Son of Shamardal Tops Arqana

By Kelsey Riley and Emma Berry

Lot 89 boasted all the credentials of a sale-topper and the strapping bay–who is by Shamardal out of a half-sister to last year’s champion first-season sire Lope De Vega (Ire) (Shamardal)–made it worth the wait until late in the opening session of the Arqana August Yearling Sale for vendor Ballylinch Stud when fetching a session-topping €720,000 from Sheikh Mohammed’s bloodstock advisor John Ferguson.

The Arqana sales ring was lined with spectators standing six deep just ahead of the 5 p.m. curtain-up of the company’s flagship yearling sale Saturday, and while expectations were high, figures fell short of last year’s red-hot trade on the corresponding day.

Sixty-two of the 81 lots offered exchanged hands for an aggregate of €11,792,000–a dip of 27%–and clearance rate of 77%, which was down five points on 2014. The average price of €190,194 dropped by 25%, while the median was also down, to €155,000 from €170,000 (-8.8%). A notable buyback and would-be session topper was lot 39, a Sea the Stars (Ire) filly from the Haras de la Reboursiere et de Montaigu consignment who was led out unsold at €750,000.

Sheikh Mohammed stands Shamardal at his Kildangan Stud in Ireland and Ferguson said that leading sire, combined with the colt’s pedigree page and good looks, made him a leading light of the session.

“Shamardal is an extraordinary sire in so many ways because they’re all so honest and he’s getting Group 1 winners at so many different levels. Not only do we like the sire, but he’s a really good individual, and the mare’s a sister to Lope De Vega, who had a Dewhurst winner in his first crop, so he’s making it too. In terms of pedigree, the ideal of a nice young mare that’s a sister to a successful sire with a highly exciting sire himself–it all fits. We’re delighted to have him.”

Ferguson noted his team saw the colt on the farm in Germany where he was raised earlier this year.

“He’s a horse that’s just continued to thrive since,” he added.

Lot 89 is the second foal from the 7-year-old Lavande Violet (Ger) (Hurricane Run {Ire}), whose Intense Focus yearling last year sold for just €4,000 at Baden-Baden. She is a daughter of Lady Vettori (GB) (Vettori {Ire}), winner of the G3 Prix Calvados and the dam of G1 Poule d’Essai des Poulains and G1 Prix du Jockey Club victor Lope De Vega as well as Group 3 winner Bal de la Rose (Ire) (Cadeaux Genereux {GB}).

Lot 89 was the last of three of the session purchased by Ferguson, who struck immediately when picking up lot 1, the lone offering by Kitten’s Joy in the sale, for €150,000. The Ken and Sarah Ramsey-bred, consigned by Voute Sales, is the first foal from the stakes-placed Wave Of Applause (GB) (Royal Applause {GB}), who was purchased by the Ramseys for $65,000 at Fasig-Tipton’s February Sale in 2012.

“He was a very athletic horse, again out of a young mare, and Kitten’s Joy is doing really well all around the world,” Ferguson noted.

Ferguson also purchased lot 35, the most expensive yearling of the session for Redoute’s Choice (Aus) (Danehill) (see story below).

Demurely Rewards Monceaux Investment…

In December 2013, Ecurie des Monceaux stretched to 600,000gns to secure the multiple stakes-placed Galileo (Ire) mare Demurely (Ire) when she went through the ring at Tattersalls carrying her first foal, by Invincible Spirit. Consigned as lot 44 on the opening day of the Arqana August Sale, the resultant offspring didn’t take long to prove to her breeder that it was money well spent when she was knocked down for €610,000 to Hubie de Burgh. Unable to name his client, who is likely to race the January-born filly in either France or England, de Burgh had the final say when Charlie Gordon-Watson walked out of the ring after reaching his limit at €600,000. De Burgh said, “She’s a beautiful filly with a fantastic pedigree and is by a stallion who is consistently good year after year. She’s not just going to be a sprinter–she should get further than that so there are a lot of opportunities for her. If she wins a group race, what’s she worth? Millions. She’s been bought for a breeder who collects top-class international pedigrees and that’s what she has.”

Demurely’s half-sisters include the G1 Irish Oaks winner Moonstone (Ire) (Dalakhani {Ire}), G1 Prix Saint-Alary winner Cerulean Sky (Ire) (Darshaan) and Irish Oaks runner-up L’Ancresse (Ire) (Darshaan {GB}).

The agent added, “We’ve always bought really sound horses here and the quality gets better and better. It’s attractive to come here with the exchange rate being so good against sterling.”

