By Emma Berry
Newmarket's 2017 season bursts into action on Tuesday but, prior to the Craven meeting getting underway, the Rowley Mile played host to 129 juveniles who will go under the hammer at Tattersalls in two post-racing sessions, starting from 6 p.m. local time today.
The Craven Sale is the third breeze-up auction to take place in Britain over the last fortnight, but it maintains its position as the country's most prestigious sale of its kind, with recent poster boys including Mehmas (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}), who, less than a month after selling to Peter and Ross Doyle on behalf of Al Shaqab Racing for 170,000gns last year, won on debut at Chester's May meeting. From that promising beginning, he added victories in the G2 Arqana July S. and G2 Qatar Richmond S. and is now ensconced at Tally-Ho Stud.
The sale may have lost its sole Deep Impact (Jpn) juvenile among the 23 withdrawals, but the one Frankel (GB) 2-year-old to be offered in Britain this year remains, the son of Cape Blanco (GB)'s half-sister Laurelei (Ire) (Oratorio {Ire}) being a member of the Bansha House Stables draft (lot 17). Con Marnane's consignment also contains the only Uncle Mo youngster in the catalogue (lot 22), the first foal of stakes winner Lovely Syn (Freud).
The continuing attraction of the American sales to British and Irish pinhookers was underlined last week at Goffs when a couple of Keeneland-bought yearlings made hefty profits for their consignors. Darley's Animal Kingdom, who has already been represented by two winners from his first Australian crop, has just one representative at Tattersalls, lot 58, a son of GI Personal Ensign S. winner Shadow Cast (Smart Strike) bought by Roger O'Callaghan for $50,000 at Keeneland last September.
Four years ago, a colt by Elusive Quality out of the winning Miesque's Son mare Gender Dance, who later became the Group 3 winner Great White Eagle, topped the sale at 760,000gns for Eddie O'Leary's Lynn Lodge Stud. This time around O'Leary's fellow Irish vendor, Jim McCartan of Gaybrook Lodge Stud, offers his half-brother (lot 141), who is one of four juveniles in the sale by the late Scat Daddy and failed to reach his reserve of $65,000 at Keeneland last year.
A new name on the list of consignors this season is Fforest Farm, the picturesque Pembrokeshire base of National Hunt trainer Rebecca Curtis, who, with partner Gearoid Costelloe, is making a first foray into the world of flat sales this season.
“We're keen to get involved more on the trading side,” said Curtis, who consigns a Kodiac (GB) filly (lot 30) and colts by first-season sire Declaration Of War (lots 73 and 135). “I really enjoy working with the young horses, particularly the breeze-up horses.”
The trainer of around 50 jumpers, Curtis's first juvenile through the ring last week at the Goffs UK Breeze-up Sale, a colt by Zoffany (Ire), sold to the Hong Kong Jockey Club for £100,000.
She added, “One of our owners invested in seven yearlings last year and we may get involved more heavily next year–we'll see how it goes.”
The profile of the Craven Sale has been improving steadily in recent years, with last year's average of 110,788gns and median of 77,500gns both being record figures. Following a bumper start to the breeze-up sales at Ascot and Doncaster so far this month, hopes will be high for similarly impressive results this year in Newmarket.
For videos of the breezes and the full catalogue, go to www.tattersalls.com.
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