Entente cordiale prevails as £650,000 War Front filly tops Arqana Breeze-Up Sale at Doncaster
An opening bid of £400,000 isn’t a common occurrence in the Doncaster sales ring, but when that hand was played for the War Front (Danzig) filly out of Beauty Parlor (Elusive Quality) during the relocated Arqana Breeze-Up Sale in Doncaster on Wednesday, it was clear something big was brewing.
However, even such strong-arm tactics weren’t enough to secure the sales topper, as Kerri Radcliffe entered the fray at £650,000 and duly brought the gavel down with a solitary bid.
The Grove Stud-consigned Lot 224 was bred in the US, and now looks set to head back across the Atlantic to join the string of big-spending American owner Larry Best, who races under the OXO Equine banner.
“I’m thrilled to say I’ve bought her for Larry Best of Oxo Equine,” said Radcliffe. “I believe this is his first purchase in Europe and I’d say she’s off to Saratoga, and I might just go with her if it’s the only way I can get back to America!
“Goffs and Arqana have done an amazing job to get the sale on, and the vendors as well for keeping these horses for as long as they have. The same goes for Tattersalls last week, I’m delighted for everybody that it’s gone so well.”
Expanding on how her connection with Best came about, Radcliffe said: “Since I’ve been buying in America I got in contact with Larry and said if I ever saw something exceptional I’d get in touch with him, and this filly is exceptional.
“She’s an absolute queen, I think everyone can see that. She breezed well, is by a great sire and has a great pedigree. She’s been so professional while she’s been on the sales ground.”
The strength of trade witnessed during the Goffs UK session continued into the Arqana sale, though Radcliffe said the War Front filly possessed so much quality that she’d expected to have to go further to secure her.
“I thought we might have to go to a lot more but we got her on one bid,” she said. “The sale has been very strong today, that’s why I thought she’d cost a lot more. I’m delighted to get her though, I hope she works out and we get to buy more in Europe for Larry!”
The filly is out of the Grade 3-winning Elusive Quality (Gone West) mare Beauty Parlor, whose family traces back to the likes of Canadian International (Gr 1, 12f) and Sun Chariot Stakes (Gr 2, 1m 2f) winner Infamy (Shirley Heights). She was pinhooked by Brendan Holland of Grove Stud, who gave US$185,000 for the sales topper at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale.
“It’s good trade,” said Holland. “It’s a great result and that should help square some of the problems we’ve had along the way this year. We’re eternally optimistic but you wouldn’t want to think too far ahead in this game, or overthink things.”
Grove Stud has now sold the top lot at the last two renewals of the Arqana Breeze-Up Sale, having sold Prix du Jockey-Club (Gr 1, 2100m) contender Ocean Atlantique (American Pharoah) to Coolmore for €1.1 million last May.
Coleman gets the boss
The second-top lot came late in the piece when Matt Coleman, standing outside by the parade ring, outbid Anthony Stroud for the Street Boss (Street Cry) colt, Lot 354, offered by Malcolm Bastard at £620,000. The half-brother to the Listed-winning Crystalle (Palace Malice) is now set to begin his racing career with leading Hong Kong trainer John Size.
“He’s been bought for John Size so he’ll do his pre-training in the UK and then head out to Hong Kong,” said Coleman. “We heard about the horse a while ago and Malcolm has a huge opinion of him. He’s a beautiful horse and he breezed great, I just hope he’s lucky.”
When asked for his reflections on trade, Coleman said: “Very encouraging. It’s been surprisingly good as we were all a bit fearful that it would be tricky but it’s been extremely strong. It’s great for the industry.”
The colt was pinhooked by Wycombe House from the Keeneland September Sale at US$120,000. Bastard said of the six-figure colt: “He was bought in America and I have a share in him.
“He just wanted a bit of time but he’s always been a very nice horse. He’s a beautiful mover and has plenty of pace. He’s always stood out at home.”
He added of the market: “Racing just seems to be so resilient. It’s been an unbelievable trade here.”
Collins in clover
Fresh from topping the Craven Sale with a 575,000gns son of Night Of Thunder (Dubawi), Johnny Collins of Brown Island Stables enjoyed another big result on Wednesday when Jamie McCalmont signed for the Exceed And Excel (Danehill) colt, Lot 240, out of Duquesa (Intikhab) at £525,000 on behalf of Coolmore’s MV Magnier.
