Johnson and McKeever make a splash at the Tattersalls July Sale
Western Australian breeder and owner Gary Johnson made his first trip to the Tattersalls July Sale count, purchasing two mares on the first day of the sale, first parting with 80,000gns (approx. AU$162,940) for Cloud Angel (Frankel), while later on in the day buying Good Liza, a winning daughter of Kingman (Invincible Spirit) for 150,000gns (approx. AU$304,950).
Both mares were signed for by Johnny McKeever of McKeever Bloodstock, who purchased one-time winner Baba Ghanouj (Sea The Stars) for Johnson for 150,000gns at the Tattersalls December Mares Sale in 2019.
“It is my first trip to Tattersalls, but Johnny has purchased one for us here before, Baba Ghanouj, who has produced Invincible Spirit filly, Kingman filly and she is in foal to Siyouni. In Deauville last year, Johnny bought us a Siyouni filly who will go to Zarak on southern hemisphere time,” Johnson told ANZ Bloodstock yesterday.
Cloud Angel, who broke her maiden at Catterick on June 10, has been pencilled in to be covered by Siyouni (Pivotal) on southern hemisphere time, while Good Liza was offered in foal to Yulong Stud shuttler Lucky Vega (Lope De Vega) and a plan for her next cover will be made at a later date.
Good Liza will foal down in England, before both she and Cloud Angel will be shipped in foal to Australia next year.
“Cloud Angel could go to Siyouni, who is doing so well in Australia. The other mare is in foal to Lucky Vega and we have to pick a stallion for her next year. She will foal down in Newmarket and then go to a stallion here, before we bring them all to Australia,” Johnson said.
Given both Kingman and Frankel’s excellence in the breeding shed, thirst for stock by the two stallions in Australia is sky high and Johnson was understandably delighted to have been able to secure the mares yesterday.
“To get a Frankel for 80,000gns we were really happy, because what people are paying for his progeny in Australia is obviously brilliant money, so we thought that was brilliant value.
“Kingman is doing great things in Australia and we were delighted with what we were able to get her at.”
Catalogued as Lot 218, Good Liza is out of German Group 3 winner Good Donna (Doyen), making her a half-sister to fellow German Group 3 scorer Grocer Jack (Oasis Dream) and Listed winner Ghislaine (Soldier Hollow).
Cloud Angel was offered as Lot 184 and is one of four winners out of dual US stakes scorer Angel Terrace (Ghostzapper), a half-sister to multiple Group 1-winning stayer Order Of St George (Galileo).
A low-key start to the sale saw Sweet And Lovely leading the way after Mick Donohoe of BBA Ireland went to 350,000gns (approx. AU$711,395) to snare the unraced daughter of Coolmore’s late sire Galileo (Sadler’s Wells).
Catalogued as Lot 121, the mare was offered by WH Bloodstock, in foal to Coolmore Stud shuttler Wootton Bassett (Iffraaj).
“She has a good cover of Wootton Bassett and he looks as though he is fulfilling the promise,” said Donohoe. “She is carrying a colt and, if everything goes right, she might not be a bad investment – a nice yearling colt at the sales by him and we’d be in with a chance of getting the investment back in one go.
“She will go to board at Baroda Stud, Ireland. We will foal her down and make a decision as regards stallions. She could go back to Wootton Bassett – the lads in Coolmore are really banking on the Wootton Bassett cross and John Magnier can certainly make these stallions! We will see what the foal looks like, but I wouldn’t bank against her going back to him.”
Sweet And Lovely is out of dual stakes winner La Traviata (Johannesburg) and is a sister to the two-time Group 1 winner Seventh Heaven, dam of Over The Rainbow (Dubawi), who was bought by Coolmara Stables for 270,000gns (approx.AU$548,820) earlier in the afternoon.
Sweet And Lovely is a half-sister to Crusade (Mr. Greeley), winner of the Middle Park Stakes (Gr 1, 6f), and Group 2-placed Cristoforo Colombo (Henrythenavigator).
Donohoe made his presence felt earlier in the day when he purchased two lots in quick succession, first parting with 250,000gns (approx. AU$508,165) for Divinitus (Galileo), before going to 330,000gns (approx. AU$670,785) for Different Light, another daughter of the late breedshaper. Both mares were offered as part of The Castlebridge Consignment.
Both fillies were trained in France by Andre Fabre with Different Light having been unplaced in both her starts, while Divinitus’s best performance came when she finished second on her most recent start at Chateaubriant on May 30.
Different Light is out of the Grade 3-placed winning mare Walklikeanegyptian (Danehill), making her a sister to US Grade 1 winner Deauville, Group 3 scorer The Corsican and the stakes-placed Tides Of War.
Walklikeanegyptian is a half-sister to Grade 2 winner and Grade 1 runner-up Callwood Dancer (Danehill Dancer), as well as Group 2 winner Contredanse (Danehill Dancer).
“She is a good looking filly and it is a family I know well as I bought out of the family before and bought a sister for a good client in Cork,” explained Donohoe. “The family gets good looking horses and she is typical.”
Plans for the mare have not been set in stone, Donohoe said she could be covered by Shadwell Stud’s champion sire Baaeed (Sea The Stars), who covered his first book of mares earlier this year, while the agent also said the Aga Khan Stud-based Siyouni would also be among the options for the mare.
“The client for this filly has mares in the southern and northern hemispheres, and we will pick a European stallion for her, possibly Baaeed or Siyouni. The Siyouni-Galileo cross has worked pretty well, and we also think that this mare and Baaeed could match well physically. I know it is a bit of an in-cross Baaeed, Galileo and Urban Sea, but Shadwell has been sending some Galileo mares to him.
“The probable choice will be Siyouni – he has achieved so much in particular this year – and then Baaeed. She is tall, there is plenty of size and scope to her, and she has good action. She will suit either stallion.
“For the time being she will stay in Newmarket with Castlebridge, they look after the client’s mares here.”
Meanwhile, Divinitus was sold with a covering to the new young stallion Blackbeard (No Nay Never), the first mare offered in foal to the dual elite-level winning juvenile.
“She is for an existing client,” he said. “There are not many young Galileo mares any more. She is a good physical and she has an attractive early covering. There is plenty going on in the pedigree – the two-year-old was nice and he made £150,000 at this spring’s breeze up. No plans have been made for her yet.”
Divinitus is a first foal out of Realtra (Dark Angel), who won eight times, including three times at Group 3 level.
Over The Rainbow, who was offered by The Castlebridge Consignment, was trained throughout her career by Aidan O’Brien, running twice and finishing twice on both occasions.
The mare was sold in-foal to St Mark’s Basilica (Siyouni), who shuttles to Coolmore’s Australia base. She is out of Seventh Heaven (Galileo), who won the Yorkshire Oaks (Gr 1, 1m 4f) and Irish Oaks (Gr 1, 1m 4f) in 2016.
It is a first foray into the flat division by Coolmara Stables.
“This is a new division for us, we have been talking about getting a flat broodmare band together for some time. We decided we’d make a dart this week. She was not easily bought and went for a bit more than we thought, but we are delighted to have her,” said Paul McGrath, the farm manager, who was bidding at Tattersalls yesterday.