WHEN previewing the Tattersalls Autumn Horse In Training Sale in this publication, I stated that prize money levels in Britain and Ireland mean it makes far more sense for owners to sell horses with stamina, rather than race them on, considering the high prices paid for middle-distance and staying horses.
Some questioned the strength of the European staying division when just five lined up in the Qipco British Champions Long Distance Cup last month, where 12 lengths separated the second and third, with another 17 lengths back to the fourth. The question gains further weight considering that Prix du Cadran winner Caballo De Mar started the season on a rating of 88.
With all the focus on the approaching Melbourne Cup, you need only look at the likely field to know where Europe has lost a number of their most promising stayers, and Gai Waterhouse and Chris Waller were among the Australian buyers restocking at Tattersalls this week.
The flat talent pool suffered further losses to the National Hunt sphere this week, with Jerry McGrath, acting on behalf of Nicky Henderson, and Dan Skelton among the top 10 buyers. Middle Eastern buyers were another major force, with Phil Cunningham the only definite British end user in the top table, though his purchases are being targetted at the Dubai Carnival.
In the first four days of trade, 70 horses sold for 100,000gns or more. Of those, 22 were sold out of Irish yards, but you could only be confident in saying that six of those will be shipped to Ireland, accounting for the fact that many are bought by bloodstock agents who don’t identify their client.
None of the top 20 lots were bought to be trained in Ireland, but we exported six. Irish form is valued highly across the world, recognising the stiff competition faced, which seems to scare off more owners than it attracts, with current prize money doing little to sweeten the deal.
Ger Lyons is one of many to have lamented our prize money, particularly that of stakes races. His consistent sprinter My Mate Alfie illustrated frustrations when earning just €14,000 for separating Group 1 winners Bucanero Fuerte and Kind Of Blue in the Group 3 Phoenix Sprint Stakes this year. It’s hardly surprising then that connections parted ways with the multiple stakes winner for the sum of 250,000gns this week.
IF any explanation was needed as to why Sheikh Fahad has focussed on trading horses, rather than racing them in Europe, then Tuesday provided the answers, as Gladius, a three-year-old he owned in partnership, brought 950,000gns from Blandford Bloodstock’s Richard Brown.
Trained by Andrew Balding for Qatar Bloodstock, China Horse Club and David Howden, the Night Of Thunder colt gained an important update when finishing second to Damysus in the Group 3 Darley Stakes, for which he was sent off favourite. The price paid for Jamie Railton’s offering speaks to the regard in which Damysus is held, as it was his owners Wathnan Racing that Brown acted on behalf of.
After relegating Johnny McKeever and Claudia Fitzgerald to the role of underbidder, Brown commented: “We have followed this horse through the year with interest, and we have Damysus, who we hold in high regard and we thought this horse ran very well in behind him in the Group 3 Darley Stakes. It is a form line we know about.
“Gladius will go back to Andrew Balding and we will target the Qatar Derby with him. He is what we are looking for - he is a progressive and still unexposed. He can go to Qatar and then go on to be an international horse for us as well.”
Another hoping that Gladius can progress is the Irish National Stud, whose mare syndicate bred the bay out of listed winner Persona Grata. The farm sold him at Goffs as a foal for €280,000 to Philip Stauffenberg, who resold him for 250,000gns at Tattersalls Book 1.
Blandford, take two
Blandford Bloodstock also appeared alongside Grade 1 winner New Century, but it was the agency’s Stuart Boman who provided the winning bid of 390,000gns, having been among the underbidders for the top lot.
“We got there in the end, it took a little while,” Boman said after seeing off the attentions of Matt Houldsworth and an online bidder. “It is rare you get to buy a Grade 1 winner at auction and he has run very well in that company since; he was a horse talked as a classic prospect.
“He vetted immaculately, and for a horse who has trained in the US, and come back again... Royal Patronage did the same thing and he has a similar profile; he is a year younger.
“We are happy to get him, he is for an existing client and he is will be going for the Dubai for the Carnival.”
New Century was a talking point earlier in the year when Andrew Balding revealed that Sheikh Fahad had removed the Summer Stakes victor from his yard, with Qatar Racing explaining that Sheikh Fahad was focussing his racing operation in the US due to prize money levels.
Blandford, take three
Stuart Boman acted on behalf of Annabel and Rob Archibald Racing when securing St Leger third Stay True for 360,000gns. By Galileo and out of blacktype sprinter Bounce, Aidan O’Brien’s charge was well beaten last time out in the Long Distance Cup.
Explaining the three-year-old’s appeal, Boman stated: “He is a perfect Cup horse and is already Melbourne Cup qualified; he has got the rating to get in.”
