Tattersalls' Book 1 to Start on a High

The unexpectedly good weather enjoyed last week at Goffs and over the weekend in Newmarket finally gave way to grey skies and light rain on Monday, but it will not dampen the feel good spirit around Park Paddocks, which this week is the temporary home for a mouthwatering selection of some of the best-bred yearlings in Europe.

Agents have been on the prowl since as early as Friday in a bid to find the next superstar and there have been plenty of stellar October Sale graduates this season alone to encourage more and more buyers from around the world to bring their shopping lists to Newmarket.

As the retouched paint was drying on the bidders' rails on Monday morning, four new photographs went up around the ring of Legatissimo (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}), Postponed (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), Shalaa (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) and Jack Hobbs (GB) (Halling {GB}). The four Group 1 winners have all graced the Tattersalls ring as yearlings, the first three being sold during Book 1, while Jack Hobbs proved to be the star of Willie Carson's Minster Stud draft of 2013.

The pace can often be a little slow to pick up on the first morning of a sale, but there should be plenty of interest way before lunchtime Wednesday with one of the early highlights likely to be Newsells Park Stud's Redoute's Choice (Aus) half-sister to Legatissimo taking her turn in the ring as lot 24. As attractive and well-mannered as her pedigree is desirable, she's already turned plenty of her heads since her arrival at Tattersalls and she sells directly after the first of 18 Frankel yearlings catalogued for Book 1. Lot 23, a colt offered by Glenvale Stud, emanates from the black-type-laden family which this year has been highlighted by G1 Pretty Polly S. winner Diamondsandrubies (Ire) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}), a half-sister to the colt's dam, the G1-placed You'll Be Mine (Kingmambo).

Just 20 lots later comes a Galileo (Ire) colt (lot 43) whose sister Al Naamah (Ire) holds the European yearling sale record of 5 millions gns, set at Tattersalls in 2013, the year after another sister, Was (Ire) won the Oaks. With champion galloper and successful young sire New Approach (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) also close up in his pedigree, the Lodge Park Stud offering is another who will ensure interest remains high throughout the first few hours of the sale.

As an extra incentive to Book 1 buyers who plan to race horses in Britain and Ireland, Tattersalls his this year introduced the Book 1 Bonus Scheme, which will pay out £25,000 to each winner of Class 2, 3 or 4 2-year-old maidens in Britain and 'Open' 2-year-old maidens in Ireland. Graduates are made eligible for the scheme with a single £1,000 payment by the owner.

Tattersalls' Marketing Director Jimmy George commented, “All through the weekend we've had people here from Australia, Japan, Southeast Asia, America, South America obviously a strong presence from the Gulf region. There really is a very diverse group of buyers here and obviously we hope that the trainers and owners have taken on board the £25,000 October Book 1 bonus, which has been very well received.”

He continued, “This is a fantastic incentive for owners to be able to run in maidens with that sort of prize-money on offer so let's hope that it translates to a successful sale. Book 1 always produces winners at the highest level on the global stage and that's what brings the top buyers here every year.”

Welcome Return for Stauffenberg Bloodstock

The name Stauffenberg is certainly not an unfamiliar one at European sales. Philipp and his wife Marion have been leading consignors and breeders in their native Germany for many years and have consigned foals at Tattersalls over the last seven seasons. Among the top-class horses to have passed through their hands are the G1 Prix de l'Opera winner Lady Marian (Ger) (Nayef), whom they bred and sold as a yearling, and G1 Deutsches Derby winner Lucky Speed (Ire) (Silvano {Ger}), a graduate of their BBAG yearling draft of 2011.

However, this week is just the couple's second foray as vendors at Book 1 of the October Sale, following on from a successful debut for Stauffenberg Bloodstock in 2014, which saw three yearlings sold for 570,000gns at the highly respectable average of 285,000gns.

The majority of this year's draft were pinhooked as foals–a brave man's game and one which Philipp Stauffenberg plays at the highest level on behalf of a group of investors. In 2013, he bought the second-most expensive Champs Elysees (GB) foal ever to go through the ring–a colt out of Dahama (GB) (Green Desert {GB}) who was knocked down for 160,000gns and doubled in price by when offered as a yearling last October at Tattersalls. The Sandown maiden winner, who holds an entry for the G1 Racing Post Trophy, now races for Al Shaqab Racing under the name of Shahbar (GB).

Philipp explains, “When we had only homebred yearlings coming over here to the sales we thought we were better off going though English or Irish consignors and then when I was approached to buy foals for a pinhooking syndicate, they wanted to us to consign the horses ourselves so we changed policy and started last year.

“We prep yearlings for Arqana and Goffs as well, but I don't speak French so I thought it was better for the clients to use a French consignor. We prepped one for Goffs this year, but it makes no sense for me to go there with just one yearling.”

The seven-strong draft for Book 1 includes five pinhooked yearlings and two of their clients' homebreds.

“We try to focus on buying quality foals rather than increasing the numbers,” says Philipp. “I like them to be as close to perfection as possible. I need to be able to stand here looking at the yearlings and to like them. I'm lucky to have been approached by more people now, but I want to do it in a certain way. It has to fit to our system and to remain select.”

For Philip and Marion, that means transporting any weanling purchases to their farm, Schlossgut Itlingen, for that crucial growing period between foal and yearling sales.

“We've been at the farm in Westphalia since 1999. It's right in the centre of Germany in a really horsey part of the country, but one which is better know for sports horses and Warmblooods, rather than Thoroughbreds,” says Philipp.

“All the foals go back to Germany–our clients like us to have everything under control.”

To meet Philipp and Marion at the sales, it would be easy to assume that everything is indeed always under control, so relaxed and friendly are they in greeting potential purchasers in fluent English, while offering hospitality which is certainly unique among consignors and comes in the form of the Stauffenbergs' own-label gin and schnapps. Purely in the name of research, the TDN sales reporter can confirm that both forms of refreshment are of the highest quality.

Philipp does, however, admit to some anxiety in such a key week.

He says, “This is the time when the pressure is greatest –we have our harvest. You get punished for your mistakes and you are rewarded for what you've done well. If you are lucky everything goes right but the market is unforgiving.”

“I put myself under quite a bit of pressure. It's not just my money at stake–other people have invested money and it's important to do the job well for them. So far we've enjoyed good times–long may it last.”

Four of the consignment are offered for sale today, starting with a filly by the ever-popular Oasis Dream (GB) (lot 52) whose first two dams are both Group winners in France. She is followed fairly swiftly by lot 64, a well-grown half-sister to crack sprinter Hot Streak (Ire) (Iffraaj {GB}) from the first crop of Darley sire Casamento (Ire) (Shamardal). The colts in the draft represent a quartet of commercially desirable stallions– Zoffany (Ire), Dutch Art (GB), Dansili (GB) and Oasis Dream again–and the septet is completed by an Elusive Quality great grand-daughter of the Kentucky and Delaware Oaks winner White Star Line, whose dynasty includes the G1 Moyglare Stud S. winner Preseli (Ire) (Caerleon), a half-sister to the filly's unraced dam Snowgal (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}).

“We like to keep our horses quite naturally,” says Stauffenberg of their build-up to the sales. “They are rugged quite late in the process and out in the paddocks every day. One of the most important things is getting them all here in one piece. We have achieved that and now we have to see what this week brings.”