Tattersalls and Newmarket Racecourses To Stage New £100,000 Tattersalls Somerville Auction Stakes in 2022

Tattersalls and Newmarket Racecourses are to stage a new £100,000 two-year-old race for graduates of the Tattersalls Somerville Yearling Sale. The £100,000 Tattersalls Somerville Auction Stakes will be run over six furlongs at Newmarket’s July Course in August, 2022 with a maximum field of 20 runners and prize money down to tenth place.

The inaugural Tattersalls Somerville Yearling Sale will be held on 7th September at the Tattersalls Park Paddocks site in Newmarket. Following the remarkable success of the relocated 2020 Tattersalls Ascot Yearling Sale which posted a record average, median, top lot and turnover with 17 lots selling for 30,000 guineas or more, the sale is now a permanent fixture in Newmarket and has been renamed in recognition of Somerville Tattersall; a pivotal figure in shaping the modern Tattersalls.  

The emphasis on showcasing a select offering of forward, athletic yearlings has rewarded purchasers with notable success on the racecourse this year, with 17 individual two-year-old winners to date led by the electric Listed Windsor Castle Stakes winner CHIPOTLE at Royal Ascot last week. Graduates of the Tattersalls Somerville Yearling Sale will now be eligible for both the new £100,000 Tattersalls Somerville Auction Stakes and the immensely popular £150,000 Tattersalls October Auction Stakes held five weeks later.  

Commenting on the new £100,000 contest, Tattersalls Chairman Edmond Mahony said:  

“Our commitment to rewarding owners in as many innovative ways as we can has resulted in over £6,100,000 in bonus prize money being paid out by Tattersalls in the last five years. The £100,000 Tattersalls Somerville Auction Stakes will provide an opportunity for graduates of the Tattersalls Somerville Yearling sale to run for substantial prize money, and further enhance the appeal of the sale which has quickly established a reputation as a consistent source of top-class juvenile talent.”  

Michael Prosser, Regional Head of Racing for The Jockey Club’s East Region, said:  

“We are delighted to be hosting the £100,000 Tattersalls Somerville Auction Stakes on the July Course next year in addition to the ever popular £150,000 Tattersalls October Auction Stakes run on the Rowley Mile. The track has long been regarded as providing one of the best educational and introductory experiences for juveniles and I’m sure we will see a competitive field of high-quality two-year-olds lining up to take their chance in 2022 for what is an excellent prize fund.”  

Trainer Eve Johnson Houghton also added her support saying:  

“Having bought Chipotle for only 10,000 guineas at last year’s sale, the Tattersalls Somerville Yearling Sale is already in the diary and finding the winner of the new £100,000 Tattersalls Somerville Stakes will be the aim - as well as another Royal Ascot winner of course.”

Entries are currently open for the Tattersalls Somerville Yearling Sale and will close on 2nd July.