SIMON Munir and Isaac Souede didn’t have to wait long to be rewarded for retaining their Group 2 winner Green Sense for £675,000, as they soon struck a deal to sell their Starman filly to Brittany Linton for £700,000.
Linton is CEO of Boyd Racing, the racing operation of Jenny and Randy Boyd, who entered the game in 2024. The US owners purchased their first broodmares last year, with buys including Grade 1 winner Vahva for $3.1million.
Explaining how their latest purchase materialised, Randy Boyd reported: “David Redvers is a good friend and he gave us some advice and connected us to the owners.
“We’re very excited about her and looking forward to her running in the Jersey Stakes on Saturday. After that she’ll probably come back to the US and run in Saratoga and be a turf horse there. We have a trainer in mind but I’d better wait to tell him first!”
Elaborating on their operation, which currently consists of eight fillies and two colts, Boyd explained: “We want to keep it small and have high-quality horses. We don’t expect to be the biggest, but we want to be the best.”
Between Monday’s sale, her Prix Robert Papin victory, Phoenix Stakes third and Group 3 second, Green Sense earned over £800,000 for Munir and Souede. The Nicky Hartery-bred three-year-old was sourced by Highflyer Bloodstock’s Anthony Bromley at the Goffs Orby Sale for €90,000.
She was an expected highlight of the sale alongside Greenham Stakes victor Alparslan, who will remain in the silks of Mohamed Saeed Al Shehhi for Royal Ascot after the Karl Burke-trained colt was retained for £1million.
More ammunition
Amo Racing provided the highest bid of £2million last year and Ghostwriter’s buyers were active once again this year, as they secured Lemos De Souza’s Queen Mary Stakes contender Kentucky Rain for £380,000.
It marked a notable rise in value for the Lucky Vega filly, who sold to Oliver St Lawrence for €18,000 at Part 2 of the Goffs Orby Sale but failed to sell when reoffered 17 days later or when offered by Stephan Vogt’s GET at the Goffs UK Breeze-Up Sale.
GET consigned the Pegasus Bloodstock-bred juvenile once again this week, but she had the benefit of a debut second at Goodwood last month. Cieren Fallon’s mount didn’t enjoy a clear run on that occasion but ran on gallantly to finish a length and a quarter behind a more experienced rival in Pershaada, who she will reoppose on Wednesday.
After signing the docket on Monday, Alex Elliott commented: “She's a very nice filly. Kia knows Lemos well and spoke to him about her before the sale. It was a very eye-catching performance finishing second first time out, and she's going to get further in time I’d say.
“She’s the type of filly we could potentially take to the States. If she doesn’t win at Royal Ascot she’s still got her maiden status so she could go and run in those maidens on either coast of the US. Americans were second and third to us in the bidding; she's just a really obvious one for there.”
US interest
Amo has another two fillies in the Queen Mary Stakes who could potentially take on Robson de Aguiar’s smart Naas winner Your Song, who sold to Narvick International and Shawn Dugan for £300,000.
“We’ll decide within the next 12 hours whether she'll take up her engagement,” Dugan reported. “She could, as she's been bought for Marsha Naify, and she became a registered owner in Britain this week.
“Marsha is a major owner in America and is one of Emmanuel and Laura de Seroux of Narvick International’s clients. I work closely with Emmanuel and Laura.
“Marsha is based in California but she’s here for the week, having never been before. We're having some serious fun here!”
Previously owned by Kerri Radcliffe, Arthur P Hoyeau and Giselle De Aguiar, Your Song took a step forward on her second start to land the Coolmore Stud Blackbeard Race, won last year by Charles Darwin and in 2023 by subsequent Coventry Stakes winner River Tiber.
Bred by Loughtown Stud, the Coulsty filly cost 32,000gns as a yearling.
Back for more
London Sale regulars Johnny McKeever, Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott went to £260,000 for Andy Oliver’s progressive three-year-old Santa Bravado. The Iffraaj gelding benefitted from a timely update when Fallacy, who was three lengths and three quarters behind him at Navan last month, bolted up by 12 lengths last week.
Oliver’s 28,000gns yearling buy was resold with an entry in Saturday’s Golden Gate Stakes, but McKeever reported that he is unlikely to take up the engagement.
“He'll be heading down to Australia and can win stakes races down there,” the agent added. “Gai will put together a syndicate to race him.”
Redemption Road was another cheaply-bought yearling to resell for a sizeable profit thanks to a progressive profile, as David Marnane’s offering brought £260,000 from Apollo, Keady and Regan.
MRC International’s €22,000 purchase is officially rated 100 following to thirds in Group 3 contests at Leopardstown.
Positives
Despite all sale statistics falling, Goffs CEO Henry Beeby was pleased with Monday’s results, he said.
“The 2026 London Sale was another enormous success in so many ways. Whilst the statistics are well behind last year, we don’t measure this sale in the same way. Normally, we obsess over percentage rises or falls but with the London Sale it is an entirely different approach.
“Success at the London Sale is judged by the reaction of both vendors and purchasers and, by that measurement, we’ve had a very positive evening.
“The top lot has been bought by a new entrant to European turf racing from the United States; the Queen of Australian racing Gai Waterhouse has got involved again, as have Amo Racing, while Apollo were new entrants on the London buyer list.
“We’ve been delighted to see the enthusiasm of all buyers for their London purchases, and we wish them the very best of luck at Royal Ascot and beyond.”