Majestic Queen Tops London Sale
By Emma Berry
It’s been dubbed the unofficial curtain-raiser for Royal Ascot and Goffs’ London Sale certainly hits the right note when it comes to a mix of high-class bloodstock and party atmosphere.
Hosted in association with Ascot’s major collaborator QIPCO, the sale didn’t quite scale the dizzy heights set in the inaugural session twelve months ago, when subsequent G2 Coventry S. runner-up Cappella Sansevero (GB) (Showcasing {Ire}) sold for £1.3 million, but a top price of £825,00 can certainly be deemed to be respectable business. That sum was given by John Ferguson on behalf of Sheikh Mohammed for lot 37, the dual Group 3 winner Majestic Queen (Ire)(Kheleyf {Ire}). Despite the aim of the sale being to offer horses with an entry at the forthcoming Royal Ascot meeting, it seems likely that the regally-named 5-year-old mare will not honour her engagement in Saturday’s Wokingham S.
It was undoubtedly a selective market, with 23 of the 42 breeze-up horses and horses-in-training offered selling for an aggregate of £3,784,000, compared to turnover of £6,760,000 last year, when the eclectic catalogue included Crystal Gaze (GB) and her Frankel foal at foot as well as a nomination to Invincible Spirit (Ire). The average dipped to £164,522 (-15%) while the median settled at £100,000 (-17%).
After signing off by singing happy birthday from the rostrum to Nicky Wallace, Goffs’ Chief Executive Henry Beeby commented: “Obviously we haven’t hit the high spots of last year, but we’re still very pleased with the trade today.
“The vendor of the top lot was in tears and said that the sale far exceeded expectations. As well as being the perfect curtain-raiser for the Royal Meeting, it also gives us the opportunity to be here in the centre of London on the eve of Royal Ascot and looking after some very important clients.”
Beeby added: “We are genuinely pleased with the results, and we’re delighted to be working in partnership with QIPCO, with the support of Fortnum & Mason and Chateau Leoube. We’ll be back for more next year.”
Oasis Dream (GB) 2-year-old Mirage (Ire) (Lot 46) is one who will be making the line-up for Royal Ascot after the G3 Albany S. entrant was bought by Dr Jim Hay and his wife Fitri for £380,000. A winner on her only start at Brighton for Toast Of New York’s trainer Jamie Osborne, the filly is set to make her second racecourse appearance on Friday.
“She’s a lovely filly and she’s been bought for her pedigree really. Eventually she will make a very welcome addition to the broodmare band,” commented Dr Hay’s Racing Manager Alex Cole.
A filly who may well end up racing farther afield in Japan is Middleham Park Racing’s dual winner Realtra (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}), who was bought for £290,000 by Yasushi Kubota. Set to run in Wednesday’s Sandringham S., the 3-year-old is likely to run in the colours of Hidetoshi Yamamoto.
Nick Bradley of Middleham Park Racing was philosophical in losing one of the syndicate’s runners for Royal Ascot, saying: “She’s a very honest filly and we’re happy enough with the price. We have a lot of horses and the reality is that we have to sell some of them, but we still have some good chances for Ascot, including G Force and Field Of Dream.”
Qatari interests also stepped in to claim lot 30, Black Beach (GB) (Footstepsinthesand {GB}) at £220,000. The country’s champion trainer Jassim Al Ghazali made his second visit to the sale and is now looking forward to having his first Royal Ascot runner with the 2-year-old colt in today’s G2 Coventry S.
He said: “It’s a dream to have a runner at Royal Ascot. This sale is such a good idea being so close to the meeting.”
Among the 20 breeze-up lots catalogued, lot 6, a January-born son of Speightstown out of the Argentinean Grade 1 winner Batallosa (Arg) (Southern Halo) took top billing at £200,000. Purchaser David Redvers said: “We’ll get him back to Longholes Stud and give him a week or so before deciding where he will go.
“He’s an absolute beauty. I think he’d have topped any breeze-up sale he went to. He has lots of speed and was three-quarters of a second faster than any of the others.”