Group 1-winning sprinter Russian Revolution (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}) will be among the most exciting stallions to retire in Australia this year, and Wednesday's two seven-figure lots at the second session of the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale could both be part of his inaugural book.
“We have a strong interest in Russian Revolution so he would be seriously considered for her going forward, and you've got the champion stallions like Snitzel and I Am Invincible who would be in the mix for her,” said China Horse Club's Michael Wallace after signing for the session-topping Diademe (NZ) (Savabeel {Aus}) (lot 1007) in foal to Vancouver (Aus) for A$1.7-million. Sir Owen Glenn's Go Bloodstock signed for the other breakout mare of the day, Heatherly (Aus) (Lonhro {Aus}) (lot 1098), in foal to Written Tycoon (Aus) for A$1.6-million, and Go Bloodstock Manager Geoff Roan confirmed, “She will go to Russian Revolution–it will be a perfect mating.”
Due to changes in the sale format, full comparative statistics will be published upon conclusion of the sale on Friday. After two days' trade, the cumulative total stands at A$66,156,000 for 422 fillies and mares sold. Moving from fillies and mares off the track on opening day to broodmares on Wednesday, the clearance rate and average held largely steady at 84% and A$156,768. The median improved to A$65,000.
“It was a sensational day's trade,” Magic Millions Managing Director Barry Bowditch said. “It was probably one of the strongest days of selling we've had here.”
“Vendors are delighted with the way the sale went and buyers as a whole have been very confident in the market, they've bid strong and we're pleased with where we're at. I was a little cautious today how the mares in foal would go, having a big catalogue of them. But it's a very solid sale. To be clearing some 84% and for the average to be holding up somewhere near what it was [Tuesday] is sensational.” Click here for a video review of the session.
Diademe Back In The Limelight…
Diademe had already enjoyed the spotlight on the Gold Coast to a degree last week when her second foal, a colt by Fastnet Rock (Aus), made A$650,000 from Boomer Bloodstock to be the second-highest priced lot at the Magic Millions National Weanling Sale. He follows a full-brother who sold for NZ$1-million at Karaka two years ago, and both the foal and mare were offered by Coolmore to dissolve the partnership of Coolmore and China Horse Club, who had bought Diademe from Attunga Stud for A$740,000 at this sale three years ago less than two months after she had won the G1 Breeders S.
“Obviously she is a Group 1-winning mare by Savabeel,” said China Horse Club's Michael Wallace of the mare who is also a full-sister to G1 Two Thousand Guineas winner Embellish (NZ). “She's put down two wonderful foals with her first two foals and she's a Grade A specimen physically. She's got everything going for her. It's been well-documented the ownership that was involved with her, so it was good to get that tidied up and move along with a nice mare.”
Barrie and Midge Griffiths picked up the Lonhro filly they would name Heatherly for A$90,000 at Inglis's Easter Yearling Sale in 2014, and that was made to look like a very shrewd purchase on Wednesday when the 5-year-old, carrying her first foal to Victoria's best sire Written Tycoon (Aus), made A$1.6-million from Go Bloodstock and Paul Moroney Bloodstock. Heatherly had, of course, done her part in the interim four years by winning three black-type contests in addition to placings in both the G1 Moir S. and G1 Oakleigh Plate, and Go Bloodstock's Geoff Roan said his team had had their eyes on the mare, who is out of a half-sister to G1 Stradbroke H. winner Linton (Aus) (Galileo {Ire}), for a while.
“We've had a go at a couple of others and missed,” Roan said. “It's a really strong sale.”
“We picked her out really early as one we would target. We didn't expect her to go to that level but she was one we thought we'd really like to have for Sir Owen Glenn. We have followed her for a while and always liked her. We thought she had such good strength and physicality. Sir Owen loves that high quality and he just said to me, 'don't get beat!'”
Guy Goes For Gold…
Being a multiple stakes-winning Dubawi (Ire) mare in foal to Snitzel (Aus) certainly isn't going to hurt in a sales ring, but Paul Guy of Heritage Bloodstock said after signing the ticket for Arabian Gold (Aus) (lot 867) at A$900,000 that it was the 7-year-old's toughness that was her greatest trait. Indeed, Arabian Gold won four stakes races, three of those group races, across a busy 3-year-old campaign in which she was also second in the G1 Queensland Oaks. She would go on to win again at Group 3 level at four. Arabian Gold was sold carrying her second foal; she produced a filly by Snitzel's sire Redoute's Choice (Aus) two years ago and slipped last year.
“She's a good style of mare,” Guy said. “She's a typical Dubawi–he's just been such a wonderful sire worldwide and she was such an exceptional racemare. She was tough and genuine with great ability and that's what we were ultimately looking for.”
