THE Inglis Easter Yearling sale scaled new heights on Tuesday as the first living foal from Winx, a filly by Pierro, doubled the previous record price for an Australian-bred yearling at public auction, selling for A$10 million to Debbie Kepitis’ Woppitt Bloodstock.

American investor John Stewart of Resolute Racing was the underbidder, as the auction progressed quickly from $3 to $5 million, and through to $9 million before the final bid of $10 million arrived to a packed auditorium gobsmacked by the scale of the theatre.

The Pierro filly was led in by Coolmore’s foaling manager Paddy Sheehan. “I think we’ve got a little bit of the idea of the pressure that Chris Waller was under with Winx,” said Tom Magnier.

“I couldn’t be any more delighted for Debbie to buy this filly. The whole (Kepitis) family are such terrific clients of the farm, they’re great people and they’re great friends.

“John Stewart (of Resolute Racing and also a shareholder of Storm Boy) was in Australia a couple of weeks ago and he was very confident of getting the filly but when you come up against Debbie, you want to have will and determination. To me, this is like winning a Group 1.”

A part-owner of Winx, Kepitis runs Woppitt Bloodstock with her family. Along with two other Winx shareholders they bred and raised the Pierro filly at Coolmore with the intention to sell. “I didn’t come here to buy this horse originally,” said Kepitis.

“We put her up for auction and then in the last few weeks, the family started to miss our ‘granddaughter’, so we decided that, as best we could, if we could get her, we would. I’m privileged to be able to secure this filly on behalf of my family.

“She’s Australian forever and she’s going to be just fabulous. Hopefully she’ll do a Winx, but it doesn’t matter if she doesn’t.”

Inglis Easter

Aside from the grand theatre of a A$10 million yearling, the Australian Inglis Easter Yearling Sale recorded a gross of $151,015,000 at a clearance rate of 79% for the 445 yearlings offered.

That translates to an average of $429,786 and a median of $300,000 with 18 yearlings selling for $1 million or greater.

The top three sales were fillies with Resolute Racing, taking home Coolmore’s I Am Invincible filly out of Booker for $3 million and James Harron Bloodstock going to $2.2 million for the Zoustar filly out of Prompt Response.

Three more Zoustar’s were in the seven-figure category. So too three by I Am Invincible, two by Extreme Choice, two by Snitzel, and individuals by Dundeel, Wootton Bassett, Written Tycoon, Justify and Exceed and Excel.

Big spenders

As buyers, the syndicate of China Horse Club, Newgate Farm, Go Bloodstock and Trilogy were second on aggregate (behind Debbie Kepitis’ Winx purchase) spending $9,165,000 on 11 yearlings.

Coolmore led the vendors, as 32 of their 35 offered grossed $27,615,000, ahead of the next best in Arrowfield at $15,935,000.

With the stallion figures skewed by Pierro’s A$10 million Winx filly, the real grunt of the sale was provided by Zoustar and I Am Invincible. Zoustar had 27 of 33 offered sell at an average of $693,333, while I Am Invincible averaged $666,964 for his 28 sold from 38 offered.

The leading first season sire was Wootton Bassett whose 22 sold from 26 offered averaged $391,364, his top seller being the colt out of Sunlight that made $1.4 million.

Lightning strikes in the TJ Smith

James Squire TJ Smith Stakes (Group 1)

DAMIAN Lane produced a textbook inside barrier ride to guide Chain Of Lightning to a valuable Group 1 win in the TJ Smith Stakes over 1,200 metres at Randwick on Day 1 of The Championships.

Out of gate two on the heavy track, the grey Fighting Sun mare pushed forward to hold the rail one pair from the lead as those around her jostled for position. As the field began to fan around the bend, Lane was presented with a clear view down the straight and capitalised on that advantage.

A dual group winner on rain affected ground, Chain Of Lightning was up to the task, putting a Group 1 win next to her name. Winning by a neck she defeated the Pride Of Dubai mare Bella Nipotina and the fast finishing stablemate of the winner, I Wish I Win, by Savabeel.

