I Am Invincible gelding tops Hong Kong International Sale
An eye-catching half-brother to South Australian Derby (Gr 1, 2500m) winner Volatile Mix (Pentire) drew a clinching bid of HK$7.2 million (A$1.34 million approx) to top the Hong Kong International Sale (July) in the Sha Tin parade ring yesterday, as all 19 lots offered sold for a total of HK$74.3 million (A$13.84 million approx).
Catalogued as Lot 8, the gelding by I Am Invincible (Invincible Spirit), out of the Group 3-placed High Chaparral (Sadler’s Wells) mare Utopia, sold to Sze-to Kin Sun.
Wong Kwong Miu, whose red and black silks have been carried previously by the talented galloper Divine Ten (Holy Roman Emperor), brought the auctioneer’s hammer down at HK$6.5 million (A$1.21 million approx) for Lot 14, a Zoustar (Northern Meteor) gelding out of a half-sister to multiple Group 1-winning New Zealand champion Volkstok’n’barrell (Tavistock).
Two more geldings hit the HK$6 million mark: Lot 6 a brother to the New Zealand Oaks (Gr 1. 2400m) heroine Savvy Coup (Savabeel) and Lot 2 a Per Incanto (Street Cry) three-year-old out of the ARC Railway Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) winner Fleur De Lune (Stravinsky).
William Nader, the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s director of racing business and operations, said: “This was a very good sale, it exceeded our expectations. Overall, we have to be pleased with the results and it might be a good sign for the economy in Hong Kong that things could be rebounding, because the money was with us tonight.
“The horses presented well and I don’t think anyone was surprised by the sale-topper. There was a good mix of pedigrees, I think the buyers had a lot of variety and hopefully there’s some value there for our owners.”
The sale average was HK$3.91 million (A$728,500 approx) while the median came in at HK$4 million (A$745,000 approx).
“Last year we sold 20 lots at the July Sale averaging HK$2.4 million and this year we had 19 lots averaging over HK$3.9 million, so this sale was very healthy and we’re pleased with the results,” Nader added.