Record-Breaking Day at Goffs UK

The Grech & Parkin dispersal added more than a sprinkle of stardust to the final day of the Goff UK Spring HIT/P2P Sale accounting for seven of the top 10 lots and a new record price for a National Hunt horse in training of £620,000. That sum, which was also the highest ever for a horse at Doncaster, was paid for the 5-year-old winning point-to-pointer Interconnected (Fr) (Network (Ger}) (lot 716), who will race for Darren Yates from the stable of Philip Kirby.

“It's a historic day for the sales at Doncaster,” said Goffs Group Chief Executive Henry Beeby. “The company has been going since 1962 and I've been working here since 1978 as a bid-spotter. I've seen some big days, some wonderful days, but that was just extraordinary.”

Darren Yates was in the news earlier this spring at the Goffs Aintree Sale when buying Grade 1-winning chaser Don Poli (Ire) (Poliglote {GB}) for £170,000 on the eve of the Grand National, but this was a big leap in commitment to the jump racing ranks in a week in which treble Grand National-winning owner Michael O'Leary of Gigginstown House Stud announced his intention to wind down his operation over the coming years, and, indeed, when another major partnership, Grech & Parkin, is bowing out for the time being.

Yates said, “I'm very happy with the horse. I didn't expect him to make that, but he's the one we really wanted. For me he's got Gold Cup written all over him.”

From the same dispersal, David Minton of Highflyer Bloodstock went to £235,000 to secure the top-priced mare of the sale, lot 709, Lust For Glory (Ire) (Getaway {Ger}). The 6-year-old has won two bumpers and two hurdle races for Nicky Henderson.

Henry de Bromhead's string of young National Hunt mares includes the exciting Honeysuckle (GB) (Sulamani {Ire}) and Sinoria (Ire) (Oscar {Ire}) and the Irish trainer will also take charge of recent listed mares' chase winner Kupatana (Ire) (Westerner {GB}) after Peter Molony of Rathmore Stud bought lot 708 for £210,000.

At the conclusion of the two-day horses-in-training sale, which followed a day of stores, the team at Goffs UK was delighted with a strong set of results.

Goffs UK Managing Director Tony Williams said, “Today has been an historic day for Goffs UK and it's wonderful we have been able to achieve our highest price in the company's history, and the highest-ever price for a National Hunt horse at public auction.

“Yesterday's point-to-point session was a great success and continued what has been a fantastic year for Goffs NH sales. We are in debt to our vendors, and in particular Mike Grech and Stuart Parkin, who have supported us with some outstanding horses which has led to the sale grounds being among the busiest they have ever been for the last three days.

“We would like to wish our buyers all the very best with their stores, pointers and horses-in-training. We have a lot to look forward to as these horses hit the track and, of course, the Doncaster August Sale which will offer the remaining 10 horses in the Grech & Parkin Dispersal.”

At the fall of hammer for the two-day sale, 85% of the horses in training offered sold for an average of £22,700 (+13%) and median of £10,000 (-17%). The aggregate was boosted by 45% to £9,143,400.