ONE of the most exciting prospects each year is that of the first crop of foals being sold by the new sires. Until we see the progeny on the ground, and in the sales ring, it is a matter of guessing which will set the ring alight.

In 2017 it was all about Muhaarar. The European champion sprinter and son of Oasis Dream was popular with breeders who flocked to him in his first season at stud, covering as he did at £30,000. When his stock appeared at the sales the buyers were equally enthusiastic and his 11 foals sold for an average of just over €243,000, some seven times his fee.

Muhaarar led all sires by average (based on five or more foals sold) and he headed four further stallions who achieved an average of €200,000 or more.

Ranked from two to four on the list were Invincible Spirit, Dark Angel and Oasis Dream, while coming in at number five was another stallion with his first foals in 2017. The Epsom Derby, Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, Eclipse and Irish Champion Stakes winner Golden Horn cost twice as much as Muhaarar in his first year at stud but his nine foals sold produced an average of €212,863 in the ring.

FIRST CROPS

Three other first crop stallions made the top 30 listing last year. Gleneagles was the highest ranked of the four sons of Galileo on the table, his 15 foals averaging €119,882. This put him ahead of Australia (€108,124), New Approach (€68,068) and Teofilo (€63,453).

Night Of Thunder beat Group 1 winners Kingman, Australia, Charm Spirit, Toormore, Kingston Hill, War Command, The Grey Gatsby and Outstrip to win a vintage 2000 Guineas and 22 of his first crop were sold for an average of €60,537. Being a son of Dubawi was no disadvantage either!

The popularity of Dark Angel as a sire was no hindrance either to his son and stud mate Gutaifan. Retired after just a single season racing to Yeomanstown Stud, he initially stood for €12,500. Easily the most represented flat stallion at the sales last year, Gutaifan’s 53 foals that sold averaged €47,671 and this represented a near four-fold return on his stud fee.

For the most part, the stallion profile among the top 30 is similar to that of the yearling listing when it comes to the established sires. After Gutaifan, Kodiac was the busiest of the flat stallions with 48 lots selling for an average of €89,332. Dandy Man, who reigns at Ballyhane Stud, had 44 foals sell, while Rathasker Stud’s Anjaal had 40 of his offspring sell for an average of more than three times his fee.

The most prolific sires when it comes to foal sales tend to be the National Hunt stallions and in descending order the busiest of these were Getaway (69 sold at an average of €18,421), Soldier Of Fortune (58 averaged €20,115), Mahler (56 sold for an average of €14,116), Shirocco (52 sold averaging €10,161), Fame And Glory (50 averaged €21,583), Leading Light (47 sold), Walk In The Park (43 at an average of €26,000) and Ocovango (42 sold).