THE team at Goffs will have been delighted to see last week’s yearling sale “up the road” do so well, as it can only have positive connotations for the four-day Orby Sale which starts on Monday.

That’s an earlier start than in previous years and getting finished on Thursday night allows a bit more space before the Prix de l’Arc meeting and the sales in Newmarket the following week.

Before that we had the Goffs Million at the Curragh on Saturday, a €1 million race for last year’s sale graduates and what a good sign it was that the seven-furlong race attracted a full field of 30 runners. The first 10 home were rewarded.

Minnie Hauk has kept the Orby Sale in the headlines this season. She topped the Orby two years ago and this year completed the Oaks double for Coolmore. She is among the favourites for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.

Already Goffs has paid out €1 million in €50,000 bonuses across maiden races in Britain and Ireland. Nice to see that all the bonuses have been won prior to this year’s sale, suggesting that the initiative is working. Bonus winners included Green Sense, who went on to win the Group 2 Prix Robert Papin.

So, what do we expect to happen at Kildare Paddocks this week?

The Arqana average was up 23% but it was top-heavy. At Doncaster the median price was up 17% and Baden-Baden was also up by about 14%, which was not far off Keeneland, which saw a 20% jump in the average and the median rose by 15% but there is undoubtedly a Trump effect at play over there.

It’s likely that US spending will bounce back at Goffs too but it’s not realistic to think that the Orby Sale will see gains on the level recorded at Fairyhouse last week. For all that they had a brilliant week, Tattersalls Ireland was coming off a couple of moderate years whereas last year’s Orby Sale bucked the trend last year by posting a modest gain in the average price. Denis Brosnan and Kirsten Rausing supplied Goffs with a couple of seven-figure lots and Godolphin spent €5 million here last year.

Practically every major sale suffered a drop in the clearance rate last year and that has seen a slimming-down of all the catalogues this time around. It seems to be working too.

Last year Goffs catalogued almost 1,000 yearlings over the four days. That’s down to 900 this year. Book 1 is down from 519 yearlings to 466.

The sire profile looks very impressive, particularly eyecatching are the 19 lots by the late Wootton Bassett. There’s 18 by Mehmas, 12 by Sea The Stars, 11 Lope De Vegas, four Frankels and four by Night Of Thunder.

The Frankel foursome includes a three-parts brother to Derby winner Desert Crown. There’s also a Frankel colt out of Kirsten Rausing’s Group 1 winner Madame Chiang, whose five previous runners have all won.

Two sires who made headlines last week, Sioux Nation (31 lots) and Starspangledbanner (20) are very well represented. No doubt the 25 Blue Point yearlings will also be pulled out plenty of times before entering the sales ring.

Other sires of note with yearlings on offer this week include Justify, Zarak, Starman, Camelot, Too Darn Hot, Havana Grey, Baaeed, New Bay, Kingman, Dark Angel and No Nay Never.

The sole Justify colt in the sale is out of Irish Oaks third Gagnoa. A Group 3 winner, her previous nine runners have all won.

There’s a a full-sister to Blackbeard and Charles Darwin and a full-sister to Group 1 winner Saffron Beach.

Q: Will Amo Racing return to Goffs?

They were represented at the Orby last year by Alex Elliott but we all want to see Kia Joorabchian there in the flesh, teasing Henry Beeby with his singular bidding strategies. Amo Racing have had great success with Wootton Bassett. Will they go in hard for some of his yearlings this week?

Q: What’s the Godolphin plan?

Anthony Stroud was said to be in Dubai last week where presumably he was receiving his riding instructions for the weeks ahead. At Deauville last month Stroud bought yearlings by Wootton Bassett, Lope De Vega, Frankel, Sea The Stars and Siyouni (as well as Dubawi, of course). They spent €5 million here last year, taking home the top three lots. Speaking of Dubai, Rabbah Bloodstock spent €1 million at the 2024 Orby. They spent double that at Fairyhouse last week. How will that impact their Goffs plans?

Q: Money from America?

President Trump’s tax breaks for the wealthy looked to boost the recent Keeneland sales. There was some US action at Fairyhouse last week, which bodes well. Orby graduates won over 50 races in North America this year, led by Excellent Truth, winner of the Grade 1 Diana Stakes at Saratoga this July for Chad Brown and Resolute Racing.

Q: Will these big owner-breeders get involved?

Juddmonte (€1.6 million) and Yulong (€1.3 million) were big players here last year but they tend to cherry-pick their targets and you wouldn’t be surprised if they bought six yearlings each or none.

Q: Will Coolmore step up or step back?

They’ve had better months in Fethard but Coolmore remains the most influential operation at this sale and its biggest supporter. You’d imagine they will come out fighting this week. They want stallions. If either of the two Frankel colts listed on the right have the conformation and movement to match their pedigrees we could have fireworks.

Book 1 highlights

Lot 51: Blue Point colt, half-brother to Group 2 winner Bay City Roller out of stakes-winning Teofilo mare Bloomfield.

Lot 96: Frankel colt, three-parts brother to champion three-year-old and Derby winner, Desert Crown.

Lot 99: Wootton Bassett filly, half-sister to multiple Group 1 winner and champion Jan Brueghel and Irish Derby winner Sovereign.

Lot 130: New Bay filly, own-sister to multiple Group 1 winner Saffron Beach.