Boman was joined by Annabel Neasham, who added: “He is on spec at the moment, but I have a few owners who want a Cup horse, he will be easy enough to sell, he has just run third in the Leger. He is just the horse you come to buy, but it is difficult to land on them.”
It speaks to the health of Australian racing that a trainer can buy a single horse on spec for 360,000gns, though their appeal is helped by the success of the specific sale’s graduates Down Under this year.
Back for more
Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott know all about it, as two of their Group 1 winners this year were sourced at the Autumn Horse In Training Sale, so it came as little surprise that their bloodstock manager Claudia Fitzgerald and agent Johnny McKeever were strong in the ring this week.
They underbid 950,000gns top lot Gladius, but gained compensation with three buys totalling 780,000gns, two of whom were from the Coolmore consignment from which they sourced Sir Delius.
At 320,000gns, their most expensive recruit was Gallinule Stakes victor Thrice. It marked back-to-back lots for the buying team, who went to 260,000gns for Group 3 Classic Trial winner Swagman.
“We will take them straight to Oz and let them acclimatise,” Fitzgerald reported. “They are young horses and lightly raced, and have the exact profile of a horse that we come here to target. They are incredibly sound, they are lovely and fresh and we love progeny by Wootton Bassett.”
“We have done really well buying off Coolmore,” McKeever added. “Rob Waterhouse is the guru on what he feels form-wise and then Claudia and I are looking at them physically, and I always defer to what Claudia thinks she will be able to sell - I ask her if she will be able to sell to her clients.”
McKeever, Waterhouse and Bott first joined the buyers’ table this week when going to 200,000gns for Joseph O’Brien’s highly-rated three-year-old Tribal Nation.
On their first buy, Fitzgerald commented: “He has been running over shorter than perhaps we’d look for [seven furlongs and a mile], but he looks like a horse who will stretch out, especially when we get him to Australia and the sun’s on his back!”
DAN Skelton and Willie Mullins took their duel to the sales ring on Wednesday, as their respective agents Ryan Mahon and Harold Kirk went head-to-head for Andrew Balding’s progressive stayer Fantasy World. Neither Mullins nor Skelton took home the three-year-old, as it was Jerry McGrath who brought the hammer down at 600,000gns, on behalf of an owner of Nicky Henderson’s.
“Fantasy World has been bought to go jumping, but also with a dual-purpose career in mind,” the agent explained. “This lad is very progressive; he has won over 10 furlongs, a mile and a half, and a mile and six. He goes on the slower ground and is a real hurdling type.
“He looked beaten at Ascot last time and battled back well. He is gelded, but he will have a break now as he has been busy this summer.”
The son of Make Believe earned Kennet Valley Syndicates £56,710 for his career-best performance at Ascot, close to the €70,000 Luke Lillingston paid for him at the Tattersalls Ireland September Yearling Sale.
Sam Hoskins, racing manager for Kennet Valley, remarked: “He was always going to be the kind of horse who was going to appeal to the NH or Australian market and we were not going to do either of those things; we are a flat syndicate and historically we offer our horses at the end of their three-year-old seasons.
“I will love to see him coming down that hill at Cheltenham, he looks a real jumper - and that is what he should be doing, he is made to be a jumper.”
Reflecting on the gelding’s win at Ascot, where he defied odds of 20/1, Hoskins added: “It was inspired placement; he was the lowest-rated horse in the race, but we thought he is a guaranteed stayer and he will appreciate the ground.”
Underbidders no more
Three of the first five home in the Noel Murless Stakes sold for a total 1,500,000gns on the day, while the 98-rated sixth went unsold at 215,000gns. Two other runners were withdrawn, from a field of eight.
Alex Elliott has enjoyed great success buying and reselling on behalf of Valmont, most notably buying You Got To Me for 200,000gns and reselling the classic winner for 4,800,000gns. The trading aspect of his clients saw the agent establish Imperium Sales in 2023, and their early success continued with the 580,000gns sale of Noel Murless Stakes fifth, Push The Limit.
Bought at Goffs Orby Book 2 for €48,000, the Le Havre colt progressed to a rating of 103, which saw him sent off favourite at Ascot. His two-length defeat clearly didn’t bother Dan Skelton and Ryan Mahon, who bought the chesnut after underbidding the session topper.
“We missed the earlier horse, so we were not going to miss this one,” Mahon reported. “The ones you really want are very difficult to get, and you have to go all out to get them. As a physical, he fitted what we are after - myself and Dan have spoken about him a lot over the last couple of days. Potentially, he could have a dual-purpose career, but that is for Dan to work out.”
