Rothfire lights up the track as Kingstar toasts Arson Annie’s acquisition
Half-sister to brilliant Run To The Rose winner headed to Unite And Conquer
The sun had already set at the Gold Coast and the action was winding down after an epic day one of selling when Arson Annie (Nothing To Lose), a modestly performed maiden mare, went through the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale ring in late July.
The supplementary entry, offered by Julian Blaxland’s Blue Sky Bloodstock Premium Consignment, had been plucked from obscurity after the emergence of her half-brother Rothfire (Rothesay) who had emphatically won the J J Atkins Plate (Gr 1, 1400m) to go with his five other two-year-old victories last season in the weeks preceding the breeding stock sale.
The opening session, after months of uncertainty about the prospects of the Magic Millions sale going ahead, Sunlight (Zoustar) sold for $4.2 million, Unforgotten (Fastnet Rock) made $2.75 million and Champagne Cuddles (Not A Single Doubt) fetched an even $2 million.
Arson Annie, who has a Warwick maiden placing to her credit from seven starts, would make just a fraction of those extraordinary figures when she entered the ring as Lot 152, 16 lots from the end of the afternoon session.
She would go on to make $42,500 after going “on the market” at $35,000 with Kingstar Farm’s Matthew Sandblom winning the bidding duel online.
After Rothfire’s demolition of his high-class rivals in Saturday’s Run To The Rose (Gr 2, 1200m), and firming into clear favourite for the Golden Rose (Gr 1, 1400m) and justifying his selection as a leading contender for The Everest (1200m), the purchase of Arson Annie appears to be astute.
Kingstar Farm’s Adam Cook says there was more to Arson Annie’s broodmare credentials than just the fact she was a half-sister to the Robert Heathcote-trained three-year-old sprinter.
“You can probably tell the way we buy mares, we try to look for something that might be a relation to something that is up-and-coming and Rothfire was already a Group 1 winner by that time,” Cook said yesterday.
“This mare, if you have a look at the photos, she looks quite similar to Rothfire in the markings as well. She’s a dark brown, black looking mare with a white stripe down her face and she’s very much in the same mould as him.
“She’s by Nothing To Lose, who was a half-handy stallion up in Queensland. She was a nice mare to buy and especially now that Rothfire’s favourite for the Golden Rose.
“That was the cream of the crop on Saturday for the three-year-old colts heading to the Golden Rose and Everest. Everything’s pointing to her being a very astute buy.”
Arson Annie is expected to be covered by Kingstar’s first season sire Unite And Conquer (Hinchinbrook) by the end of this week.
The dual stakes-winning two-year-old, whose racetrack career was cut short by injury, stands for $6,600 (inc GST).
“Rothfire being a descendant of Fastnet Rock and Unite And Conquer is also a descendant of Fastnet Rock as well being by Hinchinbrook, so you’re going to get a close relation to Rothfire in a sense,” he said.
“But it’s also a very good mating for us standing Unite And Conquer in his first season and taking the resulting yearling filly or colt to a sale to represent the stallion.”
Kingstar Farm principal Matthew Sandblom is sending 15 mares to Unite And Conquer while also supporting his other stallions Bull Point (Fastnet Rock) and Lord Of The Sky (Danerich).
Last month, Kingstar launched an incentive for mare owners supporting Unite And Conquer at stud, with the breeders of his first country, provincial, city and stakes winner receiving cash payments for $20,000, $25,000, $35,000 and $50,000 respectively.
“The procedure that we go through as far as what mares we look at is we essentially look at young mares and mares that haven’t had too many foals or if they’ve had a couple, they’ve produced something handy or have some upside going to deeper stallions with good pedigrees that might be shining through to help our new stallions,” Cook said.
“We can’t be going and spending $400,000 on these mares and supporting these stallions, we’ve got to be meticulous in what we purchase, so when we come across ones that we like such as Arson Annie and then Rothfire comes out and looks like an absolute superstar, it’s just great for us and Unite And Conquer.”
The Hinchinbrook (Fastnet Rock) stallion has 98 mares booked to him so far and Cook expects that figure to increase as the breeding season progresses.
“We should be able to raise the bat with him in the not too distant future with a century of mares,” said Cook who welcomed his offsider Conor Phelan to Kingstar Farm earlier this year.
“He’s well supported from outside breeders because, quite simply, they come and have a look at him and if they don’t book on the spot, they’re ringing up Conor or myself the next day to get a spot.”