Godolphin Draft the Highlight on Opening Day of Tattersalls July Sale

The Godolphin draft was the highlight on the opening day of the Tattersalls July Sale with three of the session’s highest priced offerings including the top lot WHISPERING WORDS who realised 280,000 guineas. Ten lots realised 100,000 guineas or more to a markedly international buying bench which included purchasers from Australia, Germany, Indonesia, Kuwait, Japan and New Zealand as well as Great Britain and Ireland. 

Shanahan Secures Whispering Words for 280,000 Guineas 

The top lot on the opening day of the Tattersalls July Sale was the Godolphin consigned WHISPERING WORDS. The daughter of DUBAWI was bought by Charles Shanahan, signing under the BBA Ireland banner, for 280,000 guineas on behalf of Timmy Hyde Snr and his father Paul Shanahan. Several frustrated purchasers attempted to secure the four-year-old with eventual underbidder Bill Gredley the most persistent challenger. 

Charles Shanahan commented: "She has a great pedigree and is by Dubawi, which is very important as he is doing great things as a broodmare sire. It is very exciting, and being in foal to Kingman - he is having such a good year and I think she is good value at that." 

A winner as a three-year-old, WHISPERING WORDS is out of the NEW APPROACH mare HADITH, winner of the Listed Montrose Stakes. She is a granddaughter of the Group 3 Sweet Solera Stakes winner DISCOURSE from a prolific blacktype family and was offered in foal to KINGMAN.

Newsells Park Stud Strike for Art of Magic at 270,000 Guineas

WHISPERING WORDS was followed into the ring by Godolphin’s ART OF MAGIC and the Listed placed four-year-old proved the second highest priced lot of the opening day when knocked down to Newsells Park Stud’s Julian Dollar for 270,000 guineas. The underbidder was Forenaghts Stud’s Caoimhe Doherty, who had been among the bidders to attempt to secure WHISPERING WORDS but again was frustrated.

The daughter of INVINCIBLE SPIRIT is a three-time winner and dual Listed runner up, and was offered in foal to brilliant young sire BLUE POINT. Her dam HAND PUPPET is a granddaughter of the Irish Oaks winner and brilliant broodmare HELEN STREET, ancestress of Group 1 winning sires VICTOR LUDORUM, SHAMARDAL, STREET CRY and TERRITORIES. Dollar revealed that ART OF MAGIC had been purchased for Newsells Park Stud’s breeding syndicate and commented:

"We just think she is a lovely mare, and the nicest mare we saw as an individual. She has a very commercial mating to Blue Point, which is attractive as he looks very exciting and has gone on with his three-year-olds, so that definitely appealed. We factored in what we hope the Blue Point will be if the foal is half decent, so we think it is quite reasonable and we are very happy.

"Graham asked me what her value was and I said probably around 250,000 guineas. But I thought that as she was going to be in the sweet spot for people, as she is such an attractive mare, she might make more but then she would not be value for us. So I felt that if we could get her for 250,000 guineas plus a bid – at that there is room to play. She is an outstanding individual and Darley is great to buy from."

Newsells Park Stud Bloodstock has three mares and two fillies in training, including 200,000 guineas Tattersalls October Book 1 purchase YOU GOT TO ME, who is part-owned with Valmont and won the Listed Lingfield Oaks Trial and finished fourth in the Epsom Oaks and Group 2 Ribblesdale Stakes at Royal Ascot.

Hope Diamond to Fährhof for 250,000 Guineas

HOPE DIAMOND was one of the standout lots in the Tattersalls July Sale on pedigree and the regally bred mare did not disappoint when selling for 250,000 guineas to Gestüt Fährhof. The daughter of GALILEO was consigned by Baroda Stud and offered with a filly foal by NO NAY NEVER, at foot and back in foal to the multiple Group 1 producing sire.

A daughter of the excellent broodmare DANEDROP, HOPE DIAMOND is a half-sister to European Champion Three-Year-Old DANEDREAM, a five-time Group 1 winner including the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes. HOPE DIAMOND herself is bred on the famous GALILEO/DANEHILL cross and her siblings include the Group winners VENICE BEACH and BROADWAY, the Group 1 placed ILLINOIS and DEBUTANTE, dam of the recent Group 1 Prix de Diane fifth DARE TO DREAM.