Trained by Peter Moody and Katherine Coleman, the win was a maiden Group 1 for Coleman as a trainer.

“This is a beautiful moment. (Owners) Stuey and Trish Ramsey, they’ve been my foundation clients, we go back 30-odd years, so to win that for him that’s unbelievably special,” said Moody of the Turangga Stud owners who bred the winner as well as her sire and dam Magic Art.

“It’s the fourth time now winning the race named after ‘The Little Master’, my first boss TJ Smith, which makes me very proud. Thanks to Kat Coleman, my training partner, her first Group 1. We thought we might have been out of our depth class wise, but I think she shocked us a little bit with her courage and determination, and a beautiful ride by Damian.”

TC Australian Derby (Group 1)

DESPITE jockey James McDonald declaring that 2,400 metres is not Riff Rocket’s distance, the American Pharoah gelding has nevertheless completed the Victorian - Australian Derby double following his half-length victory in Saturday’s Classic at Randwick.

“It’s definitely not his trip, that’s for sure, he was out on his feet, but he’s tough,” said McDonald.

“He doesn’t know how to run a bad race, he wears his heart on his sleeve, he’s solid as a rock, this horse, and you’d love him at war with you.

“I was worried at the 300 metres, as he didn’t spend a penny getting there but I could feel he was out on his feet because the distance range is as far as he wants. But his will to win, tenacity and finding the line is incredible.” A homebred by Debbie Kepitis’ Woppitt Bloodstock that was foaled and raised at Coolmore in the Hunter Valley, Riff Rocket was second last for the majority of the trip before being sprung into action by McDonald.

Weaving through the field, Riff Rocket persisted, hitting the front with 150 metre to go to then sustaining his run and deny the fast-finishing Tavistock colt Ceolwulf with the So You Think colt Glad You Think securing third.

The win was trainer Chris Waller’s first in the race.

“It’s an important one to win. We train a lot of stayers and to get the horse to win a Rosehill Guineas and be favourite (and get the win), it’s a pretty big deal.”

THE Randwick Guineas winner a month earlier, Celestial Legend took advantage of his 49 kg impost under the handicap conditions of the Doncaster Mile to take out the A$4 million Group 1 at Randwick.

Coming from near the rear in the 19-horse field, jockey Tyler Schiller had no time to waste after being stymied for a run at the top of the straight.

Out late, the Dundeel colt darted to the lead in the closing stages to win by almost a length from the Street Boss gelding Pericles with another Dundeel colt in Militarize in third. For 85-year-old trainer Les Bridge it was a second Doncaster win, albeit 39 years apart.

“He’s some horse. I’ve had a lot of good horses, but this horse is unbelievable,” said Bridge. “I just didn’t think he could win, that’s all, but he just got out and he’s just unbelievable.

“What more can he do? For three-year-olds in this era, to win a Doncaster when they’ve got the compressed weights and all these good horses are so close to him, the weights was the only thing that made me worry a bit.”

Inglis Sires’ (Group 1)

THE Emirates Park-owned and bred Tassort filly Manaal, the only filly entered in the Inglis Sires’ for juveniles over 1,400 metres, has taken out the Group 1 to deny the boys in a thrilling finish.

Kept away from the early spark and near the rear into the bend, the Michael Freedman-trained Manaal produced a powerful sustained run to get over the top of Coleman and grab the Street Boss colt Traffic Warden in the final stride.

The Pierata colt Coleman, second in the Golden Slipper, took third, ahead of the Coolmore-owned Storm Boy who was caught three-wide in the run.

“She’s tough,” said jockey Jason Collett. “I travelled well when the tempo came off, but just came under pressure there when they went and just had to give her the time to find it.”

A debut winner of the Group 3 Gimcrack last September, Manaal has now won three from five having been kept to group racing. “I watched it with Hussain Lootah, the owner, and we were both a bit unsure on the line,” said Micheal Freedman. “She’s such a good filly. We went home a little bit dejected after the Slipper (Manaal ran fifth) but after her work on Tuesday I said to Hussain, ‘I really think it will take a good one to beat her’.”