Lot 168: Wootton Bassett filly, half-sister to Royal Ascot Group 3 Hampton Court winner Trinity College out of dual Guineas winner Hermosa.

Lot 235: Wootton Bassett filly, own-sister to multiple Group 1 winner Al Riffa.

Lot 239: Frankel colt, out of Group 1 winner Madame Chiang.

Lot 267: Blackbeard filly, half-sister to Group 2 Lillie Langtry winner Term Of Endearment, family of champion three-year-old Covert Love.

Lot 280: No Nay Never filly, own-sister to champion two-year-old colt Blackbeard and Group 2 Norfolk Stakes winner Charles Darwin.

Lot 297: Kingman filly, half-sister to multiple Group 1 performer Arrest and Prix du Jockey Club Group 1-placed Detain.

Lot 298: Night Of Thunder filly, out of Group 1 Matron Stakes winner No Speak Alexander.

Lot 368: Naval Crown filly, half-sister to this year’s Group 2 Prix de Malleret winner Qilin Queen from the family of Ghaiyyath.

Lot 460: Lope De Vega filly, half-sister to Grade 1 Del Mar Oaks winner Going Global and Group 2 winner Mitbaahy.

JUDGING by the crowds at Listowel and the prices at Fairyhouse last week, you’d have to say racing is doing pretty okay. The demand is clearly there for both the raw materials and the finished product, even at a lesser level.

With all the political unrest around the world, and especially the negative sentiment around racing politics in Britain at the moment, you’d be forgiven for thinking the game was gone. “The top end won’t be affected,” you might have thought, “but the commercial level will struggle.”

And yet the bloodstock market continue to defy the doomsayers. Results from the Goffs Premier Yearling Sale at Doncaster and the Tattersalls Somerville Sale in Newmarket suggest that the middle market is alive and well, and so Book 2 of the Orby Sale next Wednesday and Thursday should perform well.

Last year Book 2 saw 480 catalogued and just 332 were sold for a clearance rate of 72%. The average price came in at just over €20,000, which was down 8%.

This year the catalogue has been trimmed to 434 and, coupled with the current uptick in sales generally, we should see a return to positive trends.

It’s worth mentioning that all Book 2 yearlings are also eligible for the Two Million Series, which is comprised of the Million race and 20 €50,000 bonus races, half of which are run in Britain.

Bonus winners this year included yearlings bought from as low as €5,000 tight up to last year’s €2 million top lot. Bonus winners came from Book 2 as well. The 10 British bonus winners included €5,000 and €14,000 Book 2 purchases Homestrait and Temple Of Athena. Another Book 2 bonus winner was the Ollie Sangster-trained Artista, bought by the trainer and Nick Bradley for €36,000.

To qualify for the entire Two Million Series, buyers must tick the box at the point of purchase.

Book 2 is very popular with breeze-up consignors. Rarely has the market seen a result as staggering as the €9,000 Kodi Bear colt bought by Johnny Hurley of Woodlands Lodge at Book 2 who returned a price of £500,000 when selling to Godolphin at the 2025 Doncaster Breeze Up.

Later in the breeze-up season, Roderic Kavanagh’s Glending Stables topped the inaugural Goffs Classic Breeze Up Sale on Irish Derby weekend with their Starspangledbanner colt selling to Meridian Bloodstock for €330,000, having bought him at last year’s Orby Book 2 for just €29,000.

It was another strong season for Orby Book 2 graduates on the track, headed by the likes of She’s Perfect, James’s Delight and Lady With The Lamp.

Book 2 highlights

Lot 471: Saxon Warrior filly, own-sister to multiple Group 3 winner Greenland out of listed winner Aktoria.

Lot 543: Acclamation filly out of a half-sister to multiple Group 1 winner Siskin.

Lot 617: Starman colt out of a half-sister to multiple Group 1 winner Amazing Maria.

Lot 623: Australia colt, own-brother to Abundantia Stakes winner Just A Care.

Lot 652: Soldier’s Call colt, half-brother to listed winner Laviniad. From the family of Group 3 winner Self Belief and Statement.

Lot 696: Saxon Warrior filly out of multiple listed winner Lethal Promise.

Lot 725: Blue Point filly out of a half-sister to Grade 1 winner Capla Temptress.

Lot 747: Churchill filly, out of stakes-placed performer My Spirit. From the family of Twilight Payment and Banimpire.

Lot 776: Teofilo colt, three-parts brother to multiple Group 1 winner Pleascach.

Lot 801: Sea The Moon colt, half-brother to multiple Group 1 performer Rosscarbery.

Lot 811: Fracas colt, half-brother to listed winner Requisition out of Irish 1000 Guineas winner Saoire.

Lot 834: Saxon Warrior filly out of Group 3 Princess Margaret Stakes winner Soraaya.

Lot 875: Sioux Nation colt, half-brother to Group 2 winner Jasour. From the family of Group 1 winner Twilight Son.

Lot 895: Cotai Glory colt, own-brother to Royal Ascot winner Alpha Capture and half-brother to listed winner Acklam Express.

Sale: Goffs Orby Yearling Sale at Goffs, Kill, Co Kildare.

Date/times: Starts 10am Monday-Thursday, Sept 29th-Oct 2nd (Book 1 on Mon-Tues, Book 2 on Wed-Thur)

Lots: 466 in Book 1, 434 in Book 2

Info: All lots eligible for the Two Million Series

Web: goffs.com