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    • CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD NEWSLETTER View the full article
    • Champion filly Porta Fortuna still has “plenty of racing left in her” according to trainer Donnacha O'Brien, who admitted that he will be experiencing “mixed emotions” when his stable star goes through the ring at the forthcoming December Mares Sale at Tattersalls. The daughter of Caravaggio made it to the racecourse only once in 2025, when registering her eighth career win in May's G2 Lanwades Stud Stakes at the Curragh, but she has been given a clean bill of health by O'Brien ahead of her appearance during the second of the two Sceptre Sessions on Tuesday, December 2. “She's always been a very, very sound filly throughout her career, other than the little tweak that we got before Ascot [after her win at the Curragh],” said the trainer. “She put on a good bit of weight when we gave her the break and we decided that we probably weren't going to get her to the [G1] Matron [Stakes] in time. When that happened, the owners took the decision just to keep her in light work until the sales and keep her happy and healthy, so that's what we're doing.” He added, “She's in a great place now. She's a filly that potentially has plenty of racing left in her if that's what her new owners want. She's a special filly. She's achieved a lot already and possibly can achieve much more in the future.” Certainly, whether she races again or not, Porta Fortuna has already put together a CV which identifies her as one of the most decorated fillies to have raced in Europe in recent years. A four-time winner as a juvenile, including the G3 Albany Stakes and G1 Cheveley Park Stakes, she returned the following the season with a runner-up finish in the G1 1,000 Guineas, before winning at Royal Ascot for the second year in a row when beating five individual Group 1 winners in the G1 Coronation Stakes.     “My highlight of her racing career so far would probably be the Coronation in Ascot as a three-year-old,” O'Brien said of that memorable success. “It was probably the highest-quality race she ran in. She impressively beat the Cartier Champion Two-Year-Old filly in Opera Singer and obviously to do it on the biggest stage in Royal Ascot is very special.” Porta Fortuna herself was crowned the Cartier Champion Three-Year-Old Filly at the end of 2024, having followed her Coronation victory with two further top-level triumphs in the Falmouth Stakes and Matron Stakes. The horse of a lifetime for a partnership consisting of Taylor Made's Medallion Racing, Steve Weston, Dean Reeves and Barry Fowler, Porta Fortuna was bought privately after making a successful debut at the Curragh in the colours of her owner-breeder, the O'Brien family's Whisperview Trading Ltd. She is the first foal out of Holy Roman Emperor's Too Precious, who is a full-sister to the triple Australian Group 2 winner and G1 Australian Cup runner-up Numerian, as well as the G3 Prix Francois Boutin third Montesilvano. This is also the family of the G1 St Leger-winning sire Milan and the Derby and Irish Derby hero and prolific sire Kahyasi. O'Brien continued, “She was one of my picks of our homebreds when she was a yearling. Then, when she came in, she was very professional and did everything very nicely from day one. She was always a very precocious two-year-old. “She's a very good-looking filly. She's not massively tall, but she's very scopey. She has great length and she's a great mover. She has a very strong backside on her, strong neck, shoulder and back – she's an impressive specimen. “She's built probably like a fast filly, but she stretches out to a mile easily and probably would get a little bit further if we ever tried it. She looks quite like her sire Caravaggio in that sense.” Characterising his stable flagbearer for the past three seasons, O'Brien added, “There's no badness in her. She's just a very hardy filly. She loves her work and loves everything she does. “I'm really looking forward to the Tattersalls Sales and seeing her selling. Obviously, it'll be mixed emotions but, at the same time, it'll be exciting to see who's there and trying to buy her. Hopefully, it'll be a night to celebrate her, her career and everything she's achieved. It'll be exciting to find out what the next chapter holds for her.” The post Sceptre Sessions Headliner Porta Fortuna “In A Great Place” And Could Race On appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article
    • If i was on a salary such as those referred to, above, I'm sure I could find some ideas. And, as pointed out in another thread, if funds hadn't been wasted on stakes for the last two decades instead of attending to track maintenance,  we may not be quite so badly off.