De Burgh later went to €410,000 in pursuit of lot 59, a daughter of reigning champion sire Galileo (Ire) and the treble Group 3-winning sprinter Fire Lily (Ire) (Dansili {GB}). He said of the descendant of the Kilfrush Stud matriarch Mill Princess (Ire), “Her mother was a very good race filly and she’s from a very good family. She’s from the famous Galileo-Danehill cross, with speed. She’ll race in Europe; she’s not French-bred, so maybe not in France, but we haven’t decided yet.”

An Invincible Force…

Invincible Spirit has sired the high-class fillies Moonlight Cloud (GB), Rosdhu Queen (Ire) and Fleeting Spirit (Ire), and is already represented by several good sons at stud, including Lawman (Fr), Mayson (GB) and Vale Of York (Ire). His current runners are headed by Europe’s top-rated juvenile Shalaa (Ire). Ecurie des Monceaux, which is managed for Lucien Urano by Henri Bozo, has already enjoyed plenty of success with Invincible Spirit as the breeder of another of his young stallion sons, Charm Spirit (Ire), and that luck continued through to another of the draft, lot 50, a filly by the Irish National Stud’s flagship stallion out of Guy Heald’s listed winner Dubai Rose (GB) (Dubai Destination).

South African Derek Brugman of Mayfair Speculators, who bought the filly on behalf of Markus Jooste in partnership with Coolmore for €550,000, said of his new signing, “We thought she was a very high-quality filly. Dubai Destination is starting to make it as a broodmare sire and we bought the half-sister by Monsun last year [for €650,000]. She’s in training with Nicolas Clement and we think she’s a very decent filly, so we wanted to get back into the family via Invincible Spirit, who is firing at the moment.”

He continued, “We haven’t decided on a trainer yet but we’ll speak to the Coolmore guys and see where she’s going.”

With four yearlings sold through the first session, Invincible Spirit headed Galileo on the sires’ list with the leading average price of €427,500.

At the end of trade on the first day, Ecurie des Monceaux was once again at the top of the vendors’ table, with seven lots sold for €2,190,000. They included lot 85, the Myboycharlie (Ire) half-brother to treble Group 1-winning miler Charm Spirit, who sold to that horse’s trainer, Freddy Head, for €220,000.

Roman Invasion of Hong Kong Continues…

The talents of Holy Roman Emperor have been well advertised in Hong Kong by multiple Group 1 winner Designs On Rome (Ire), which helped to convince the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s representative Mark Richards to part with €320,000 for an easy-moving colt by the Coolmore stallion consigned by Haras des Capucines as lot 78.

The bay March-foaled colt is out of the young Montjeu (Ire) mare Jeu De Plume (Ire), a half-sister to four stakes winners in Hearthstead Maison (Ire), Rave Reviews (Ire), Fermion (Ire) and Sail (Ire). Richards said, “He looks like a pocket rocket and he sold himself, really. He has such presence.”

“The offspring of Holy Roman Emperor seem to adapt well to Hong Kong and he reminded me an awful lot of Designs On Rome,” Richards continued. “We gave a little bit more than I thought we’d have to but there was plenty of interest in him, so let’s hope we’ve got it right.”

First Frankel To Al Shaqab…

The first yearling by the unbeaten champion Frankel (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) to see a sale ring understandably caused a stir midway through the session, and lot 41 will eventually wear Sheikh Joaan’s Al Shaqab Racing silks after being hammered down to Peter and Ross Doyle Bloodstock for €300,000.

Doyle did his bidding alongside trainer Richard Hannon, but said a conditioner for the April-foaled bay had not yet been decided. Doyle said he considered his purchase among the more precocious of the Frankels.

“Frankel is a big plus, but we thought he was a very good-looking individual,” Doyle noted. “We thought he was quite a sharp-looking Frankel and he has a very good pedigree to back it up. We could see him running as a 2-year-old, and Richard Hannon was very fond of him as well.”

Lot 41, the first of four Frankel youngsters to go through the ring for Monceaux and six overall–the rest are slated to sell Sunday–is out of the G2 Sun Chariot S. winner Danceabout (GB) (Shareef Dancer), who with 10 foals has produced the listed-winning Rainbow Dancing (GB) (Rainbow Quest) and the stakes-placed Handsome Man (GB) (Nayef). He is the most expensive sales yearling to date for Danceabout, who has a 2-year-old and a foal by Makfi (GB).

