$1 million Zoustar colt rounds off Jockey Club’s southern hemisphere buying
The Hong Kong Jockey Club ended the southern hemisphere yearling buying season with a resounding statement after going to $1 million for a Zoustar (Northern Meteor) colt at last week’s Inglis Easter sale in Sydney.
The colt was one of five purchases for the HKJC at Inglis’s flagship sale, held on Tuesday and Wednesday last week, and takes the total tally of yearling purchases made by Craig Rounsefell’s buying team since January to 14.
Catalogued as Lot 329 within the Emirates Park draft, the colt sold on a frenetic second day of trade at Inglis’s Riverside Stables, which saw over $83 million exchange hands, propelled by no less than 14 $1 million plus lots as colts syndicates dominated the market, purchasing nine of the top 15 highest-priced horses traded.
Among an outlay of $3.235 million for the HKJC at Easter this year, the Zoustar colt out of Group 2 winner One More Honey (Onemorenomore) is the first seven-figure purchase for the Jockey Club in the southern hemisphere since 2018.
“He’s a beautiful, athletic colt and we thought we might come up a bit short, but he’s got a bit more scope and could be a horse that improves with age,” Rounsefell said.
“We’re trying to find really top quality horses that can be reoffered at the sale to the members. We’re not competing with the stallion funds here who are trying to compete with buying the two-year-old horses, that’s not our go. We’re looking for horses that will race at three, four, five and six and be really durable and sound.”
The colt’s two-year-old half-brother Man In The Mirror, the Group 2-placed son of Not A Single Doubt (Redoute’s Choice), was a $1.8 million buy at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale a year ago.
“It’s a lovely family, mum had a lot of speed and her first runner has a lot of talent,” Rounsefell said.
“For anyone a $1 million is a lot of money, but it’s in relative terms when you look at the product and you have to look at it at face value; Zoustar out of that family and that type, it’s a collectors item and will be one that’s sought after in that (ISG) sale.
“He’s a later foal and the cross has worked before. It’s the same cross as Sunlight from that Red Ransom line. The first foal last year that made $1.8 million, he was an early, strongly-built horse. This guy has some nice size to him and scope and is very athletic.
“Emirates Park has got a great record so it gave us a lot of confidence. Hopefully he’ll be a star of the future in Hong Kong.”
Zoustar, who claimed top lot honours at Easter with the $3 million brother to Sunlight that was purchased by Coolmore, has a growing reputation in Hong Kong, aided by the exploits of his Group 3-winning son Healthy Happy, who struck in the Chinese Club Challenge Cup (Gr 3, 1400m) on January 1, having the year before won the Hong Kong Classic Cup (Listed, 1800m), defeating subsequent Group 1 winner Russian Emperor (Galileo).
From 23 runners in Hong Kong Zoustar has 12 winners, with the Easter-bought colt adding to the purchase of a colt by Widden Stud’s Zoustar at the Inglis Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale for $340,000 out of Honey Rider (Pins).
“He’s (Zoustar) got a very nice horse up there right now and he’s the right profile for Hong Kong,” Rousefell added.
“We’re really looking at those stallions and there’s a big team that are looking at pedigrees and delving into the analysis there. Horses have got to be sound and will go through their grades and be competing for many seasons for their owners. Proven stallions, off proven farms and here at Easter the families are, nine times out of ten, outstanding, so they’ll be well received at the (ISG) sale as well.”
The Hong Kong International Sale received a welcome boost earlier this year when graduate Romantic Warrior (Acclamation) became the first winner of the Hong Kong Derby to emanate from the auction, having been purchased by Mick Kinane for 300,000gns at the Tattersalls October Book 2 Yearling Sale in 2019.
“That was fantastic for the sale,” Rounsefell said. “The teams in the northern and southern hemispheres changed a couple of years ago, so it’s exciting with these horses from our crops coming through. Covid has slowed down the intake but this year we’ll have a big group heading up there for the sale which for me personally is very exciting.”
Joining the standout colt by Zoustar as Easter graduates in the HKJC’s ISG sale will be sons of current sires table pacesetter Deep Field (Northern Meteor), Dundeel (High Chaparral) and Exceed And Excel (Dadnehill), as well as a son of Per Incanto (Street Cry), the champion sire by winners in last year’s sires premiership, that Rounsefell purchased for $560,000.
A brother to Railway Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) winner Santa Monica, the colt is out of Volksraad (Green Desert) mare Monarch, herself a daughter of Group 2 winner and Group 1 runner-up Balmacara (Bassenthwaite).
“He’s an absolutely stunning horse that looks rock solid and is another ideal candidate for the ISG sale,” Rounsefell said.
“I just loved that horse. He’s worked with the family. He’s a full brother to a Group 1 winner and a couple of other siblings that have been hard-knocking city class horses. For me he was a must have and again we had to pay a lot for him but I think he was worth it.”
A total of 13 horses at the Inglis Easter sale were purchased by Hong Kong-based buyers, with Asian Bloodstock Services buying a colt by Zoustar for $900,000 and a colt by Deep Field for $300,000, while George Moore collected a colt by Exceed And Excel for $300,000.
Attention for Hong Kong buyers now turns to the northern hemisphere breeze-up sales, with the two-day Tattersalls Craven Sale having begun on Tuesday.