‘Vendors are realistic and that provides an opportunity for the market to bid with confidence’
A National finish for east coast yearling sale series
For many vendors, this week’s Magic Millions National Yearling Sale is a last-chance-saloon to sell their 2022-born stock, many which would have been sold earlier in the year had it not been for a stroke of misfortune.
There are 399 yearlings catalogued across two books for the Gold Coast auction, the east coast’s last yearling sale of 2024, and that means vendors will be keen to meet the market and provide buyers with the opportunity to purchase select sale quality horses at possible discount prices.
Magic Millions managing director Barry Bowditch says the catalogue stacks up well “on paper”.
“And I think physically for those who do the work and get through the drafts, they’re going to find plenty of nice horses that are here because they needed time or they had setbacks through the preps earlier in the year,” Bowditch said on Monday.
“It’s the last time to be able to buy a yearling that is eligible for the Magic Millions race series, which is getting bigger and stronger every year, and we believe our vendors are realistic and that provides an opportunity for the market to bid with confidence.”
Respected agent John Foote, who acts for Hong Kong-based Price Bloodstock among other clients, was the leading buyer at last year’s sale in terms of numbers with seven (outside bargain shoppers Peter and Peta Gray who bought nine yearlings for $2,000 each) and he has again been at the complex.
New Zealand agent Phill Cataldo also bought five yearlings at last year’s National sale as did Queensland owner Michael Sherrin. Cataldo, who had a hand in purchasing Saturday’s Queensland Derby (Gr 1, 2400m) winner Warmonger (War Decree) off an Ashburton barrier trial win in April 2023, has also returned to the Gold Coast as has Regal Farm’s Shane Crawford.
Golden River Investments’ Denys Chan bought one yearling last year – the $750,000 top-priced The Autumn Sun (Redoute’s Choice) half-sister to Hong Kong champion Werther (Tavistock) and Australasian Oaks (Gr 1, 2000m) winner Toffee Tongue (Tavistock) – while Tony Fung Investments bought three yearlings for a combined $627,500.
This year’s National catalogue offers similar opportunities with the Zoustar (Northern Meteor) half-brother to this season’s Te Akau-owned Manawatu Sires’ Produce Stakes (Gr 1, 1400m) winning colt Move To Strike (I Am Invincible) and a Reliable Man (Dalakhani) half-brother to recent Singapore Guineas (Listed, 1600m) winner Ace Of Diamonds (Swiss Ace). Both are being consigned by Gerry Harvey’s Baramul and Westbury Stud drafts.
Arrowfield Stud is consigning The Autumn Sun half-brother to last month’s Woodlands Stakes (Listed, 1100m) winner Lazzura (Snitzel), a B2B Thoroughbreds-owned unbeaten Chris Waller-trained two-year-old filly who is being aimed at major stakes races in the spring.
Widden has a first crop Farnan (Not A Single Doubt) daughter of talented stakes-placed Perth mare Specialism (Safeguard) while Hunter Valley-based Lincoln Farm will offer a first crop Cool Aza Beel (Savabeel) filly first foal out of Group 2-winning New Zealand mare Pinmedown (Pins).
Yulong, which has a draft of eight yearlings, has an intriguing filly set to go under the hammer, being a Too Darn Hot (Dubawi) daughter of the unraced Zerenda (Exceed And Excel), herself a half-sister to Australian three-time stakes winner Zeyrek (Sea The Stars).
The filly, whose Darley shuttler is assured of claiming the Australian first season sires’ title this season, is also a great granddaughter of champion European filly and Prix de Arc de Triomphe (Gr 1, 2400m) winner Zarkava (Zamindar), the 2008 Horse of the Year.
Riverstone Lodge’s Nick Taylor has 29 yearlings on offer at the Gold Coast, the large draft put together through support from studs such as North, Aristia Park, Kia Ora and Milburn Creek, which is a vote of confidence in the start-up Blandford-based operation.
The Riverstone draft includes a Zoustar (Northern Meteor) colt out of Ladybeetle (Fastnet Rock), who had to be withdrawn from the Inglis Easter sale due to a minor setback and a Zoustar filly out of the stakes-winning Hell Or Highwater (Not A Single Doubt) who was passed in at the Easter sale.
“A lot of them are genuine Magic Millions and Easter quality horses, it’s just due to setbacks is why they’re here. Most of them are low to moderate [x-ray risks] and they’re genuinely nice and correct horses,” Taylor said.
“You hope you are going to be busy [for inspections] but Sunday and Monday have been really good. We’ve been busier than we thought we’d be. I got a large crew together to make sure we could handle it and lucky I did because the traffic’s been really good.”
Syndicator Pulse Racing and Pinhook Bloodstock’s Dave Mee combined to purchase two yearlings out of last year’s National sale and Kiwi Mee is again on the hunt for value.
Mee also purchased subsequent dual Group 3 winner Flying Mascot (Tavistock) on behalf of Flying Start Syndications for $25,000 out of the 2019 National sale, the same price and sale he selected the stakes-placed Deep Sceiva (Deep Field) from.
Flying Mascot was bought by Arrowfield for $600,000 last August while three-year-old last-start Tom Dabernig-trained winners Born To Shine (Grunt) and Dreamzel (Deep Field) cost a combined $50,000 from the 2022 National sale on account of Mee.
Pulse Racing and Pinhook Bloodstock narrowly missed the ultimate glory in the Magic Millions National 2YO Classic (1050m) when January Gold Coast graduate King Of Roseau (Capitalist) finished runner-up to Arabian Summer (Too Darn Hot) in the $1 million feature at Doomben last Saturday week.
Mee says there are a multitude of reasons why horses end up at the National Yearling Sale and why they often represent terrific value for buyers.
“Horses get injured, people set their reserves incorrectly [at earlier sales], there’s x-ray fix-ups and there’s horses that are specifically targeted at this sale because of their maturity, so there’s a range of reasons [why they are at the National sale],” Mee said.
“It’s the last-chance-saloon for a lot of people who own a yearling in some regards because there’s service fees to pay, there’s no other sales left apart from the ready to run sales and that’s fraught with extra risk.
“We say it every year, it’s just a sale that offers tremendous value if you do your homework.
“I’ve got orders to fill, so we’ll see how we go.”
As the yearling sales season has progressed supply has outstripped demand from buyers, particularly in the middle to lower-end of the market, and that may well be the case again on the Gold Coast this week.
“We’re at that time of the year where we’re $500 million into a yearling sale series between all the sales companies, probably more,” Bowditch said.
“It’s a huge part of our industry, getting our trainers to as many sales as possible, but at some stage some of them have to slow down to ensure they can sell what they’ve got on their books already.”
Mee added: “I’ve contacted a few trainers trying to spruik this sale as the best value sale bar none, but [a lot of the trainers] haven’t sold down all their yearlings yet, so … it’s an interesting dynamic from a buyer and a vendor point of view.”
Both National Yearling Sale selling sessions will start at 10am.