Fast Start For Redoute’s…

Another sire classified as “first-season” at Arqana is Redoute’s Choice (Aus) (Danehill), who is represented by his first yearlings sired during a stint at the Aga Khan’s Haras de Bonneval in France. Unlike his younger counterparts, however, the 18-year-old is well proven as a three-time champion sire in Australia, and Sheikh Mohammed’s bloodstock advisor John Ferguson swooped for his first colt through the ring last night, settling at €450,000 for lot 35, a January-foaled son of the unraced Copernica (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), a full-sister to G2 Beresford S. winner David Livingston (Ire). The colt’s third dam, Kasora (Ire) (Darshaan {GB}), produced the six-time Group 1 winner High Chaparral (Ire) (Sadler’s Wells).

“Redoute’s Choice has been a superb stallion in Australia, and there’s no reason why he won’t repeat his success in the Northern Hemisphere,” said Ferguson. “This is a Redoute’s Choice out of a Galileo mare going back to a great family, including High Chaparral, and he was a very athletic horse and we’re delighted to have him.”

Ferguson said he thinks Redoute’s Choice’s Northern Hemisphere foals have mirrored the looks of his Australian progeny.

“I’ve been looking at them in Australia for many years, so I’d say they’re fairly similar to those in Australia. There’s not a huge difference. Some horses with different mares can produce different types, but he’s such a preeminent and dominant stallion; Redoute’s Choices look like Redoute’s Choices.”

Lot 35 was purchased as a foal by Joe Foley of Ireland’s Ballyhane Stud for 175,000gns at Tattersalls December last year, and Foley was rewarded for his boldness after Saturday’s night’s transaction. The Irish-foaled colt is eligible for French premiums, which convinced Foley to consign the colt in Deauville through Richard Powell’s Haras du Lieu des Champs. He said, “I sent him straight back to France to Richard and he and his team did a great job raising and prepping him. He was an outstanding foal with a stallion’s pedigree and I’m a great believer in Redoute’s Choice, as I stand his son Elzaam (Aus), whose first foals head to the sales later this year. Everybody had looked at him and Richard filled me with confidence that he would sell well. Best of luck to Godolphin.”

Redoute’s Choice had four go through the ring Saturday, with three selling for an average of €323,333.

Other first-crop sires to post significant results included Darley’s reverse-shuttler Sepoy (Aus) (Elusive Quality), whose lone offering brought €200,000 from Peter and Ross Doyle Bloodstock; Nathaniel, who had three sell for an average of €108,333; Helmet (Aus) (Exceed and Excel {Aus}), another Darley reverse shuttler who had one sell for €120,000; Excelebration (Ire), whose three offerings were headed by an €160,000 colt; and Born to Sea (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), whose lone offering of the evening fetched €260,000 from Nicolas de Watrigant of Mandore International Agency, who signed the ticket alongside Born to Sea’s former trainer, John Oxx. Oxx, who also trained Born to Sea’s half-brother Sea the Stars (Ire) (Cape Cross {Ire}), said of Born to Sea, “he’s getting very good-looking stock; quite precocious looking, they’re very well-made. His foals made a big impression last year and I’d say we’ll see a lot of nice yearlings by him. Of course his pedigree has a lot of attraction to it, being a half-brother to Galileo and Sea the Stars, and he’s standing at a different level of fee so breeders are supporting him well.” Oxx revealed the colt (lot 87) was purchased for Sunderland Holdings, who bred and raced Sea the Stars.

The Kendargent Party Continues…

by Sue Finley

The first two Kendargent (Fr) yearlings through the ring at Arqana, the only two of the sire’s to be offered Saturday, will both be headed to the UK, according to Haras de Colleville’s farm manager, Guillaume Vitse. Colleville, owned by Guy Pariente, stands the 12-year-old stallion.

“We were very happy with the sale,” said Vitse, who saw lot 21, a full-sister to G3 Prix de la Grotte winner Kenhope (Fr), bring €250,000 from Agence FIPS for an undisclosed English outfit who is new to the business. “The filly is going to England for some new clients that Mr. Pariente met in the UK who want to invest into the whole business. They’re very new, and the trainer hasn’t even been chosen.”

The second Kendargent of the night, lot 38, brought €100,000 from Tony Nerses. Vitse said the purchase was on behalf of Saleh al Homaizi and Imad al Sagar, who campaigned 2007 Epsom Derby winner Authorized (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}), also a Nerses purchase. The filly is a half-sister to Kendam (Fr), the G3 Prix Eclipse winner who was third in the G1 Prix de la Foret.

“Our target is to send as many Kendargents as possible to the UK,” said Vitse.