Life's A Breeze For Donohoe

Last year, Goresbridge celebrated the tenth edition of its ever- expanding breeze-up sale in style. The family company, headed by Martin Donohoe, posted a record turnover of €4.6 million, up by just over a million on the previous year. It was a long day of selling in 2015 with 236 lots catalogued, and Donohoe can again lay claim to being the largest breeze-up sale in Europe, having crammed another 20 lots into this year's book, which will sell at Goresbridge May 20 with the breeze-show at Gowran Park the preceding day.

It was far from a case of Donohoe having to go chasing potential entries, however. As he puts it himself, “I could have added another hundred horses, such was the demand for places.” Donohoe said he is happy with the current format, and has no plans to add an extra day of selling.

“Obviously with a breeze-up you have an extra day anyway, with the horses galloping the day before, so adding another day of selling would be a big logistical challenge. Our sales complex is fairly maxed out as it is with the number of horses we have on offer, and I don't think it could comfortably accommodate any more horses during that space of time.”

Donohoe is usually not shy of such challenges. He took it upon himself to launch a breeze-up sale in Ireland when it had already been tried and tested by others without huge success.

“I just couldn't understand why all these Irish vendors had no option but to sell their horses in Britain or even France,” he explained. “I thought there had to be a space in the Irish market for such a sale, and having received positive feedback from some of the major Irish vendors, I decided to go for it. We sold a Group 3 winner in our first sale and it has been progress ever since.”

Donohoe is quick to point out that it hasn't been easy, and there were various times along the way when he questioned whether it was worth it financially and emotionally.

“The first few years were very difficult and between low value horses and the occasional bad debt, it was hard to make it work,” he noted. “People began to say it wouldn't take off, but the more I heard that the more determined I was to prove them wrong. The success we've enjoyed over the last two years has exceeded my expectations, and I think it has laid the foundations for a really solid future.”

Donohoe is always keen to offer innovation at his sales, and a new feature this year will be an attempt to woo potential Singaporean purchasers without them having to leave their own turf. Live footage of the horses breezing at Gowran Park May 19, and the sale itself at Goresbridge May 20, will be streamed to the owners' lounge at Kranji Racecourse. The date of the auction coincides with a race night in Singapore, which will help guarantee numbers at the venue. Members will have a facility to bid to a Goresbridge representative on site, who will then relay the bids to the auctioneer in Goresbridge. Irish Thoroughbred Marketing has been instrumental in arranging this initiative, and the organisation's Jeremy Greene commented, “For various reasons, Irish horses have long been a marginal commodity in Singapore racing as opposed to, say, Hong Kong. Anomalously, however, those Irish-bred horses that make it to Kranji invariably turn out winners, and the Goresbridge Sale has had a particularly good strike-rate of winners to runners, in excess of 90%. If Singaporean connections can't come to the sale, technology means we can bring it to them, and interest in the auction at this early stage is pretty solid.”

Goresbridge also prides itself on providing footage on their website of every lot walking in-hand prior to the sale. This footage will go live at the weekend, and it is seen as an excellent tool for pre-sale viewing, particularly useful for agents.

Federico Barberini has enjoyed top-level success from the sale, having purchased subsequent G1 Coolmore Stud Matron S. winner Fiesolana (Ire) (Aussie Rules) for €35,000, and said, “I find the pre-sale videos really great. With so many sales in the calendar these days, anything that can help us get some of the work done before getting to the sale is a great bonus. It also enables the potential buyer to begin forming an opinion about a horse.”

Donohoe will welcome buyers to Goresbridge from an array of different countries in 10 days' time, but one region he is very keen to see more participation from is America. To that end, he has enlisted the services of both Jane Buchanan and Niall Dalton to help spread the word in the U.S. and to increase awareness among horsemen as to what is available in Ireland. Both have a wide network at their fingertips; Buchanan has worked for Graham Motion for a number of years in addition to operating as a bloodstock agent, while California-based Dalton has sourced some top-class horses in Ireland over the years, such as multiple Grade I winner Laughing (Ire) (Dansili) and Amira's Prince (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}).

“I've thought for a number of years that we should have more American trainers, agents and owners coming to the sale,” said Donohoe. “We don't expect them to come looking for dirt horses, but there is a demand for turf horses in America and where better to come and buy them. There is a strong U.S. market for European form horses, so surely there is a niche there for horses that are just one step away from showing form.”

Bloodstock aside, Ireland also has a lot to offer by way of leisure pursuits, and Donohoe makes a strong case as to why potential purchasers would not only have a productive time, but also a pleasurable time. “We've got some wonderful golf courses, fishing locations and world-class hotels and restaurants, so it could make for an all-round memorable trip. ITM is brilliant at helping to organise any part of an overseas buyer's trip, so visitors can also count on a concierge-like service from them.”

A sale is really only as good as the horses it produces, and Donohoe is mindful of the need to keep improving the quality on offer each year. Last year's stock has lived up to some of the lofty prices invested by purchasers. Qatar Racing got a quick return on the €125,000 spent by David Redvers on the Kodiac (GB) filly Bear Cheek (Ire). A Group 3 win at The Curragh in August saw her value almost double to 200,000gns when she was bought by BT Bloodstock at Tattersalls in December. Curragh trainer Michael O'Callaghan has a Classic prospect on his hands after he picked up Blue De Vega (Ger) (Lope de Vega {Ire}) for €75,000. Both horses came from the Tally-Ho Stud draft, which accounted for three of the top 10 lots. “I suppose I probably say the same thing every year, but I think on paper this looks as strong, or if not stronger, than any catalogue we've put together. I also know for a fact that they'll be up to scratch physically as well, as my brother Michael puts a lot of effort into the selection process,” assures Donohoe.

Tally-Ho returns with 27 lots catalogued, comprising a mixture of pinhooks and homebreds, including a half-sister to Bear Cheek by their first-season stallion Sir Prancealot (Ire), offered as lot 110. One of Ireland's top stallions, Invincible Spirit (Ire), has two catalogued, lots 38 and 159 from Oghill House and Kilminfoyle House Stud, respectively. Certainly one of the more interesting horses on pedigree is lot 27, a Casamento (Ire) colt out of North East Bay (Prospect Bay), which makes him a half-brother to G1 Dubai World Cup winner Prince Bishop (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}). Fans of War Front (Danzig) will no doubt be interested in Grove Stud's filly by his son The Factor. Lot 89 is a half-sister to stakes winner Giovanni Boldini (War Front) who also finished second in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf.