Frankel Filly Tops Arc Sale

Chantilly, FRANCE–Toulifaut (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) (lot 25) has made a name for herself in France as the first winner and stakes winner for her sire in her country, but her future lies in Japan after she was bought by Katsumi Yoshida's Northern Farm for a sale-topping €1.9-million at Saturday's evening's Arqana Arc Sale in Chantilly.

Toulifaut was one of two 2-year-old fillies on the night to surpass the seven-figure threshold, with G2 Rockfel S. winner Spain Burg (Fr) (Sageburg {Ire}) (lot 8) having provided an early highlight when selling to American Dean Reeves for €1.5-million. Those two seven-figure lots fueled an aggregate that was up 9% from last year, with 29 sold from 43 offered for €8,474,000. Thirty-two were sold for €7,774,000 last year. While the clearance rate was down to 67% from 76%, the average climbed 20.3% to €292,207, and the median was up 12.5% to €135,000.

Toulifaut Takes The Spotlight…

The fourth foal out of the GIII Hillsborough S. winner and G1 Nassau S.-third Cassydora (GB) (Darshaan {GB}), Toulifaut could have been tipped to find the spotlight both in the sales ring and on the racetrack, also being a half-sister to the triple Group 3 winner Ernest Hemingway (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). She failed to find a new home on her first trip through the ring, however, when bought back for 285,000gns at last year's Tattersalls October Yearling Sale by breeder Barronstown Stud. Toulifaut, who later found her way into the hands of owner Andrew-James Smith and trainer Jean-Claude Rouget, fulfilled the promise her pedigree suggested immediately on the track, however, breaking her maiden at Clairefontaine at first asking July 9 before adding a Deauville conditions event followed by the G3 Prix d'Aumale Sept. 8.

Entered in the Arc sale as the lone wildcard to dissolve a partnership and auctioned in absentia, Toulifaut–who also set a new record price for the sale–could provide her new connections with a quick payback as the 3-1 favourite in Sunday's G1 Prix Marcel Boussac.

Emmanuel De Seroux of Narvick International conducted the bidding on behalf of Yoshida, and he said, “She has everything going for her. She's unbeaten, by Frankel from an excellent family. She had everything we were looking for and was the one we came for. She has a big future as a broodmare.”

De Seroux noted that Toulifaut would race on in Europe before being exported to Japan at the end of her racing career.

Cassydora, who had produced Toulifaut after three empty years, has a yearling filly (lot 522) by Frankel set to sell at Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling sale next week and a filly foal by Galileo (Ire).

Spain Burg is also set for an overseas journey after being bought by Dean Reeves for €1.5-million. Reeves, best known as the owner of GI Breeders' Cup Classic winner Mucho Macho Man (Macho Uno), has 12 horses in training in the U.S. and was making his first purchase in Europe.

“I've always bought in the U.S.,” Reeves noted. “I would like to get back to France and also to England, to Newmarket. This year I've decided to expand internationally.”

Spain Burg looks like the right horse for Reeves to have started with. The winner of three of four starts in France, including the Listed Criterium du Bequet, at the time of cataloguing, Spain Burg boosted her value significantly when beating the highly regarded Fair Eva (GB) (Frankel {GB}) in Newmarket's G2 Rockfel S. Sept. 23. Reeves said the plan is to send her to his regular trainer, Kathy Ritvo, and run her in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf, and he said there is a possibility she could return to Europe to race in the spring.

“She's already a group winner and we think she'll do very well in the States,” Reeves said. “I thought any horse that could beat that group [in the Rockfel] uphill would do very well in the U.S. We were very impressed by her determination and I'm very excited to have her.”

Reeves noted he may make another purchase in France, but it won't be a horse.

“I think I've spent all I need to spend,” he said. “Now I just need to buy my wife a Chanel purse.”

The third-highest priced filly, the Listed Prix de Liancourt victress Sweet Charity (Fr) (Myboycharlie {Ire}) (lot 5), is also headed stateside after being bought by Lane's End Bloodstock's David Ingordo on his first visit to the Arc sale for €450,000. Ingordo did not disclose the new owner of the 3-year-old filly, but said she would go to California trainer John Sadler.

“She was bought for one of John's regular clients,” Ingordo said. “She was magnificent physically. She's been well taken care of and she's a progressive horse. She vetted clean and she'll suit our racing in America. The plan is to run her and hopefully win some big races in America with her.”

A €30,000 Arqana October yearling purchase by trainer Nicolas Clement and Tina Rau, Sweet Charity took five tries to break her maiden but at last broke through at Compiegne July 19. She handled the step up to black-type company with aplomb Sept. 1 when taking the Liancourt.

Wish Comes True For Qataris…

Saturday's boutique selection of offerings also included some quality colts and geldings, and the dearest of the males sold was the listed-winning and Group 2-placed 3-year-old colt Thewayyouwish (Ire) (Thewayyouare) (lot 44), who is bound for Qatar after being bought by Chantilly Bloodstock Agency on behalf of Khalifa Bin Sheail Al Kuwari for €625,000. Thewayyouwish finished second in the G2 Prix Hocquart May 15 before winning the Listed La Couple de Marseille Sept. 3 for trainer Jean-Claude Rouget, and he will attempt to follow in the hoofprints of Al Kuwari's two Qatar Derby winners, Dubday (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) and The Blue Eye (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}).

Chantilly Bloodstock's Gerard Larrieu, who conducted the bidding seated alongside Dubday and The Blue Eye's trainer, Jassim Al Ghazali, said, “He is for the same owner as Dubday and The Blue Eye, who carried all before them in Qatar so we are returning to the well. This one was expensive though. He will go into training with Jassim Al Ghazali.”

Also bound for Qatar is the 3-year-old filly Mango Tango (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) (lot 17), who will target the Qatar Oaks after being purchased by Abdulatif Al Emadi for €400,000. The former Pascal Bary trainee was second in the Aug. 13 G2 Prix de Pomone and fourth in Saturday's G2 Prix Royallieu just hours before going through the ring, and will now go to trainer Ibrahim Al Malki, who said, “She is a tough filly, very consistent this season and we liked her attitude in her races. We think she will be a good candidate for the Qatar Oaks.”

Also fetching a €400,000 price tag earlier in the session was 4-year-old filly Banzari (Fr) (Motivator {GB}) (lot 22), who will appear next in Woodbine's GI EP Taylor S. Oct. 16 after being bought by American celebrity chef Bobby Flay through agent James Delahooke. Banzari, who is out of a half-sister to dual U.S. graded winner Arvada (GB) (Hernando {Fr}) and G3 Craven S. winner Adagio (GB) (Grand Lodge), from the family of four-time Group 1 winner The Fugue (GB) (Dansili {GB}) and this year's G1 July Cup winner Limato (Ire) (Tagula {Ire}), earned her first black-type win for trainer Henri Devin in the Listed Prix Luth Enchantee Aug. 12 and added the G3 La Coupe de Maisons-Laffittee Sept. 17.

“We like the pedigree and she's really come on in the last year as a runner,” said Flay. “The trainer has done a very good job with her, so we look forward to continuing with her and breeding from her going forward.”

Progressive 3-year-old Justwantacontact (Ire) (Rock Of Gibraltar {Ire}) (lot 51) will continue his racing career in Australia after being bought by agent Paul Moroney for €360,000. The colt was a first-out winner last year for trainer Jean-Claude Rouget and has finished first or second in all four outings this year, most recently winning his black-type debut, Toulouse's Listed Prix Millkom going a mile Sept. 10.