ON a day when its Irish division had to cancel their upcoming sale due to Government restrictions, Tattersalls in Newmarket staged two sales on the one day, with horses and customers present at Park Paddocks.

The first of the sales was a new addition to the calendar, the Tattersalls March Sale, and it was added in response to the disruption caused to the traditional opener of the season in Newmarket, the February Sale.

Having buyers present on the ground, in addition to having live internet bidding, was welcomed by the company’s chairman Edmond Mahony.

In his post-sale statement he said that “it has been great to have been able to host a live sale again at Park Paddocks”, and he added that both of the upcoming sales, the Craven and Guineas breeze-up sales, will be conducted with similar protocols to those used this week in place.

A clearance rate of 89% and a sale turnover of some 1.27 million guineas showed that there is still a demand for stock, the majority of this catalogue being moderate performers with form.

Widely touted in advance as the likely sale topper, Bugle Major did not disappoint. The six-year-old gelding, who has very little mileage on the clock, was sold from Juddmonte Farms and cost trainer Richard Hughes 90,000gns.

The son of Mizzen Mast, trained in France by Pascal Bary, won in January and finished second last time out at Chantilly behind the André Fabre-trained Magny Cours. That Godolphin runner went on to finish third in last weekend’s Group 1 Dubai World Cup behind Mystic Guide. “I could have done without that happening!” laughed Hughes. “We had Bugle Major marked out some time ago and that added 20,000gns onto his purchase price!

“He is for existing owners who have put a syndicate together and wanted a Saturday horse. We were thinking about coming to the breeze-ups, but we found this horse. This is a Saturday horse ready for the lads to have some fun with. He has had his issues, there is no doubt about it, but he is six now and all that hard work has been done for him. I had a good history of him from Juddmonte.”

Hughes was not put off by the gelding’s age, and said: “There are a lot of horses just lately as eight- or nine-year-olds winning Group 1s; there is no stopping them. He has been minded to get him to here.”

Bugle Major has only run eight times, won three races, finished second three times and third once. His dam Conference Call was runner-up in the Group 1 Prix Marcel Boussac and is from the family of the champion sprinter and the multiple champion sire, Danehill.

Another from the Juddmonte draft to sell well was the unraced Nayef four-year-old colt Chronos. Out of a full-sister to Group 1 winner Passage Of Time, he cost Blandford Bloodstock and Paul Webber 30,000gns.

Helpful update

Later in the session Reda Al-Khalaf had to go to 82,000gns to buy Attracted, who added a second win to his CV after the catalogue was printed.

He has now won half of his four starts and been placed for Tuite Racing.

“He has been bought for owner Mr Al Turaif,” said Al-Khalaf speaking from Saudi Arabia. “He will be aimed at the bigger races in Saudi. Mr Al Turaif liked the fact that the horse is by New Approach and he is a lightly-raced four-year-old, so there should be more to come.”

Al Khalaf ended the day as the leading buyer by aggregate, having also bought the six-year-old Rock Sound, a son of Lope De Vega, for 16,000gns. The purchases will ship immediately to Saudi Arabia where racing is due to resume in six months. Al-Khalef spent 96,000gns at the Tattersalls Virtual February Sale on two lots.

Opulent buy

Newmarket trainer Stuart Williams spent 60,000gns to buy the 94-rated Huraiz from Shadwell’s draft, the four-year-old son of Sepoy having previously been trained by Mark Johnston.

“He has been bought for Opulence Thoroughbreds, a syndicate that has four horses with me,” said Williams. “They wanted a horse to have a bit of fun with on Saturdays and the bigger meetings and nice races; he fitted the profile. He is a nice horse. Maybe a change of scenery might perk him up a bit.” The dual juvenile winner was also placed at Group 3 level.

Later in the sale Williams sold a horse on behalf of Opulence to Gus Gordon for 22,000gns. He explained: “Album was bought at the February Sale last year. He ran for the syndicate and won three. If this horse [Huraiz] could do the same we will be happy!”

New trainer

The 85-rated Sun Power is set to join new trainer, the former jockey Darryll Holland, who signed under his new business venture Harraton Court Stables. The four-year-old gelding by Night Of Thunder cost Holland 45,000gns, and was bought from Jane Chapple-Hyam Racing.

“He got beat just a couple of yards at Royal Ascot. We are very pleased with him,” said Holland.

“Hopefully we will send him to Dubai for a race out there. I will have a word with Jane and get a run down. He has obviously been well looked after and has good recent form, and he won in December.

“The plan is to be back here in a couple of weeks as we have orders for the breeze-up sales.”

Sun Power was bought by Al Sharq Racing at the Tattersalls Autumn Horses In Training Sale for 10,000gns and has turned connections a decent profit in less than six months.

Offered from Richard Fahey’s Musely Bank Stables, the three-year-old Sepoy gelding Elusive Treat, who has won three times already this year and was placed again after the catalogue went to print, sold for 38,000gns to Meah/Lloyd Bloodstock.