Menuetto Bound for Japan at 150,000 Guineas

Japan was another country represented within the international buyers at the head of the Tattersalls July Sale market with Godolphin’s MENUETTO, a dual winning daughter of DUBAWI, bought online by JS Company for 150,000 guineas.

MENUETTO is the dam of one winner from one runner with her first foal MAGNUM OPUS a winner at two and scoring impressively by three lengths at Pontefract last week to earn an official rating of 91. Her subsequent foals are colts by MASTERCRAFTSMAN and PALACE PIER, and she was offered in foal to Darley’s stalwart Group 1 producing sire TEOFILO.

Her dam is the Listed winner MEASURED TEMPO, a SADLER’S WELLS daughter of ALLEZ LES TROIS, the dam of Group 1 Prix du Jockey Club winner ANABAA BLUE and the ancestress of Group 1 Irish Derby winners LOS ANGELES and SANTIAGO and Group 1 winners ESHAADA, FACTEUR CHEVAL and TAMAYUZ. ALLEZ LES TROIS is a daughter of exceptional broodmare ALLEGRETTA and a half-sister to the breed-shaping blue hen URBAN SEA.

The Godolphin draft is a perennial highlight of the Tattersalls July Sale and concluded their opening day draft with 21 lots sold for an aggregate of 1,139,000 guineas at an average of 54,238 guineas.

Australian Connections Strike for Topanga at 135,000 Guineas

Buyers from the Southern hemisphere have played an increasingly influential role at the Tattersalls July Sale and were again active at the head of the market on the opening day of Europe’s premier midsummer sale. McKeever Bloodstock’s Johnny McKeever struck at 135,000 guineas for TOPANGA for Australian owner and breeder Gary Johnson. An impressive winner of her most recent start at Haydock for Andrew Balding earning an official rating of 86, the three-year-old daughter of SIYOUNI was consigned by Balding’s Kingsclere Training Stables.

McKeever said: "Gary has seven broodmares in Europe because he likes our staying bloodlines. The mares are kept at New England Stud and Gary is here on his annual July visit.

"We are gradually buying mares who we cover on Southern hemisphere time – they stay in England for a year or so, and then join Toby Liston of Three Bridges. She will be covered by Too Darn Hot, although we might keep her in training for a few months just to see if there is a chance of grabbing a bit of blacktype somewhere. We'd probably keep her with Andrew [Balding] and in the routine she is used to. She has an amazing back family and is a beautiful filly, that was important - a good physique was paramount."

TOPANGA is out of TIME TUNNEL, a daughter of INVINCIBLE SPIRIT and the Group 1 Falmouth Stakes winner TIMEPIECE from the leading Juddmonte family of TWICE OVER, PASSAGE OF TIME and TIME TEST.

Davideo Bound for New Zealand at 130,000 Guineas

Another Tattersalls July Sale lot headed ‘down under’ is the highly rated four-year-old DAVIDEO who was purchased by Shaune Ritchie Racing and De Burgh Equine for 130,000 guineas. Consigned by Imperium Sales, the son of GALILEO is a half-brother to Group 1 winners TIME WARP and GLORIOUS FOREVER and boasts equally impressive form credentials. The three-time winner scored on his only start this year earning an official rating of 98. 

The New Zealand-based trainer has enjoyed significant success purchasing at Tattersalls previously, with 75,000 guineas Tattersalls Autumn Horses in Training Sale buy MAHRAJAAN now a dual Group 2 winner and headed for the Melbourne Cup later this year. Ritchie is hoping to repeat the feat with DAVIDEO and revealed: 

"He was my number one pick here. He has a big frame to fill out and he looks as though he goes on all types of going, and he has a pedigree to back it up. We will get him home and try to take him down the same route as we did with Mahrajaan – if he can successfully do that then we will take him to Australia as well, it is easy from over the 'ditch' to get there."

 On immediate plans, he added: "He will be on the next flight ‘down under’ – we have quarter acre paddocks at home and every horse gets into a paddock through the day, and a horse with a big frame like that will really suit that style of training."

 "Mahrajaan has a strong chance of being the New Zealand Stayer of the Year, and it is really on the back of his success that we have been encouraged to come back again." 

Regarding ownership plans, he outlined: "Last year I bought Mahrajaan with 50 percent sold and I have done the same again. You can buy a nice yearling at home in Australia or New Zealand and they are hard to move, whereas you buy a horse here and start mentioning the Cup races and everyone wants to get involved."

The Tattersalls July Sale continues at 9.30am on Wednesday, 10th July.