Records Tumble At Book 2 Of Tattersalls October Yearling Sale
Book 2 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale concluded with a new sale record price of 525,000 guineas as well as records for turnover, average and median. The final session saw a total of 217 lots sold for 13,730,500 guineas, at an average of 63,274 guineas and a median of 48,000 guineas. This took the three-day totals to 660 lots sold for 42,555,500 guineas, which was a rise of 17% and a new sale record. The average for the sale rose 36% to a record 64,478 guineas whilst the median rose 35% to a record 50,000 guineas. The clearance rate for the sale was 87% and there were 11 lots that sold for 300,000 guineas or more, compared with just one last year whilst the number of 200,000 guineas lots rose from nine to 27.
The sale-topping colt and which set a new sale record by some margin was the POET’S VOICE colt catalogued as lot 1270 that was knocked down to Shadwell Estates’ Angus Gold for 525,000 guineas. Competition for the colt developed into a fierce head-to-head battle between Gold and the underbidder Saleh Al Homaizi.
"Sheikh Hamdan was very keen on the horse,” commented Gold. "He is just a gorgeous horse, with plenty of scope. Poet's Voice is a beautiful horse himself and has a real chance of making it - he is getting some lovely stock.”
The son of the FOXHOUND mare POPPETS SWEETLOVE comes from the family of the ‘Budapest Bullet’ OVERDOSE and was consigned to the sale by Peter and Kathy Player’s Whatton Manor Stud.
"It is beyond my wildest dreams," said Peter. "I have to give all the plaudits to my son Ed - I just get in the way now!
"The mare has already had one hit in the ring - her Teofilo colt Patentar which made 220,000 guineas. We were just hoping for six figures today."
The previous record at this sale was 420,000 guineas, set back in 2008.
The second highest price for the day was lot 1186, the HOLY ROMAN EMPEROR half-brother to Group 1 placed GRANDEUR. Consigned by Ballylinch Stud on behalf of Tourgar House Stud’s Cherry Faeste, the son of the DESERT SUN mare MISSKINTA was knocked down to Kieran McManus for 390,000 guineas after a head-to-head battle with SackvilleDonald’s Alastair Donald.
"He is a magnificent horse," said John O'Byrne on behalf of McManus. "A real Ascot type. He has all the pedigree, and we waited a long time for him. A trainer has not been decided."
Owner Cherry Faeste said: "We were hoping for 150,000gns to 180,000gns, we are delighted. My husband Arild does all the work - he's my stud groom!" she joked. "Misskinta has a Dubawi filly foal and was not covered this year as the Dubawi was a late foal."
John O'Connor's Ballylinch Stud prepped the horse for his sale date.
"We've worked with Cherry for a number of years now, and they do a fantastic job with just two or three mares.
"This colt has always been a very straightforward horse, he has a great constitution. I think people were very taken with him when they saw how well he has handled all the preliminaries here."
The third of the three lots to breach the 300,000 guineas mark during the final session was lot 1062, the DUTCH ART colt out of the Listed placed PIVOTAL mare KELOWNA. Interest in the chesnut came from all corners of the ring and included agents John Warren, Charlie-Gordon-Watson and Ross Doyle, but it was Hugo Lascelles who landed the prize at 340,000 guineas on behalf of new owners Al Mirqab Racing.
Lascelles commented; “I thought he was an outstanding individual, a great mover, and the two-year-old [Nebulla] looks promising.
“He'll go to John Gosden, and he's for a first-time owner.”
The sale was a great result for consignor Keith Harte, consigning for for Lavington Stud for the first year.
"He is a lovely horse and has improved all through the summer," said Harte. "He walked the same on his last show here as he did on his first. I am very pleased for the stud."
Tim Read of Lavington Stud said: "It's a good cross - Dutch Art with a Pivotal mare. Kelowna has a Lawman foal at foot and is in-foal to Lawman."
It was a poignant sale for Lavington as just at the weekend former Jockey Club member, the 89-year-old Captain John Macdonald-Buchanan, died. He was a former owner of the family stud, which is now owned and run by his son Alastair Macdonald-Buchanan.
The Carmel Stud team of Peter and Michelle Morgan were celebrating following the sale of lot 1052, the KYLLACHY colt out of the MONTJEU mare JUST DEVINE for 280,000 guineas. The colt was knocked down to trainer William Muir who intends to put together a syndicate to race the horse who is a half-brother to his recent maiden winner Code Red.
"That was our limit!" he smiled. "I train Code Red and he won his maiden the other day, and the other half-brother Secret Weapon was very fast horse we sold to go abroad.
"This is lovely horse and I've seen him for some time. And, of course, I know Kyllachy through Stepper Point."
At the conclusion of Book 2 of the 2014 Tattersalls October Yearling Sale, Tattersalls Chairman Edmond Mahony commented;
“The momentum from Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale has well and truly been sustained throughout Book 2. Competition for quality yearlings has been extraordinary from start to finish and record breaking turnover for the fourth consecutive year, despite cataloguing 137 fewer yearlings than last year, is a measure of the intense demand we have seen over the past three days. As well as turnover second only to Book 1 amongst European yearling sales, Book 2 of this year’s October Yearling Sale has achieved wide margin increases in all the key indicators and as ever has paid an enormous tribute to the outstanding quality of the yearlings sent here from throughout Britain, Ireland and further afield. Numerically, Book 2 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale is the largest of its type in Europe and the depth to the demand for yearlings this week illustrates why the sale is the preferred option for so many leading consignors.
“Turnover in excess of 40 million guineas has exceeded expectations by a considerable margin, as have the huge rises in average, median and the number of lots sold for 100,000 guineas or more. Last year’s record average of 47,529 guineas has soared to more than 60,000 guineas, the median has jumped from 37,000 guineas to 50,000 guineas and the number of six figure lots has risen from 62 to more than 100. Similar to Book 1, the influence of buyers from throughout the Gulf region has been enormous and the global demand, particularly from Hong Kong, has been hugely significant, but the backbone to Book 2 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale has always been the British and Irish trainers and they have been out in force, all contributing to a clearance rate of nearly 90%.
“We now move on to Book 3 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale in which all of the yearlings are eligible for the new £150,000 Tattersalls October Auction Stakes and we look forward to ending the first two weeks of the 2014 Tattersalls sales season on a positive note on Friday after a top class day of racing at Newmarket’s 'Future Champions Day’."
Book 3 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale gets underway at 9.30am on Thursday, October 16.