TATTERSALLS introduced the August Sale last year and, despite all the difficulties around Covid-19 at that time, the three-day auction proved very popular, with over eight million guineas spent and a clearance rate of over 90%.
This year the catalogue has been kept to two days and there are over 450 lots due to be offered next Tuesday and Wednesday in Newmarket.
Like at the July Sale, the vast majority are horses in training, many of them being moved on from the larger operations such as Ballydoyle, Godolphin, Juddmonte and Shadwell.
Agent Jamie Railton will offer Pascal Bary’s Group 3 winner Pretreville, runner-up in the Group 2 Prix du Muguet in May but out of form in two starts since, alongside a pair of listed-placed two-year-olds colts in Bunglejungleparty and Papa Don’t Preach.
Aidan O’Brien’s Ballydoyle Stables has entered the Group 3-placed duo Arturo Toscanini and Lough Derg, and recent Killarney listed winner Horoscope.
Ted Walsh
Several promising and lightly raced three-year-olds look certain to pique the interest of buyers including the winning Territories gelding London Royal, who has earned an official rating of 94 following only three starts for trainer Ted Walsh.
William Haggas will offer the progressive Sea The Stars gelding Chalk Stream, rated 92 after wins at York and Ripon.
Juddmonte draft
Consignments from Juddmonte Farms are always amongst the highlights of horses-in-training sales at Tattersalls. Their August Sale draft features the smart three-year-old colt Fabilis (rated 96), who was due to run yesterday at Newmarket.
The ever-popular Godolphin draft includes a customary offering of smartly-bred fillies led by Bright Spirit, a daughter of Dubawi out of the three-time Group 3 winner Local Time.
Buyers looking for well-related fillies will have plenty more to consider including the Baroda Stud-consigned Golden Hind, a half-sister to dual Group 1 winner Amazing Maria, and Burning Sea, a full sister to Group 3 winner Blue De Vega and to the dam of Group 2 winner Angel Power who will be offered by the Castlebridge Consignment.
Shadwell selling
The largest consignment comes from Shadwell Estate Company which has a draft of approximately 40 lots catalogued featuring unexposed winning three-year-olds Afkaar, Maraakiz, Mothill and Tashkeer and several highly rated older horses including the 94-rated Taqareer.
Amongst the 27 lots offered by the Castlebridge Consignment are two promising three-year-olds trained by John and Thady Gosden in Rifleman and Zagato. Rifleman (by The Gurkha) won a hot one-mile handicap at York last week off 95 and has a Cambridgeshire entry. The regally bred Zagato, a son of Frankel out of the dual Group 1 winner Izzi Top, was due to run off a mark of 85 at Newmarket yesterday.
Late entries
Seven lots were added to the sales this week, headed by the high-class duo of Pablo Escobarr and Inigo Jones.
Pablo Escobarr, a five-year-old gelding by Galileo, is a listed and Group 3 winner who finished third behind Hukum in the Group 3 Geoffrey Freer Stakes this month for trainer William Haggas.
Inigo Jones is a three-year-colt by New Approach trained by Sir Michael Stoute. Rated 105 by Timeform, he finished third to Mohaafeth in the Hampton Court Stakes at Royal Ascot this season.
Another late entry is exciting two-year-old filly Almohandesah. The winning daughter of Postponed is officially rated 87 following her recent fifth in the Group 3 Sweet Solera Stakes.
The Karl Burke trained filly, catalogued as Lot 190A, is out of the Exceed And Excel mare Chocolate Hills, from the direct family of champions Royal Applause and Lyric Fantasy and will be consigned from Burke’s Spigot Lodge Stables.
Nigel Tinkler will consign the three-year-old Night On Earth from his Woodland Stables base in North Yorkshire. Catalogued as Lot 190B, the son of Kodiac has won on three occasions including his most recent start at Chester and has a current Timeform rating of 88.
Trainer Mick Channon will consign three additional lots from his West Ilsley Stables with the Group 3 winner Trais Fluors leading the way.
The seven-year-old son of Dansili was a smart performer for Ken Condon before transferring to Britain this season and he won a Sandown handicap off 92 in June.
Enthusiasm
Tattersalls chairman Edmond Mahony said: “The Tattersalls August Sale was introduced for the first time in 2020 in response to Covid-related circumstances, but the enthusiasm for the sale from both vendors and purchasers and an extraordinary clearance rate made it an easy decision to make it a permanent fixture.
“With the Tattersalls July Sale being held in more normal circumstances this year, it was natural that the catalogue size for the second edition of the August Sale would reduce but we are still delighted to provide a catalogue that will appeal to a wide cross section of buyers, both domestic and further afield.
“We are also pleased that buyers from the key Middle Eastern markets will find it much easier to travel to the UK for the sale with the recent easing of restrictions for fully vaccinated travellers.”
Buyers unable to attend the sale in person will be able to bid via the Tattersalls Live internet bidding platform.
Sale information
Sale: Tattersalls August Sale
Date/time: Tuesday & Wednesday, August 31st and September 1st (11am start)
Lots: 463 catalogued (52 withdrawals at time of writing)
Tel: 0044 1638 665931
Web: tattersalls.com and tattersallsonline.com
Email: sales@tattersalls.com