    • Turquoise Bloodstock paid €65,000 for La Renegada (Lope De Vega) to top the second and final day of the Goffs November Breeding Stock Sale on Saturday. The four-year-old daughter of multiple listed winner Against Rules (Aussie Rules), herself third in the G3 Prix Belle de Nuit, is in foal to Group 1 sire Make Believe. Sold as lot 1353 by Ballylinch Stud, she is kin to Nice To See You (Siyouni), a multiple stakes winner in France and second in the G3 Prix Edmond Blanc. Fourth dam Mill Princess (Mill Princess) is responsible for star Antipodean sire Last Tycoon, who won a trio of top-flight races in the Northern Hemisphere before his sire success Down Under. Qasida (Nathaniel) (lot 1366) caught the eye of Midfork Bloodstock to the tune of €60,000. A winner in France, the five-year-old is carrying to Farhh and was consigned by Ballynure Park Stud. Her granddam claimed the Listed Grand Prix du Nord, and left stakes winners Hooking (Lope De Vega) and Le Destrier (Le Havre), with the former also second in the G3 La Coupe. Under the third dam is G1 Prix du Cadran winner Mille Et Mille (Muhtathir). Triple winner Scorchio (Kuroshio), a half-sister to G3 World Trophy Stakes hero Thunderbear (Kodi Bear), brought €46,000 from Maria Robertz. Part of the Ballybin Stud draft, lot 1309 is pregnant to Kodi Bear. The four-year-old counts Grade III winner Rosinka (Soviet Star), who placed in both the GI Flower Bowl Invitational Stakes and GI Spinster Stakes, as her second dam. She was sold to Barry Lynch for €24,000 out of the Goffs Autumn HIT Sale last year. At the close of trade on Saturday, 70 lots had sold from 94 offered (74%) for a gross of €685,200 (+54%). The average was €9,789 (+25%) and the median was €7,000 (+40%). Two lots made north of €50,000 compared to none on the same day in 2024. Overall, the two-day sale grossed €12,117,700 (+7%) for 265 sold from 322 offered (82%). The average fell 10% to €45,728 and the median rested at €20,000 (-9%). There were 10 lots that sold for €200,000 or more this term (12 last year). Additionally, 32 lots reached the six-figure mare compared to 28 in 2024. Beeby Reflects After Strong Five Days “Exceeding expectations,” said Goffs Group chief executive Henry Beeby of the five-day stand. “A key Goffs mantra and one we are pleased to have delivered on countless occasions over the last six days. So many vendors and consignors of both foals and mares gave positive feedback on the sale which delights the dedicated Goffs team as we exist to serve those that place their trust in our service. “In my comments at the conclusion of the foal sale I highlighted the frenzied demand from start to finish and would only add that such vibrancy was largely driven by the swathes of pinhookers who flock to Goffs November every year whether the yearling season has been good, bad or indifferent. They are an amazing group of hard working, committed men and women who are the epitome of accentuating the positives in everything and we are in their debt. It is our hope that they will choose Goffs when they come to reoffer as the Orby and Premier sales provide a vibrant and strong marketplace at all levels whilst the Goffs Customer Loyalty Scheme provides a distinctive and significant USP to vendors. “Our Breeding Stock Sale also delivered positive returns for large numbers although at a lower level today. Yesterday's top lot is a clear case in point of exceeding expectations as she realised double several pre-sale valuations, and she was far from alone in that achievement. “Once again Kildare Paddocks played host to a truly international group of buyers with the leader board reflecting the global appeal of the Irish thoroughbred at Goffs following the efforts of the Goffs Purchaser Attraction team and our friends at Irish Thoroughbred Marketing.  Year after year this sale is the gateway to the world for Irish breeders and we are grateful for their ongoing support as, in common with every category at every sale, we recognise we are nothing without the horses. That said, I admit that we will be frustrated to see some high-profile Irish horses selling elsewhere in the coming weeks when we know, without any doubt, we would achieve the best price for them as we have done on so many occasions. It is, of course, for us to make the case and I can only state that we will not rest in our endeavours as we have supreme confidence that Goffs November is the measure of any sale in the world for both foals and breeding stock, and our track record proves it. “Finally, our thanks to all who have contributed to another superb week at Goffs. Vendors, purchasers, grooms, suppliers, and the wonderful Goffs team of which I am proud to be a part.” The post La Renegada Leads The Way On Saturday, As Goffs November “Exceeds Expectations” appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article
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