Mehmas

The newly-published catalogue for the Goffs Premier Yearling Sale features entries from many of Europe's leading sires, as well as first-season sensation Starman, who is responsible for 17 of the 409 "athletic, precocious Doncaster yearlings" set to go under the hammer on Wednesday, August 27 and Thursday, August 28. Last year Starman was responsible for two of the top five lots, including the subsequent G3 Fillies Sprint Stakes heroine Lady Iman, one of 16 individual winners for her leading first-season sire in 2025. The notable yearlings by Starman featuring in...

Tom Lacy, the renowned breeder of Persian Force who is famed for providing Pat Smullen with his start in racing during his time as a trainer, has died. He was 89.  Lacy rode 50 winners as a jockey and found only Arkle and Flyingbolt too good aboard Height Of Fashion in two Irish Grand Nationals.  As a trainer, he sent out hundreds of winners from his yard in Rhode, County Offaly, spearheaded by Ingabelle, who went on to become a hugely important foundation mare at Ballylinch Stud. But it was...

A strong catalogue of 171 yearlings, including a Hello Youmzain half-brother to GIII Florida Oaks heroine Outburst (Outstrip), features in the Arqana v.2 catalogue. Selling as lot 347, he is joined by a Thunder Moon colt out of a half-sister to G2 Prix de la Nonette heroine and GI Diana Stakes second Dream Peace (Dansili) (lot 467); a Goken colt (lot 445) who is from the same family as G3 Prix Minerve winner Maroussies Wings (In The Wings); another colt by Thunder Moon (lot 312) who is out of the...

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-bred horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Friday's Observations features the return of a Mehmas 'TDN Rising Star'. 2.05 Epsom, Betfred British EBF Woodcote Stakes (Conditions), £75,000, 2yo, 6f 3yT MAXIMIZED (GB) (Mehmas {Ire}) earned TDN Rising Star status at Haydock on debut and is put the test in this downhill slalom for the Woodcote which...

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-bred horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Wednesday's Observations features several high-priced auction purchases. 2.52 Nottingham, Mdn, £6,899, 2yo, f, 5f 8yT ZELAINA (GB) (Mehmas {Ire}) debuts for Wathnan Racing and Karl Burke in this maiden the stable has won for the last two years with the subsequent G2 Queen Mary Stakes third Beautiful Diamond and...

Group 1 winner Tunnes topped Friday's BBAG Spring Sale when selling for €75,000 to LAM GmbH. Consigned by owner Holger Renz, the Guiliani half-brother to G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe hero Torquator Tasso was sold as a stallion prospect to stand next year at Gestut Etzean. He won the 2022 Grosser Preis von Bayern, as well as a pair of German Group 3 contests. Bred by Paul Vandeberg, Tunnes was originally a €38,000 yearling out of the BBAG September Yearling Sale in 2020. The highest priced two-year-old was Net...

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-bred horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Friday's Observations features a son of Too Darn Hot. 3.35 Haydock, Novice, £10,000, 2yo, 6f 212yT WILD DESERT (IRE) (Too Darn Hot {GB}) is the latest in a glut of significant Godolphin newcomers to step out of the Charlie Appleby stable this week, being the sixth foal out of...

NEWMARKET, UK -- It felt more like the July Sale at Park Paddocks as May got off to a blistering start with record-breaking temperatures. The trade was warm enough in the ring, too.  Though the figures for the Guineas Breeze-up Sale didn't rise quite as swiftly as the mercury, the returns were decent, with the 78% clearance rate being up three points on last year, while the median of 30,000gns represented a rise of 11%. The 6% dip in average was the one negative marker, with the turnover lifting slightly,...

DONCASTER, UK--The clock doesn't lie, nor do the results on the track. Goffs has come good on its promise to send owners and trainers to the hallowed ground that is the winner's enclosure at Royal Ascot with 10 graduates managing such an achievement in the last nine years.  Few sales companies can boast a similar roll of honour. Put simply, anyone with designs on rocking up to Royal Ascot in June will not have to think long and hard about speculating at Doncaster this week. Past performances are a barometer...

There can be no bad time for a sale company to produce a Group 1 winner but, star graduate Believing (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}) bagging a much-deserved breakthrough success at the highest level in the Al Quoz Sprint at Meydan last week provided Tattersalls with something extra to shout about on the eve of the much-anticipated Craven Breeze-Up Sale.  The George Boughey-trained speedster became the fifth Group 1 scorer to emerge from the Craven in the past three years alone, joining genuine top-notchers like 1,000 Guineas winner Cachet (Ire) (Aclaim {Ire}),...

In the age of stride length and cadence, stopwatches and sectionals, top speeds, biometrics and all of the other measurement tools out there to judge a racehorse on, one could be forgiven for thinking that all bases are covered at the breeze-up sales.  However, handler Willie Browne, bloodstock agent Ross Doyle and trainer Joseph O'Brien, three titans of the bloodstock industry, say they don't care if you utilise data until your eyes bleed--there will always be good horses that will escape through the net. That is good news for the...

You don't always get what you deserve in life. Just take a look at Believing (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}) for example. George Boughey's razor-sharp sprinter had gone agonisingly close to breaking her duck at the highest level three times last season and those closest to her must have been thinking if her turn would ever come. Beaten but unbowed, Believing showed the world what she is capable of in the G1 Al Quoz Sprint, going some way in justifying Coolmore's 3 million gns investment at last year's Tattersalls December Mares Sale....