LANGTON Stud in Dorset enjoyed its best-ever result in the sale ring on Friday when it sold a Lope De Vega filly out of the Poet’s Voice mare Poet’s Vanity for 500,000gns, bought by Juddmonte Farms.

“I am just about getting my breath; it has been great but it has been quite stressful too,” smiled Giles Wates, who admitted his hands were still shaking after the sale. “She was vetted 13 times, phew, it is one of those days! It has been a few years getting here, but we have got there now, we are on our way, and the team has done a great job.”

The result is the realisation of a long-term plan by Langton. The farm purchased Poet’s Vanity as a yearling for 150,000gns in 2015 and sent her into training with Andrew Balding. She won the Group 3 Oh So Sharp Stakes and was placed at Group 2 level. “We bought her with Richard Brown, and she went on to be a very successful racehorse,” said Wates.

“This filly’s older brother by Kingman has been retained and has gone Andrew Balding. He and this filly are both similar; they are athletic, they have big walks and nothing fazes them. It is a real compliment that Juddmonte bought her, and I hope now our farm is going the right way. We made a decision around 10 years ago to sell the stock as foals and it has been a good move.”

Quick response

Philipp von Stauffenberg threw a late, long-contemplated bid of 480,000gns, only for Juddmonte’s general manager Simon Mockridge to respond quickly with the winning bid. After the pair had shaken hands outside the ring, Mockridge said: “I knew she was very, very popular, everyone liked her. She is a great athlete, a great walker, and has been well-produced by Langton. We thought we’d have to be strong on her, but for us she is an outcross pedigree for the longer term.

“She is a beautiful filly, hopefully she can be a race filly now and then come back home. It is a beautiful pedigree, and it is easy to see why we liked her. She has depth and strength and is out of a group winner. She has everything and showed well throughout.”

Langton also sold the following lot, a filly by Night Of Thunder, for 185,000gns to JC Bloodstock. The purchasers bought the filly’s half-brother by Kingman for 135,000gns as a foal, selling him to MV Magnier for 1,050,000gns. Named Cormorant, the colt won the Group 2 Derrinstown Derby Trial.

Kingman filly

The second purchase on Friday by Juddmonte was a Kingman filly from Selwood Bloodstock, a half-sister to Angel Power, a Lope De Vega filly who won the Group 2 Premio Lydia Tesio. “I am delighted with that price [425,000gns]. It is fantastic and am really pleased for Anita Wigan who bred her,” said James Read of Selwood Bloodstock. “She is a beautiful filly. It is the best price we have had for around 10 years. The mare is going to Baaeed next spring. Her Lope De Vega yearling made 150,000gns in October and is with William Haggas.”

West Blagdon Bloodstock purchased Burning Rules for 95,000gns six years ago, and she is a half-sister to the Group 3 winner Blue De Vega who was classic-placed. The first three foals and runners from Burning Rules are winners.