Twenty-fold increase as Purplepay heads stateside

PURPLEPAY, whose three wins and four placings in eight juvenile starts included a third-place finish in the Group 1 Critérium International, was the first lot to reach a seven-figure sum. Nicolas Bertran de Balanda and David Redvers went head-to-head in the final stages of bidding for the filly, with the former gaining the upper hand at €2,000,000.This was 20 times her €100,000 yearling purchase price.

The daughter of Zarak, with a rating of 108, is from the Oldham family of Group 1 winners Ectot and Most Improved. Nicolas Bertran de Balanda said: “She’s a lovely filly that was very well presented and Zarak is a good stallion. We’re very happy. She has everything going for her - and it’s for that reason that we went so far. I’ve bought her for Lael Stables. She’ll go to the US where she’ll be trained by Arnaud Delacour.”

An equally impressive resale was that of Speak Of The Devil, the four-year-old daughter of Wootton Bassett trading for €1,950,000 to Peter Brant’s White Birch Farm. She was another Sumbe-consigned lot knocked down to Oceanic Bloodstock’s Michel Zerolo. The half-sister to triple Group 3 winner Morando is a four-time listed winner and was runner-up in the Group 1 Poule d’Essai des Pouliches-French 1000 Guineas behind Dream And Do. She also placed in the Group 1 Prix Rothschild.

“She’s a fantastic filly with a very good pedigree,” said Zerolo. “She’ll go to the United States to be trained by Chad Brown.”