GORDON Elliott added to his impressive stable of quality horses when he paid £330,000 for the winning Fame And Glory point-to-pointer Ballyadam at the Tattersalls Cheltenham November Sale yesterday. A half-brother to this year’s winning chaser Legal Eyes, he is from a family that provided great success to the Brindleys some years ago.

Bidding opened at £100,000 for the four-year-old who beat Bold Enough by four lengths at Portrush, and the runner-up, a son of Jeremy, was subsequently sold for £65,000 to Henry de Bromhead. Ballyadam came from the yard of Colin McKeever who last year supplied the joint top-priced Muckamore who sold for £190,000.

The lot following Ballyadam was wildcard entry Queens Brook, a four-year-old daughter of Shirocco and half-sister to graded hurdle and chase winner Shotgun Paddy. Placed on her debut in March at Monksgrange, she made amends on her second outing when winning at the recent Dromahane meeting. Sent to the sales by Aidan Fitzgerald, she was purchased last year at the Derby Sale for only €25,000 and this time she cost Gordon Elliott £160,000.

Colin Bowe took home a bargain from last year’s Goffs UK Spring Sale with his purchase of the French-bred Fiston Des Issards, a son of Gold Cup winner Al Boum Photo’s sire Buck’s Boum. He produced the four-year-old to win at the first time of asking at Loughanmore last month and reaped the reward when the gelding sold for £255,000 to Gordon Elliott at Cullentra Stables.

Boothill from Colin McKeever’s yard chased home Fiston Des Issards and this was his second time to claim the runner-up spot, both his outings to date. The four-year-old son of Presenting cost Kevin Ross £125,000 and this son of an Accordion mare is from the family of Gaye Brief and Gaye Chance.

Yousayitbest

Jamie Codd partnered Yousayitbest, owned and trained by Cian Hughes, to a debut two-length victory at Stonehall recently and the victory impressed many, none more so than Alex Elliott whose bid of £220,000 was enough to secure the son of Doyen. This was another spectacular investment by Hughes who secured the gelding at the 2018 Derby Sale for €25,000.

Elliott was on the mark again later when his bid of £110,000 was sufficient to acquire the five-year-old Saddex gelding Eklat De Rire who won at Dromahane last weekend for Liz Doyle and Finny Maguire. This wild card entry is a half-brother to three winners in France, including a blacktype winner, and his dam is a half-sister to the smart hurdler and chaser Ladalko.

The maiden Tirwanako four-year-old Gabynako, runner-up on his debut and another wild card entry, sold to Gavin Cromwell for £130,000 (a shade over €150,000) and this half-brother to a winner is out of a half-sister to the Welsh Grand National winner, and twice placed in the race, Halcon Genelardais. Owned by Shane Ryder and Elaine Bleahen, he had been retained at €13,000 when offered last year at the Land Rover Sale.

Rathmore Stud owner Peter Molony’s record of buying high-class racemares at public auction is second to none and he will be hopeful of unearthing another with his purchase of Brave Way for £160,000.

The four-year-old daughter of Jeremy was sold by Warren Ewing and this half-sister to blacktype-winning hurdle mare Coillte Lass is out of a half-sister to dual Grade 1 winner Classified. Brave Way won her only start at Knockinroe and she rewarded Ewing well as he paid just £10,000 for her at last year’s Spring Sale in a private transaction.

Sterling trade for fillies and mares continued with the sale of the Milan four-year-old Uptown Lady, beaten a length by Brave Way on her pointing debut, and she sold from Denis Murphy’s Ballyboy Stables for £150,000 to Jonjo O’Neill. Murphy and John Brennan paid €48,000 for the filly at the Derby Sale last year.

Donnchadh Doyle’s Lifetime Ambition, a four-year-old son of Kapgarde and €40,000 Goffs Land Rover sale buy, won last weekend at Lisronagh on his second start and this important catalogue update was a magnet for Kate Harrington who paid £120,000 for this relation to J’y Vole and My Sister Sarah.

The first lot to reach six figures was Garter Lane, a four-length Lisronagh winner on her debut. The Philip Fenton-trained four-year-old daughter of Getaway was snapped up by Gerry Hogan Bloodstock for £100,000.

Ten lots sold for £100,000 or more, down from a dozen last year, but the top three lots this time all exceeded the top-priced duo at last year’s sale.

Tattersalls Cheltenham announce select January Sale

AS the curtain fell on the Tattersalls Cheltenham November Sale, the auction house announced that it is to sell a select group of high-class horses in training and point-to-pointers in the Owners and Trainers Marquee after racing at the Cheltenham Festival Trials Day on Saturday, January 25th.

It will be the first time a sale has been conducted exclusively in the Tattersalls-sponsored venue at Cheltenham, and is set to provide a luxurious environment for buyers to invest in their future winners. Tattersalls Cheltenham last sold at the trials day in 2015.

Matt Prior, head of Cheltenham Sales, said: “I am delighted to announce the return of the Cheltenham January Sale. It has been a source of many notable graduates in the past, including On His Own who narrowly missed out on Cheltenham Gold Cup success. This will bring the total number of sales at Cheltenham to seven and will likely be our most select of all catalogues. Purchasers are aware that these select sales are producing phenomenal results.”

The Tattersalls Owners and Trainers Marquee has been used to accept bids previously, but this will be the first time the area is used exclusively to accept bids. Tattersalls moved the original January Sale in 2016 to a later date as a standalone sale in February. This sale will continue.