Doctor Dino

Mícheál O'Brien of Creighmore Stables was in a daze after topping Tuesday's opening session of the Goffs Arkle Sale with a Goliath Du Berlais gelding out of a Muhtathir half-sister to the Grade 3-winning hurdler Raffles Sainte (Saint Des Saints). Offered as lot 201, he was knocked down to Gordon Elliott for €275,000. "It's a serious result for my farm in east Cork. It's not a big place and to turn that sort of money is a big help," said the consignor, who had pinhooked the top lot for €40,000....

A son of Walk In The Park sold for a session-topping €100,000 during the first day of the Goffs December NH Sale on Monday. Sold as lot 37, the bay son of Annie G (Getaway) was purchased by Gerry Aherne from Ballincurrig House Stud. His listed hurdle-winning dam is a half-sister to multiple graded-winning chaser Westerner Point (Westerner). Yorton picked up a son of Doctor Dino and Daring Rose (Al Namix) for €90,000 later in the day. Consigned by Yeo Barton Bloodstock, lot 181 is related to stakes winners Guerrier...

The stallion Chanducoq (lot 709) topped the Arqana Autumn NH Breeding Stock Sale in Deauville on Thursday when selling for €450,000 to Valentin Adam of Adam Bloodstock on behalf of Haras de Cercy's Jacques Cypres. Offered by Haras de la Barbottiere, the 12-year-old is the sire of Grade 3-winning hurdler Rooster Crowning among several other winners. He is also a half-brother to fellow Cercy stallion Cokoriko. "We were keen to get some Voix du Nord blood, as he gave us so much," said Cypres of the son of Voix Du...

Wednesday's session of the Arqana Autumn Sale consisted of 117 lots of National Hunt-bred yearlings. Of the 106 offered, 69 (65%) sold for a gross of €2,192,500. The average was up slightly to €31,775 (+1%) from €31,493. The median rose 10% to €22,000. A total of 208 National Hunt yearlings went under the hammer during the Autumn Sale this year, with 22 more lots than in 2024. The clearance rate increased five points at 68%. The average, at nearly €30,000, was slightly down by four points. The turnover increased by...

Nat Barnett Bloodstock bought three yearlings during the second session of the Arqana Autumn Sale on Tuesday, including the €160,000 top lot, a son of notable jumps stallion Doctor Dino. Sold as lot 540, the AQPS son of Diane De Grugy (Ballingarry) is a full-brother to dual Grade 1-winning hurdler Jade De Grugy. Aready named Oteuil De Grugy, the Windermere Stud-consigned colt is from the same family as top-notch AQPS chaser Sire De Grugy (My Risk). "For me, he was the horse of the sale," said Barnett. "I've bought him...

The Listed Prix Finot runner-up Fee Vivianne (lot 56B) topped Friday's Auctav National Hunt Sale when going the way of BLM Bloodstock, on behalf of Carlos de Sousa's Hamel Stud, for €120,000. The six-year-old daughter of Doctor Dino was offered in foal to Goliath du Berlais as part of a signficiant draft from Ecurie Sagara. She is out of an unraced full-sister to the Grade 1-winning sire Nickname, as well as the Grade 3 winner and sire Nom De D'La. Of the 138 lots offered, 66 sold (48%) for an...

Following a one-year break, the Goffs Yorton Sale returned on Thursday with a 100 per cent clearance rate, with a gelding by Doctor Dino fetching £105,000 from Paul Cowley's Vanquish Bloodstock to headline the sale of 33 National Hunt-bred two-year-olds. The top lot is already named Doctor Green (lot 20), while another Doctor Dino gelding named Fauchil (lot 13) was the pick of the remainder when sold to to Dai Walters for £95,000, ahead of a Nathaniel filly (lot 12) at £65,000 and a Walk In The Park filly (lot...

Lakefield Farm's Doctor Dino filly topped Monday's Goffs Doncaster Spring Store Sale when going the way of the father and son team of Aiden and Olly Murphy for £120,000. One of 17 lots to make £50,000 or more, she is out of a half-sister to the Grade 1-winning chaser Le Patron. "She's gone to a fantastic trainer," said Lakefield Farm's John Bleahen, who has sold top-notchers Copperhead, L'Astroboy and The Last Samuri as stores at Goffs Doncaster in the past. "Olly's had so many winners last season. He's on his...

Henri Devin, who ran France's historic Haras du Mesnil with his wife Antonia, died at the age of 71 earlier this week. A noted owner-breeder, Devin inherited the stud from his grandparents, Jean and Elisabeth Couturie. Some of the best to call Mesnil home are the 2001 G1 Prix de l'Opera winner Terre A Terre (Kaldounevees), and G1 Hong Kong Vase and G1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud winner Ange Gabriel (Kaldounevees). Another is G1 Prix Jean Romanet heroine Nonza (Zanzibar), who gave Devin's son, Henri-Francois, his first top-tier score as...

There really is no getting away from Doctor Dino (Fr) this week. Fresh from topping the store and yearling sessions of Arqana's Autumn Sale, he also featured as the covering sire as the top lot of the National Hunt Breeding Stock Sale in Deauville. The mare in question, La Boetie (Fr) (Saint Des Saints {Fr}), was a decent jumper herself, however, as the winner of the G3 Prix Sagan over hurdles for David Cottin.  Consigned by Haras de la Cote Fleurie as Lot 930, the 5-year-old mare was knocked down...

While all the clamour at last week's Tattersalls Ireland November National Hunt Sale was for the offspring of Walk In The Park (Ire) and Blue Bresil (Fr), at Arqana's Autumn Sale the dominant sire for young stores and National Hunt yearlings was Doctor Dino (Fr).  The Haras du Mesnil resident accounted for five of the nine six-figure lots, including the top lots on the last two days of the sale. Wednesday's concluding session saw Frederic Sauque bid €265,000 for Haras de l'Hotellerie's Doctor Dino yearling half-brother to Flat Listed winner...

A slimmed down section of stores and National Hunt yearlings nevertheless brought an aggregate close to last year's tally as the Arqana Autumn Sale continued in Deauville. Haras du Mesnil's immensely popular stallion Doctor Dino (Fr) provided the top two lots and the only six-figure sales of the session, for a yearling and two-year-old respectively.  At €120,000 the day's leader was the yearling filly named Cherry Berry (Fr), consigned by Mesnil's sister stud Haras de Maulepaire and bought by Ecurie de Launay. The May-born filly (Lot 572) is out of...