Stars Still Shining At Tattersalls
STARS STILL SHINING AT TATTERSALLS
By Emma Berry
It was standing room only in the Tattersalls ring for each appearance by a Frankel (GB) foal yesterday, but the many spectators were left largely disappointed when none managed to find a buyer.
Only three of the four catalogued took their turn, as Cheveley Park Stud’s colt out of the Group 1 winner Red Bloom was withdrawn during the afternoon after being cast in his box. Following that disappointment, the first to make an appearance, Norelands Stud’s filly out of Group 3 runner-up Kirinda (Ire) (Tiger Hill {Ire}) (lot 1087), was led out of the ring unsold at 140,000gns, and the same fate befell the colt consigned by New England Stud for Trevor and Libby Harris (lot 1103). The half-brother to group winners Swiss Spirit (GB) and Swiss Diva (GB) plus listed winner Swiss Dream (GB) was bought in for 350,000gns.
Tom Goff did the bidding on behalf of the Harris family and said, “Trevor Harris set a price in his mind of what it would take for him to part with the colt and that wasn’t enough. However, Swiss Lake has been a terrific mare for Lordship Stud and he’s perfectly happy to race this colt, so he has been retained.”
Finally, the colt out of Dorcas Lane (lot 1113) appeared and was bought back at 200,000gns.
The filly out of Kirinda was later purchased privately by Dermot Farrington for 150,000gns.
The lack of Frankel fireworks was one disappointing factor in an otherwise lively day of trade, during which the median rose by 8% to 65,000gns. The clearance rate remained on a par at 81% for 195 sold of 240 offered. Despite last year’s top price of 450,000gns being matched during the day and 51 six-figure transactions, the aggregate dipped by 6% to 16,717,000gns and the average fell accordingly, also by 6%, to 85,728gns.
Proven Stars On Top…
As the quality of pedigrees was raised a notch for Friday’s trade, the proven stallions took over from the young bucks at the head of the table. Last year’s top price at the December Foal Sale was equalled when Oghill House Stud’s homebred Sea The Stars (Ire) colt (lot 1039) was the subject of a spirited bidding duel between Angus Gold and Clive Washbourn. Gold had the final say at 450,000gns on behalf of Sheikh Hamdan, who has enjoyed such success with the stallion via this year’s G1 Investec Oaks and G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth S. winner Taghrooda (GB).
Bred in Ireland by Hugh and Pat Hyland, the February-foaled colt is a half-brother to four winners, including the listed scorer Mixed Intention (Ire) (Elusive City).
A delighted Hugh Hyland, who owns the Kildare farm with his brother, said, “I’ve been told all week that he was the best Sea The Stars in the catalogue and it’s certainly a tremendous result. He was an exceptional foal and had up to 300 shows.”
He added, “It’s been a good few weeks. We sold 21 of our 22 foals at Goffs and though we had to withdraw one here we’ve sold the other five.”
Gold said, “I knew we’d have to work hard to buy him as he’s a gorgeous horse. Of course, we’ve had a little bit of luck with Sea The Stars. For us this colt was a standout of the week. He’ll head to Ireland now.”
The Sheikh’s bloodstock advisor also signed for another son of Sea The Stars (lot 985) at 250,000gns. The half-brother to G1 Falmouth S. winner Rajeem (GB) (Diktat {GB}) was bred by Denis Phelan’s Tullogher House Stud and consigned through Eclipse Bloodstock.
A total of 18 weanlings by Sea The Stars have sold this week for an average of 141,611 gns.
West Is Best…
Another on the Shadwell list was West Blagdon Stud’s Lawman (Fr) filly from the G3 St Simon S. winner High Heeled (Ire) (High Chaparral {Ire}) (lot 1099) who made 425,000gns. The presence in the pedigree of another well-credentialed daughter of Lawman–the G1 Irish 1000 Guineas winner Just The Judge (Ire), who is set to sell at Tattersalls next Tuesday–doubtless helped make her such an expensive jewel, but her grandam, Uncharted Haven (GB) (Turtle Island {Ire}), was also a high-class racemare, winning the GII San Clemente S. and GII San Gorgonio H. during her days in training with Bobby Frankel.
