GORDON Elliott will continue to train recent point-to-point winner Wingmen following the horse's sale on Saturday evening for £250,000.

The Kayf Tara five-year-old gelding was an impressive 12-length winner of a Ballycrystal maiden last Sunday when ridden by Rob James for Elliott and the Crocodile Pockets Syndicate.

“He is a very nice horse, and Gordon thinks a lot of him,” said buyer Eddie O’Leary, who was sat with the trainer and who will continue to train Wingmen.

“He is a big, raw horse. He won’t begin to see the best of him until next year, he has been bought on behalf of Bective Stud (Noel and Valerie Moran)."

Bred by Cathal Ennis, Wingmen is out of the winning Flemensfirth mare Raise You Five and is a dual Tattersalls Ireland graduate.

He was initially purchased as a foal at the November NH Sale by Timmy Hillman for €47,000, who then consigned the gelding under his Castledillon Stud banner at the 2021 Derby Sale bought by Mags O’Toole for €88,000.

Saturday's sale achieved a record January Sale average of £80,200, and seven horses sold for £100,000 and above.

Lisa Hales, who was bidding on behalf of her father John Hales, went to £190,000 to buy the Blue Bresil five-year-old gelding Sao Carlos, a Market Rasen bumper winner for trainer Olly Murphy, the gelding’s sole start to date.

Sao Carlos is out of the winning King’s Theatre mare Valleyofthedolls, and he is a half-brother to the Grade 2 Aintree bumper winner Diamond Sal, the Listed-winning hurdler and Grade 2-placed chaser Ring The Boss, and an own-brother to Theatre Girl, who was a Listed bumper winner and Grade 2 placed over hurdles.

“She will probably be for Dad, Sir Alex Ferguson, Ged Mason and John Driver, the same syndicate that owns Hermes Allen,” reported Hales, who added: “This horse has got an amazing walk, an amazing presence, he is substantial and looks like a chaser for the future, and that is what we like.

“In fact, I backed him when he ran and before I knew he was coming here; I thought he put in a great run then.”

Sunnyhill sale

Gordon Elliott will also train Magic Dawn, a bumper winner on New Year's Eve at Punchestown for owner-trainer-breeder Michael Hickey.

She was bought on Saturday for £185,000 by agent Mouse O'Ryan on behalf of owner KTDA Racing.

“She couldn’t have been more impressive when she won, and the family speaks for itself. We will be aiming her for something like the Aintree bumper,” O'Ryan said.

Breeder, and occasional trainer, Michael Hickey of Sunnyhill Stud admitted he had not trained a winner for 10 years until Magic Dawn won a bumper for him at Punchestown on New Year’s Eve on just her second career start. She won then in impressive fashion being eased down at the line.

Bred by Hickey from the farm’s leading family of the Gold Cup winner Kicking King, Magic Dawn is a six-year-old mare by the stud’s resident stallion Doyen.

She is out of the unraced mare Magic Maze, whose three runners so far are all winners and are headed by this filly’s full-sister Magic Daze, a Grade 2 winner over fences and placed in the Dawn Run Novices Hurdle at The Festival 2021.

“Magic Dawn is a gorgeous mare, she has great presence, is a great walker and has a magic temperament,” said Hickey. “She needed her first run, but four winners came out of that race, and then she won very well on her second start, I think she has a huge future.”

He added: “The intention was to race her and, if she won a little race, cover her and keep her for breeding. However, we started to train her and she was showing that bit extra – when she won she just became too valuable for us to keep, we do have to balance the books!”

Luckily, Hickey has plenty of representatives from the family in the broodmare band at home, and dam Magic Maze is in-foal to sire-of-the-moment, Blue Bresil.

Matthew Prior, Tattersalls Head of Sales, said: “I am delighted that this first sale of the year has produced such a positive result with a record-breaking top price and seven horses fetching over £100,000."

FINAL FIGURES

Current year 2022 Change %

Catalogued 43 40 - 8

Withdrawn 3 3 -

Offered 40 37 + 8

Unsold 10 3 + 233

Sold 30 34 - 11

Aggregate (£) 2,406,000 2,672,000 - 9

Median (£) 67,500 69,000 - 2

Average (£) 80,200 78,588 + 2

% sold 75% 92% - 10