More to come
Earlier on Wednesday afternoon, Phil Cunningham and Sam Haggas’ Hurworth Bloodstock went to 320,000gns for Noel Murless runner-up Nightwalker. Richard Spencer will train the Juddmonte home-bred, who was group-placed as a juvenile for Sir Michael Stoute and went on to earn three more blacktype placings for John and Thady Gosden.
On Spencer’s new recruit, Haggas explained: “He has a team going out to Dubai this winter and that is the main aim for this horse. We bought one yesterday who is doing the same.
“This is a lovely staying horse and I think he should have plenty more going forward. He has been highly tried and he was thought good enough to run in the Derby - he was quite well fancied at Epsom [finished 12th].
“He remains a bit unexposed over staying trips; the only time he has run over as far as a mile and six furlongs was last time in the Noel Murless and he ran a super race, he has a lot to offer over those distances.”
Haggas made his presence felt on Tuesday when securing John Murphy’s Group 1 winner White Birch on behalf of Jamie Osborne for 320,000gns. Harold Kirk underbid the Tattersalls Gold Cup victor, who notched five wins during his time with John Murphy.
Reflecting on the sale, Murphy’s son and assistant trainer George commented: “It is tough to see him go, for sure. He has been brilliant for us and we’re very thankful to have had him when we did and thankful to the owners too; they have been very great owners for us for many years.
“When he was younger, he was full of life as could be seen in his races, but he matured into a lovely horse with a great mind. I am sure his new connections will have a great time with him and we wish them the best of luck.”
CONNECTIONS’ decision to offer five-time group winner Geography as a wildcard entry was vindicated when the Peter Schiergen-trained gelding brought 570,000gns from BBA Ireland’s Michael Donohoe.
“He is really the one that we identified when the wildcards came out,” Donohoe said of the Holy Roman Emperor four-year-old, who finished fifth in the Prix de la Foret when last seen.
“He is a horse we had been following, he has extremely consistent form, his run in the Foret was good, he is a very good physical, he vetted very well and he is versatile.
“He is for a client in the Middle East. He will suit the mile races in the region and, with his pedigree, he might be a horse who could go on the dirt in Saudi, too. If he can win a valuable race in the Middle East, he makes good sense from an investment view point.”
Donohoe acted on behalf of the same client when going to 425,000gns for Harry Charlton’s 96-rated Frankel colt Gran Descans. “He is a very progressive horse, we certainly think there is more to come,” Donohoe said of the Juddmonte home-bred.
“He will go from here to George Peckham - all the horses we buy for the Middle East go to him. He does a great job, keeps them in full training and they ship from him and, hopefully, the horses will be ready to run soon off the plane.”
BBA Ireland were second only to Blandford Bloodstock in terms of their total spend, with third place awarded to Najd Stud and Archdale Bloodstock, whose most expensive purchase was Fearnot at 500,000gns. Bought by Clive Cox as a yearling for 90,000gns, the Invincible Spirit colt won three of his eight starts and finished third in the Britannia Stakes.
“He goes to Saudi and will be one for the King’s Cup,” Nico Archdale commented. “He is a lovely horse, came highly recommended by Clive Cox, and has been highly progressive this season. He was our top pick of the sale.”
Too tempting
Finbar Kent paid €90,000 for August George a little over 12 months ago and, after earning an official rating of 97, the Goffs Million runner-up was revalued at 375,000gns by Qatari trainer Gassim Ghazali.
“It is a brilliant result, and great for owners Stephen and Wendy Burdett, who also own Ivan’s yard,” commented Kent, who also consigned the Night Of Thunder juvenile. “They put a lot into the game and buy 10 to 15 yearlings every year, so it is nice to get one who gets a result on the track and then gets a return today - it keeps all the wheels turning.
“It was not always the plan to sell him, but when one becomes worth a bit, then it becomes very hard not to take the money.”
Middle Eastern investment was once again apparent when Billy Jackson-Stops stretched to 420,000gns for Harry Charlton’s progressive three-year-old Wave Rider. The Belardo gelding was rated 83 when landing a Sandown maiden this summer and was offered by Barton Sales with a rating of 94 following his second career success in a handicap at Pontefract.
After signing the docket alongside George Scott, the agent revealed that his purchase was made on behalf of Victorious Racing. “Sheikh Nasser has won his own Cup a couple of times and be great to try and win it again,” he explained. “He has the form, and the profile to be successful there.
“Bahrain as a racecourse is on the up, we want to support that, send the right horses and ensure the quality of ability and competition remains high, and horses like this will do that.”
It marked a fine bit of business for Charlton’s Beckhampton Stables, who sourced Wave Rider as a yearling with Amanda Skiffington for 45,000gns.