WHAT a way to start your tenure as managing director! Tim Kent oversaw his first sale in his new role this week and Wednesday’s point-to-point and form horse session of the Goffs UK January Sale produced a new sale record with the Camas Park Stud consigned Keskonrisk selling for £370,000.

The five-year-old French-bred son of No Risk At All made a big impression with a smart debut at Fairyhouse on New Year’s Day ridden by Timmy Hyde’s grandson Daniel, running out a four and a half-length winner of the bumper. With a quality pedigree to match, being a half-brother to the Grade 2 winner and Grade 1 runner-up Grand Sancy, he attracted bids from all corners before being knocked down to Henrietta Knight for £370,000.

The session also saw the Robert Tyner-offered Fishkhov, runner-up on his debut at Dromahane at the end of December, make six figures when selling to Kevin Ross Bloodstock for £115,000. The Sholokov five-year-old is from the family of Mighty Man and will now join trainer Harry Fry.

Sunday’s point-to-point winner at Carrigarostig, A Distant Place, was another to feature prominently when selling to Highflyer Bloodstock from Fiddaun Farm for £78,000. Placed on his debut and a faller at Boulta, the five-year-old Sunday Break gelding won by six lengths for owner Carol O’Donnell, wife of Goffs’ representative Derek O’Connor.

Nicky Richards’ bumper winner Elios d’Or, successful at the second time of asking at Musselborough, made £58,000 to the bid of Robert Walford and now moves to his Dorset yard. From the family of the Grand National winner Mon Mome, the six-year-old French-bred son of Puit D’or was off the track for almost a year when he made his successful reappearance.

English debut point-to-point winner Take Your Time, successful at Alnwick when he scored by 30 lengths in a very fast time, sold from Johnstown Stud to Highflyer Bloodstock’s Anthony Bromley. He cost the agency £55,000 and this was a smart return for owner Tony Ross who acquired the son of Dubai Destination for just €7,000 as a three-year-old two years ago.

Though he had pulled up on his debut and fell when lying second on his most recent outing, the Colin McBratney-trained Tullybeg, a five-year-old by Sholokov, attracted the attention of Aidan O’Ryan and Gordon Elliott and he will now head to Cullentra following his sale for £50,000.

Donnchadh Doyle produced the Robin Des Champs five-year-old mare Robin Des Theatre to win first time out recently at Tinahely. A half-sister to a winner out of an unraced King’s Theatre full-sister to Grade 3 winner Blacklough was sold to Derek O’Connor acting for Mark Dunphy for £50,000, the best price for a mare at the sale.

Coming close to that price was the Harry Whittington-trained Sheila Nash, runner-up in a Ludlow bumper on just her second outing recently. She sold to Chris Nash, son of the lady after whom the mare was named, for £45,000 and this Flemensfirth five-year-old is out of a half-sister to Grade 1 winning hurdler Captain Cutter, from the family of another Grade 1 winner over hurdles, Mister Morose. She will return to Whittingham to be trained.

Another winning Irish point-to-point to sell well was Rossbeigh Strand, successful on his second start at Aghabullogue recently for Harry Kelly. Gerry Hogan snapped him up for £38,000.

The 2019 Royal Ascot winner The Grand Visir, a six-year-old by Frankel, was offered by Dominion Racing Stables and sold to his trainer Ian Williams and Richard Ryan for £40,000. The pair also went to £35,000 to secure Shadwell Stud’s listed-placed Dark Angel four-year-old Walhaan.

Tim Kent said at the end of the day’s trading: “As with yesterday’s NH foals, feedback on today’s session was very positive when the catalogue was released and to see Keskonrisk set a new record price of £370,000 is a great result. Over the two-days we have welcomed a diverse buying bench and have exceeded last year’s turnover with 35 less horses, so we have made a positive start to 2020.”

THE opening day of the Goffs UK January Sale at Doncaster saw a catalogue of National Hunt mares and newly turned yearlings, the latter making up the bulk of the numbers. Strong trade saw an increase in figures across the board.

A total of 82 foals born in 2019 sold with the session topped by Juliet Minton’s Mill House Stud’s Blue Bresil colt from the family of Morley Street and Granville Again. Bred by John Hales, he was purchased by B.A.A. Bloodstock’s Brian Cahill for £55,000 and is expected to be reoffered in a few years’ time. Cahill declined to name his client.

Goldford Stud’s Kapgarde half-brother to the listed hurdle race winner Fou Et Sage and to the dam of the Grade 1 hurdle winner Feu Follet was another to feature, selling to Hamish Macauley Bloodstock for £43,000.

The agent could not say if his purchase would be raced or resold, but he was happy to secure a son of one of the leading jump sires in France who will cover this year at €15,000.

Macauley also took home a son of Blue Bresil for £35,000. He was sold by Robert Chugg’s Little Lodge Stud on behalf of breeder Sybil Newell and is the third foal of a Presenting half-sister to Grade 2 chase winner Sir Rembrandt who was twice placed in the Gold Cup. Chugg also sold a son of Kayf Tara from a family he has nurtured for generations now for £28,000 to Brendan Bashford. The colt’s third dam is the 11-time winner Highello.

Upton Viva Stud’s Kayf Tara colt out of the Grade 3 French hurdle race winner Stravinsky Dance, one of the last of his age group to be offered, sold to Richard Rohan for £40,000. The colt was bred by Robert Waley-Cohen at his Warwickshire farm. Stravinsky Dance, the dam of three winners with her first three runners, once finished third in a Grade 3 hurdle race behind Long Run and Blue Bresil.

Peter Nolan was alongside Mick Goff when he paid £32,000 for a son of Kayf Tara and the dual listed hurdle winner She Ranks Me. From the family of Grade 1 RSA Chase winner Cooldine, the colt was sent to the sale by Michael Moore.

Peter Molony’s Rathmore Stud paid £29,000 for Peel Bloodstock’s Getaway yearling colt out of a winning point-to-point mare by Milan, and this was £1,000 more than Richard Frisby gave for another son of the stallion, Swanbridge Bloodstock’s colt out of a daughter of Cheltenham Festival winner Spirit Leader, the dam of Garde 1 winner Prince Of Scars.

Distillery Stud was another to get a good price for a Getaway, their colt being a son of the dual winner Reves D’Amour. Prolific buyer Brendan Bashford signed the ticket.

Richard Frisby also secured Overbury Stud’s Kayf Tara colt for £28,000, one lot after James and Sean Bowen paid the same figure for Railstown Stud’s Soldier Of Fortune colt, the first produce of an unraced half-sister to the dual Grade 1 wining chaser Joncol.

The sale also included a small section of National Hunt mares which was topped by the six-time winner Rattlin, a daughter of the recently deceased St Leger winner Bollin Eric, and she was sold in foal to Blue Bresil for £25,000. Brendan Bashford signed for her and the mare’s first produce, a now four-year-old son of Kayf Tara, sold for £50,000 as a yearling. Bashford also bought the mare’s 2019 offspring earlier for £25,000.

A Blue Bresil colt out of the good racemare Araucaria was sold by Mill House Stud for Lisa Hales and Brown Island Stables took ownership at £26,000.

Tim Kent said on Tuesday: “We are delighted with the level of trade shown throughout the day today, which has resulted in a buoyant trade with increases across the board and a healthy clearance rate of 70%.”