1 winner Covert Love (Ire) (Azamour {Ire}–Wing Stealth {Ire}, by Hawk Wing) will begin her broodmare career in Japan after being purchased privately by Katsumi Yoshida's Northern Farm. The news was confirmed on Saturday by the 4-year-old's co-breeder Hugo Merry, who brokered the deal with Emmanuel de Seroux of Narvick International.

Merry bred Covert Love in partnership with Mark McStay at his farm in Cork. She went through the ring for €26,000 at the Goffs Orby Yearling Sale in 2013, with Merry and McStay staying in on the partnership that would eventually race her, the Fomo Syndicate.

Covert Love finished fifth in her lone 2-year-old outing for trainer Hugo Palmer, and was supplemented to the G1 Irish Oaks at a cost of €40,000 after winning her first three starts at three. That gamble paid off, with Covert Love winning the Curragh Classic at odds of 7-1 and handing Palmer his first Classic win. She was second, beaten a quarter-length, by Pleascach (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}) in the G1 Yorkshire Oaks a month later before traveling to France to post a game victory in the G1 Prix de l'Opera. She was last seen finishing fourth in the G1 Qipco British Champions Fillies and Mares S. on Champions Day Oct. 17. Covert Love was intended to race on this year, but was ultimately retired after suffering a setback in the leadup to Royal Ascot.

“Her first start was to be at Royal Ascot, and she got hurt,” Merry said. “We retired her and that was in the newspapers and we got quite a lot of calls on her. [Northern Farm] came up with a good offer. I put it to the partnership and they decided to take it.”

Merry also got to share in the joy of last year's G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains score by Make Believe (GB) (Makfi {GB}), having bought the colt as a foal on behalf of owner Prince Faisal, but the agent admitted breeding a Classic winner in Covert Love was the ultimate achievement.

“Last year, very luckily I bought Make Believe, who won the French 2000 Guineas for Prince Faisal and then we had Covert Love, so we had two Classic winners in a year, which was great,” he said. “Breeding a Classic winner was tenfold more satisfying than any good horse I've ever bought. There are so many trials and tribulations in farming that when you actually get one of that calibre, its unbelievable.”