Musk Creek flowing with optimism for Magic Millions Virtual Sale
Four mares set to go under the hammer for Victorian farm at inaugural offering
Musk Creek Farm is hopeful of strong returns as it offers four choice broodmares at Tuesday’s Magic Millions Virtual Sale, the first edition of an auction the Victorian farm is keen to support.
A total of 46 lots will go under the hammer online from 2pm, including 32 mares headlined by Oakleigh Plate (Gr 1, 1100m) winner Marabi (I Am Invincible) and Group 2 victor Steel City (Merchant Navy).
Musk Creek is the equal top vendor by numbers, with four quality broodmares including half-sisters out of quadruple Group 1 winner Divine Madonna (Hurricane Sky) in Deipara (Lonhro) and Notre Dame (Exceed And Excel).
And stud manager Scott Williamson said the Mornington Peninsula farm was delighted to patronise the innovative new sale.
“We’re always happy to see sales companies trying new things, so we wanted to support Magic Millions doing something like this,” Williamson told ANZ.
“Magics are putting a lot of effort into it and it appears to be a good concept, which is part of the reason we’ve put four mares into the sale.
“I like the fact it’s not a large catalogue, so it won’t take a huge amount of research for people to find out what horses they might be on. They’ve got colts and geldings, fillies and mares – a little something for everyone. Plus they’ve got some high-end mares, some mid-range and some others, to suit all markets.
“Considering the market at the moment, I think it’ll be pretty selective, but there’s something for everyone and people will be able to hone in on particular horses in various budget ranges.”
Musk Creek offers two mares in-foal including Lot 23, Only Words (Sweynesse), winner of the 2021 ANZ Bloodstock News The Roses (Gr 2, 2000m) and at Listed level in New Zealand.
The seven-year-old, whose first foal is a yearling by Maurice (Screen Hero), is in-foal to Swettenham Stud’s Toronado (High Chaparral), who’s followed on from a strong 2023-24 in which he ranked 13th on the general sires’ table by shooting to fourth so far in this year’s edition – and first by winners, with 23.
“Toronado is doing great things as a sire, so there’s plenty of appeal there, so we thought we’d test the market and see how it responds to a Group 2 winner in-foal to him,” Williamson said.
“Her first foal by Maurice is a really athletic, nice-walking first foal, and she’s an exciting young mare, so we’re hoping she’ll do well, especially being in-foal to such a successful stallion as Toronado. I think Toronado will make an excellent broodmare sire as well, being by High Chaparral.
“He seems to be getting better and better each year so there’s plenty of appeal in the mating. Plus Toronado tends to put a lot of substance into his stock, and she’s a more refined mare, but is very correct and moves well.
“She’s a lovely young mare with a lot ahead of her, and she’d be an exciting prospect for anyone’s broodmare band.
“We’ll have some sort of reserve on her, like with all of ours. If the money’s right, then good, but if not, we’d be happy to keep her and foal her down and take the Toronado to sale.”
Musk Creek’s other in-foal offering is Lot 17, American mare Apologynotaccepted (Fusaichi Pegasus), who’s carrying to Darley shuttler Pinatubo (Shamardal).
The 13-year-old mare Apologynotaccepted won four races in the US from 1200 metres to 1700 metres and was stakes placed on three occasions at Grade 2 and Grade 3 level.
Her progeny have already shone at yearling sales. Goodes (Written Tycoon) – now a winner of one from four starts for Trent Edmonds – was bought by the Rosemont Victorian Alliance for $500,000 at the Gold Coast in 2022, while Plea (Snitzel) fetched $550,000 there a year later, bought by Kia Ora, TFI and Lloyd Kennewell.
Back in the US, Apologynotaccepted’s half-sister Curlin’s Approval (Curlin) is a Grade 2 winner, while her full sister Curlin’s Mistress is the dam of the exciting Headline Numbers (Gun Runner), a winner of two from two including by 11.75 lengths on debut at Belmont last month.
“Apologynotaccepted is a mare who had a lot of ability on the track herself, has had some great sales results, and she’s being offered in foal to Pinatubo, which might be something that piques people’s interest,” Williamson said of Darley’s shuttler, the winner of three Group 1s including Newmarket’s Dewhurst Stakes (Gr 1, 7f).
“The first yearlings by Pinatubo will be offered at sales next year. By all reports everyone liked his weanlings at the sales, and I know I was impressed by them. He could be the next Too Darn Hot off the ranks as far as success on the track goes, as a young Darley stallion down here.
“So we thought we’d see what the market thinks of a nice fast mare in foal to a stallion like him. She’s a nice sized mare with good strength who tends to put size into her stock, so we thought that on type, Pinatubo would be a really good mating for her, since he’s nice and athletic but perhaps lacks a bit of size.”
Musk Creek also offers its two empty half-sisters out of Divine Madonna in Lot 18, Deipara, and Lot 22, Notre Dame, both bred by Darley and half-sisters to the Listed-winning Maternal (Street Cry).
Bought for $600,000 at the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale of 2018, Deipara – twice city-placed from three starts – is the dam of two runners including Chris Waller’s dual metro winner Demiana (I Am Invincible).
“We paid a bit of money for her and rightly so,” Williamson said of the 11-year-old. “Everyone knows how good a broodmare sire Lonhro is, and she’s from a great family, being a daughter of Divine Madonna.
“She’s a nice sized mare, a typically beautiful, dark coloured Lonhro mare, who’s very correct and athletic. Unfortunately she’s not in-foal, but she’ll be a great option for someone who’s looking to breed early this season.”
Unraced nine-year-old Notre Dame has left only one runner so far in four-year-old Le Parrain (Street Boss), a two-time provincial winner from eight starts for Ciaron Maher who was a close-up fifth in the 2023 Brian Crowley Stakes (Listed, 1200m) before being sold last month to Hong Kong.
“She’s a really nice Exceed And Excel mare,” Williamson said. “Her first foal, Le Parrain, is a really nice horse who Ciaron thought good enough to run at stakes level, before he was sold to Hong Kong.
“Unfortunately she had to have a caesarean [in 2021] and lost her Written Tycoon foal, then she wasn’t served that year, but now she’s got a really nice Maurice filly who’ll be offered at the sales.
“She’s a neater, shorter-coupled and sharper looking type than Maurice normally throws, and the mare’s a lovely type who’ll suit a lot of stallions.”
Williamson applauded the decision to hold the mare-centric sale, on the cusp of spring, online.
“Obviously you don’t have to transport mares halfway around the country,” he said. “At this time of year, you wouldn’t want to be transporting your in-foal mares anywhere. They’d be close to foaling so you don’t want to jeopardise the pregnancy they’re carrying, and then if you didn’t sell them you’d have the long trip home again for the horse.
“Mares tend to be the horses who struggle with sales the most. They tend to stress more than other horses, and the last thing you need is for mares to be stressed when they’re pregnant, which can lead to various issues.
“On the whole, mares tend to be a bit more volatile, and when they haven’t been in work for so long, they’re not used to being confined to boxes for long periods of time. You take them back to a sale and they’ll be pacing and box walking, stressing and sweating, and it’s just not the best situation for mares in general.
“With this sale, it’s a lot nicer. The mares aren’t aware of anything going on, bar having their photos and videos done. They’re nice and relaxed and in a paddock with their friends, yet people can still access all the information on them.”