When asked if he’d expected such a big return on the €43,000 pinhook, a visibly stunned Collins replied: “Not quite! I bought him last September in Fairyhouse. He’s a beautiful horse, I’ve been lucky enough to put some good horses through my hands but it doesn’t happen every year.
“I thought we had a strong bunch of horses this year and they’re proving that when they gallop. I’ll be honest now, I’ve had a lot of sleepless nights along the way.”
The colt is out of Duquesa, a dual winner by Intikhab (Red Ransom) who in turn is out of the Group 3-winning Love Of Silver (Arctic Tern). McCalmont said he would leave training plans to Magnier, but noted that the long-striding colt had put in a notably fast breeze.
“I have no idea what the plan is for him, but he did a great breeze, he didn’t look like he’d gone fast but he actually did the quickest time,” said the agent. “He has a massive stride on him and he’s a big, scopey horse.”
That man McCalmont again
Having signed for the £525,000 Exceed And Excel colt on behalf of MV Magnier, Jamie McCalmont was back in action later in the session when he went to £450,000 for the American Pharoah (Pioneerof The Nile) colt out of Rare Cat (Tabasco Cat) offered as Lot 318 by Mocklershill.
“He’s been bought for Marc Chan, who’s based in Hong Kong but is Canadian born,” said McCalmont. “This is the first horse he’s going to have in training in England. He’s also just purchased The Summit, who’ll be running in the French Derby on Sunday.
“Willie Browne had always really liked this colt. He’s by American Pharoah, who’s a great stallion, and we’re looking for more of a three-year-old type than a sprinter. Hopefully he’ll be a mile-and-a-quarter horse next year.”
The colt, a half-brother to the three-time Grade 2 winner Om (Munnings), was another pinhook to bring a handsome profit, having been sourced from the Keeneland September Sale at a cost of US$170,000.
When asked who the colt would be going into training with, McCalmont engaged Simon Crisford in a brief confab, before he said with a wry smile: “That’s the trainer!”
Figures
By the close of trade for the Arqana sale, 64 of 77 offered lots had sold for a clearance rate of 83 per cent. Those sales brought turnover of £9,004,700, an average of £140,698 and a median of £76,000.
Goffs UK breathes life back into breeze-up market as £290,000 Kingman colt stars
When the chips are down, the bloodstock industry rarely misses an opportunity to reaffirm its resilience, and that fortitude was on full show during a remarkably robust renewal of the Goffs UK Breeze-Up Sale in Doncaster on Wednesday, where a colt by rising star sire Kingman (Invincible Spirit), Lot 31, headed the market at £290,000.
Although a significantly smaller offering complicates year-on-year comparisons somewhat, key market indicators returned notably positive results in the circumstances, with those statistics reflecting a buoyant mood on the sales ground.
Some 99 lots were offered and 83 found a buyer for a clearance rate of 84 per cent. In turn, those transactions brought turnover of £3,869,900 – a 24 per cent decrease, albeit from 26 per cent fewer lots. The average rose by two per cent to £46,625, while the median was up by 15 per cent to £30,000.
The sales-topping son of Kingman was sold to Jamie Lloyd, who delivered the winning hand from the bidding area opposite the rostrum and provided Jim McCartan of Gaybrook Lodge Stud with a handsome return on the £120,000 he gave for the youngster last year.
“He’s a smashing horse,” said McCartan. “We bought him here at the Premier Sale and he’s been very easy to deal with ever since. The lads at home have done a great job, it hasn’t been simple this year getting horses ready for these sales, it’s been a stop-start year, but they’ve put in a lot of hard work.
“Tim Kent [Goffs UK managing director] asked me to give him a good horse for the sale, so I did! Both Tim and Harvey Bell [of Tattersalls] did a good job getting these sales on, it wasn’t simple but you need an auction. Considering what’s happening in the world it’s great to be able to come here and see people still looking for a racehorse.”
Despite some anxiety over the health of the market, with the economic downturn brought about by the Covid-19 crisis appearing to have had a significant impact on proceedings at the Tattersalls Craven Sale, McCartan said he had always retained faith in the Kingman colt.