Arabian Gold had been bought by Josh Hutchins for A$800,000 at this sale in 2015 in the midst of her racing career, and she was sold on Wednesday by the Hutchins family's Element Hill Farm, a boutique Queensland nursery.
Proven Sires Prominent…
With the exception of Diademe, Wednesday's top sellers were each in foal to a different Australian champion sire: Written Tycoon was champion first-season sire and champion 2-year-old sire; Snitzel is the reigning record-breaking champion general sire and two others that have held that title were also prominent on Wednesday: Fastnet Rock (Aus) and Exceed and Excel (Aus). Mark Pilkington and Tom Magnier signed in conjunction for the 12-year-old mare Fiorentina (Aus) (Dubai Destination) (lot 1066)-a half-sister to G1 Dubai World Cup winner Monterosso (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire})-in foal to Coolmore's Fastnet Rock for A$850,000 the day after her Group 1-winning daughter Silent Sedition (Aus) (War Chant) had sold to Katsumi Yoshida for A$1.5-million.
Peter Ford swooped at A$750,000 for the unraced 4-year-old Frankel (GB) filly Dream In Colour (GB) in foal to Exceed and Excel. That one proved a monumental pinhook, having been purchased off the track from the Godolphin consignment at Tattersalls February last year by Howson and Houldsworth Bloodstock for 75,000gns. Dream In Colour comes from a very prolific Australian line, her third dam True Blonde (Aus) being a half-sister to excellent sire Snippets (Aus) and the dam of Not A Single Doubt (Aus), and True Blonde is also the second dam of the G1 Golden Slipper winner Forensics (Aus). It therefore shouldn't have come as a surprise to see Dream In Colour immediately expatriated, and her cause was helped further by the win of Derryn (Aus) (Hinchinbrook {Aus}), who appears under her second dam, in last April's G2 Arrowfield Sprint at The Championships.
Former champion first-season sire I Am Invincible (Aus), who is currently chasing just Snitzel in the general sires' premiership, was the covering sire of Newgate's Gold and Diamonds (NZ) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) (lot 1078), who was scooped up by Yu Long Investments for A$800,000. Yu Long, which is currently growing its profile globally, had two winners on the Irish 2000 Guineas card at The Curragh last Saturday and had also made its presence felt at Inglis's Chairman's sale, signing for three broodmares over the half-million mark. Yu Long has about 70 mares in Australia and 20 in New Zealand, and that is where Gold and Diamonds's pedigree most resonates. She traces back to the legendary producer Eight Carat, whose line also includes the champion racehorse and sire Octagonal (NZ) and Darley's late prolific sire Commands (Aus).
Australian Pharoahs…
The Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale features the first Southern Hemisphere mares in foal to American Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, and Yu Long also swooped at A$750,000 to secure one of them, the Flying Spur (Aus) mare Better Alternative (Aus) (lot 911). Yu Long is already plenty familiar with her offspring, being a shareholder in her champion son Preferment (NZ) (Zabeel {NZ}), winner of the Group 1 Victoria Derby, The BMW, Australian Cup and Turnbull S. Better Alternative has also left the G3 South Australian Fillies Classic winner Rezoned (NZ) (Zabeel {NZ}).
There were three total mares offered in foal to American Pharoah on the day; while one was a A$75,000 buyback, the others were sold for A$200,000 and A$140,000, respectively. American Pharoah stands in Australia for A$66,000.
Arrowfield Reveals Mating Plans…
Arrowfield, in conjunction with different partners, was busy on day one of the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale, signing for three mares in excess of A$1-million, and the Stud has revealed the mating plans for those mares.
Arrowfield's Jon Freyer, in partnership with Dean Hawthorne, agent for Jonathan Munz of Pinecliff Racing, signed for Group 2 winner Omei Sword (Aus) (High Chaparral {Ire}) for A$1.7-million and Group 1 winner Abbey Marie (Aus) (Redoute's Choice {Aus}) for A$1.4-million. Both mares will be sent to Japan for a date with that country's champion sire Deep Impact (Jpn). Arrowfield has been instrumental in the cross pollination of Japanese and Australian blood, having long sent it owns mares to be covered by Shadai stallions, as well as more recently shuttling some of that operation's young sires to the Hunter Valley.
Arrowfield, in its joint venture with Northern Farm's Katsumi Yoshida, bought Silent Sedition for A$1.5-million on Tuesday, and she will this year visit Snitzel, the same sire that provided Arrowfield and Northern Farm, as breeder, with this year's G1 Golden Slipper winner Estijaab (Aus), out of Response (Aus) (Charge Forward {Aus}), who was also a Magic Millions National sale purchase.
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