MV Magnier made his presence felt with a solitary purchase of a Rip Van Winkle (Ire) colt from James Wigan’s high-achieving Masskana (Ire) family, which includes GI Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf and GI Beverly D. S. heroine Dank (GB).
Coolmore has enjoyed plenty of success with the family too, via Dank’s Group 1-winning half-brother Eagle Mountain (GB) and this colt’s half-sister and fellow group winner Bye Bye Birdie (Ire). At 320,000gns, the colt helped the West Blagdon draft of foals to accrue a total of 955,000gns for four foals sold, making it the sale’s leading vendor by average of 238,750gns.
Magnier said, “Rip Van Winkle has had a great season with some good winners including Dick Whittington (Ire) and we’ve had a lot of luck with this family. It’s a great farm to buy from and they’ve been good supporters of ours in the past.”
Ferguson Hits His Stride…
During an increasingly frenetic evening session, John Ferguson took on David Redvers to ensure that the good-looking filly by Darley stallion Dubawi (Ire) out of a half-sister to another Darley resident, Street Sense, would eventually race for Sheikh Mohammed.
The hammer fell for lot 1101, the New England Stud-consigned daughter of Prairie Rose S. winner Elusive Sparkle, at 400,000gns. Australian Paul Fudge of Waratah Thoroughbreds owns the dam, whose previous three foals, all by Street Sense’s late sire Street Cry (Ire), have been exported to Australia.
Ferguson also added lots 1045 and 1047 to the Darley haul at 375,000gns and 230,000gns, respectively.
Eddie Aldridge’s Dubawi (Ire) colt from his G1 Moyglare Stud S. runner-up Silca Chiave (GB) (Pivotal {GB}) was the more expensive of the two, and hails from an illustrious family that includes the Group 1-winning siblings Golden Silca (GB) and Silca’s Sister (GB), both daughters of Inchinor (GB).
Yellowford Farms consigned lot 1047, a Sea The Stars half-brother to Group 3 winner Raymi Coya (Van Nistelrooy) on behalf of Brucetown Farms Ltd, which received 230,000gns for the grandson of G1 Spinster S. winner Try Something New (Hail The Pirates).
Sea The Stars was also the sire of choice for agent John McCormack, who bought lot 1109 for 310,000gns. The half-sister to G2 Lennox S. winner and new stallion Es Que Love (Ire) (Clodovil {Ire}), plus Hong Kong champion stayer Dominant (GB) (Cacique {Ire}), was consigned by Jackie Norris’s Jockey Hall Stud.
It’s Toi for Tom…
Tom Goff had to dig deep to fend off the advances of John Ferguson for the Fittocks Stud-consigned Oasis Dream (GB) colt out of listed winner Toi Et Moi (Ire) (lot 966), who led early trade at Park Paddocks at 350,000gns. Goff said, “He is a beautiful mover and an absolutely gorgeous foal. He may be kept to race, but he could come back for resale–we’ll get him back to the farm and assess.”
Goff added, “He’s out of Galileo mare who has proper black type form of her own, and he is from a very good farm. Trade is very good for the right horse–one with quality and action, one that the pinhookers can buy.”
The colt’s first three dams all boasted black-type, his grandam being the dual French Group 3 winner Di Moi Oui (GB) (Warning {GB}).
While the anticipation was building in the ring for the first Frankel foals to come though, his proven Juddmonte stud mate stole the show, with eight Oasis Dream weanlings sold for the sale’s leading average of 210,875gns.
Another Galileo for Rosen…
American owner-breeder Andrew Rosen picked up a well-bred Galileo (Ire) filly out of Classic winner Saoire (GB) at the Goffs November Sale and was back for more at Tattersalls, going to 350,000gns for lot 1124 through agent Hugo Merry.
Consigned by Ballybin Stud, the January filly is a daughter of the Shirley Heights (GB) mare Mohican Princess (GB), whose six winning offspring include Satchem (Ire) (Inchinor {GB}) and Eye Of The Storm (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), both of whom have won at Group 3 level. Merry said, “I thought she was beautiful. I looked at all of the well-bred fillies in the catalogue and she was my favourite.
