TATTERSALLS Ireland has replaced its November Flat Foal and Breeding Stock Sale with the Sapphire Sale. Taking place on Saturday, November 12th the sale will offer flat-bred foals, yearlings and breeding stock.

Graduates of the equivalent sale in recent years include Champers Elysees, The Lir Jet and Steel Bull. This auction has also seen some spectacular pinhooks, most notably the Cable Bay colt out of Ballet Move, purchased in 2018 by Sophie Buckley for €4,000 and subsequently resold at the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale for 160,000gns.

All Sapphire Sale yearlings will be eligible for the €300,000 Tattersalls Ireland Super Auction Sales Stakes at the Curragh. The vendor of that race winner will receive a new Overlander R160 two-stall horsebox.

Tattersalls Ireland CEO Simon Kerins said: “Our aim with the new Tattersalls Ireland Sapphire Sale is to build on the success of the Tattersalls Ireland Goresbridge Breeze Up and September Yearling Sales while also demonstrating the unwavering Tattersalls Ireland commitment to the flat sector in Ireland.

The Sapphire Sale will offer smaller Irish breeders an opportunity to showcase their stock prior to the major breeding stock sales in Europe at a time when buyers will be in Ireland, and addresses the demand from vendors for an Irish-based yearling sale at this time of year.

“We will be looking to increase the quality and number of foals and broodmares on offer and to assemble a selection of high-calibre commercial yearlings to ensure the Sapphire Sale becomes a must-attend fixture, not only for breeders and pinhookers, but also for Irish, UK and European based trainers, owners and agents.

“The Tattersalls Ireland Sapphire Sale will be the first European foal and breeding stock sale of the year and we are looking forward to launching the sale with a strong catalogue of flat foals, yearlings and breeding stock.”