“There was a lot of interest in him and he did a very good breeze so I thought he’d make between £200,000 and £300,000,” he said. “He’s a real trainer’s horse, he’s so simple to do anything with.”
The colt had not only put in an impressive breeze but is backed up by a deep page, as he is out of the Listed-placed Royal Applause (Waajib) mare Asaawir, and therefore a sibling to Dick Poole Stakes (Gr 3, 6f) runner-up Marsh Hawk (Invincible Spirit) and Queen Mary Stakes (Gr 2, 5f) third Hairy Rocket (Pivotal). Derby third Carlton House (Street Cry) also appears further back in his pedigree.
“He’s been bought with my partner David Meah for one of our best clients, Calvin Nguyen,” explained Lloyd. “He’ll come back to my farm first and then he’ll go to trainer Richard Baltas in California as soon as he’s ready.
“David’s bought Calvin a lot of good horses in America and we bought him a few nice ones here, including Bodhicitta, who was second in the Gamely Stakes on her first try in a stakes race.
“Kingman is well known in America, he’s already a prolific sire and this colt is a half-brother to two very precocious two-year-olds. He breezed very well, Jim and his team have obviously done a very good job with him.”
Al Shaqab back in action
Al Shaqab Racing’s name appeared on the docket of the second-top lot after Mandore International’s Nicolas de Watrigant got the better of Anthony Stroud, with a bid of £200,000 required to secure the Dandy Man (Mozart) colt, Lot 97, out of Light Glass (Lope De Vega) offered by Mocklershill.
“There is no plan with regards to a trainer yet, but he’s been bought for Al Shaqab,” said De Watrigant. “I’ve been successful buying for them before, their silks have been carried to 19 Group 1 victories by horses I bought, so it’s always nice to be able to buy another one for them. Let’s hope this colt is the next Group 1 winner.”
The agent added: “He has the physical, the temperament and he breezed very well; that’s what it’s all about for me. And, of course, you see down the page and it’s the family of Street Cry.”
The colt is the second foal out of a daughter of Lope De Vega (Shamardal) whose third dam is the increasingly influential Irish Oaks (Gr 1, 1m 4f) heroine Helen Street (Troy), dam of Street Cry (Machiavellian) and the ancestress of recent Group 1 winners such as Territories (Invincible Spirit) and Victor Ludorum (Shamardal).
“He breezed very well,” said Browne. “He’s not your typical Dandy Man, I’d say there’s more of his damsire, Lope De Vega, in there. I really loved him. I was selling him for a client and I’m sure he’ll be pleased with that.”
The colt was making his third sales ring appearance, having been pinhooked by Glenvale Stud at 80,000gns as a foal before being bought back by the same operation at 75,000gns at last year’s yearling sales.
‘We couldn’t have predicted that!’
In this end-of-sale statement, Goffs UK’s managing director Tim Kent said: “We couldn’t have predicted that! It’s been a very long journey to enable us to hold this sale and there have been many twists and turns along the way, but we are absolutely delighted with what has been achieved today.
“To deliver those results is way beyond what we could have imagined, and the timing could not be better with the yearling sales not far away.
“It has been a huge team effort to get to this stage and it has been a real joy working with Arqana to hold this event. The original (Doncaster) and the best (Arqana) have come together to outperform any similar sales in Europe this year, but none of this could have been done without the huge support of the BHA, Doncaster racecourse and Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council.
“All three of these organisations have been extremely proactive during the planning of this sale and a special mention must go to Roderick Duncan and his team at the racecourse who have prepared some of the best ground ever offered. We must also mention the local hotels who have opened especially for our clients, and we could not have held the sale without them.
“However, the real credit for today’s achievements lie with the vendors. They have been extremely supportive during the planning of today’s sale and have kept these horses in top form for an extra two months before today.
“Many have resisted the temptation to sell privately and have instead shown huge faith in what we’re doing, only to be well rewarded as a result. We are nothing without our vendors and this has never been more evident than in the last three months, meaning that we are indebted to them for their loyalty.”
Kent added: “It’s fair to say that this has been worth the wait, and we look forward to today’s graduates racing very soon, where we will be in the strange position of cheering home those sold by Goffs and Arqana – something else that I would not have predicted!