Dream Result For Clairemont’s First Foal…
The first foal consigned by Martin and Lee Taylor’s Clairemont Stud, which made waves in this ring last year when selling Oaks winner Dancing Rain (Ire) in foal to Frankel for 4 million guineas, returned another good result for the Hampshire farm when fetching 300,000gns. Angus Gold bought the Oasis Dream colt–yet another out of a Galileo mare, this time the unraced Shaleela (Ire)–on behalf of Shadwell, with David Redvers as underbidder.
Clairemont Stud manager Jenny Norris, who led up the foal herself, said, “He’s been an absolute professional all the way through, I really couldn’t fault him. Shaleela is an exciting young mare to have on the farm–she’s producing lovely stock. She’s back in foal to Oasis Dream and will return to him next year.”
Shaleela, a daughter of G3 Prix Minerve winner Sharamana (Ire) (Darshaan {GB}) from the further family of Shergar (Ire), was bought as a yearling for €200,000 by Jenny’s husband, bloodstock agent Liam Norris. He said, “I bought Shaleela at Goffs the same day I bought Dancing Rain. She went into training with John Oxx but got colic and had to have surgery so sadly never raced. She has a lovely pedigree though and the farm has retained her Danehill Dancer yearling filly, who will be going into training with Roger Charlton.”
Lure Of The Oasis…
John Ferguson parted with half a million guineas in a matter of minutes when signing for lots 907 and 908. The former, an Oasis Dream (GB) filly out of G2 Cherry Hinton S. winner Please Sing (GB) (Royal Applause {GB}), set the Darley maestro back by 280,000gns and she was followed into the ring by a Teofilo (Ire) half-brother to globetrotting staying star Red Cadeaux (GB) (Cadeaux Genereux {GB}), who was bought for 220,000gns. The colt’s dam, Artisia (GB) (Peintre Celebre) has been a money-spinner for Drumachon Stud in the last few years, with the full-brother to this colt having made exactly the same sum at Tattersalls 12 months ago.
Please Sing already has a winner on the board with her first runner, the Godolphin 2-year-old Four Seasons (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), who was bought as a foal for 200,000gns. Breeder Giles Wates of Dorset-based Langton Stud said, “It’s great to have a good runner with a first foal. The mare is in foal to Exceed And Excel. Let’s hope Four Seasons can go on to get some black type.”
A few lots later, another Oasis Dream weanling (lot 913), the first foal of Glowing Honor S. winner Blue Maiden (GB) (Medicean {GB}) consigned by Sara Cumani’s Fittocks Stud, was another Fergsuon purchase at 220,000gns.
When the Pivotal (GB) yearling out of Triskel (GB) (Hawk Wing) (lot 937) sold for €260,000 at Goffs’ Orby sale last month, hopes would have been high at Gazeley Stud that the mare’s colt foal by Dutch Art (GB) would be similarly popular at Tattersalls. The young listed-winning mare has not let owners Dave and Deborah Curran down yet, and her weanling was knocked down for 155,000gns to the same man who bought the 2013 foal, David O’Callaghan of Yeomanstown Stud. The pinhooker enjoyed great success last year, turning a 75,000gns outlay into a sizeable profit.
Ferguson bought 20 weanlings through the third session of the sale and is leading purchaser to the tune of 3.15 million guineas.
Harbour Highlight…
One first-crop stallion to sneak into the top 20 foals sold on Friday was Harbour Watch (Ire), who stands for Sheikh Fahad’s Qatar Bloodstock at Tweenhills Farm in Gloucestershire. David Redvers was one interested party in the Ballybin Stud consignee (lot 1119), who is a half-sister to G3 Nell Gwyn S. winner Esentepe (Ire), but he had to give best to Angus Gold, who concluded a busy day by signing for the filly at 240,000gns, the highest price paid for a Harbour watch weanling to date.
The Tattersalls December Foal Sale concludes today with the final session kicking off at 9:30 a.m.