New Zealand Bloodstock unveil bumper Ready To Run Sale catalogue

[Wandering Eyes]

The catalogue for New Zealand Bloodstock’s Ready to Run Sale is now online, with 383 lots to go under the hammer across two days at Karaka from 22 November.

The sale of two-year-olds has an unparalleled honour roll and last season alone, graduates won eight Group One races and 26 stakes races, more than any other two-year-old Breeze Up Sale worldwide.

Pin-up graduates include Hong Kong superstars Golden Sixty and Lucky Sweynesse.

Nine-time Group One winner Golden Sixty was bought for $300,000 from Riversley Park’s draft at the 2017 Ready to Run Sale. He has set a new all-time record for earnings in Hong Kong with his HK$147.9m in prize money, which is the equivalent of over NZ$30m.

Meanwhile Lucky Sweynesse was a $90,000 purchase from the draft of Woburn Farm at the 2020 edition of the sale. Rated the world’s best sprinter, he has now won 13 of his 17 career starts including three sparkling triumphs at Group One level this year. He has banked a total of HK$45.6m – the equivalent of NZ$9.6m.

The Ready To Run Sale has also been a happy hunting ground for Australasian buyers, with a host of elite-level performers coming out of the sale at a variety of price-points.

Triple Group One winner Mr Brightside had his legion of supporters in raptures as he claimed last Saturday’s Gr.1 Memsie Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield, advancing his career earnings to A$8,878,427 in prizemoney.

The son of Bullbars was passed in for $50,000 at the 2019 New Zealand Bloodstock Ready To Run Sale.

Mr Brightside (inside) breezes at Te Rapa
Photo: Trish Dunell

The Ready to Run Sale also produced a pair of elite three-year-olds last season. Sharp ‘N’ Smart won the Gr.1 Spring Champion Stakes (2000m), Gr.1 Herbie Dyke Stakes (2000m) and Gr.1 New Zealand Derby (2400m) and was runner-up in the Gr.1 Victoria Derby (2500m), while Dunkel provided trainer Patrick Payne with his first Group One success when landing the South Australian Derby (2500m).

The former was passed in at $90,000 while the latter was sold for $100,0000 at the Ready To Run Sale.

Value is also a major promotional factor for the NZB Ready To Run Sale, with the Tony Gollan-trained stakes-winner Antino, a winner of eight of his nine starts, purchased for $27,000, while last-year’s graduate Dolphin Skin is already a stakes-winner and was purchased by shrewd judges Troy Corstens and Dean Harvey for just $13,000.

In addition, high profile NZB Ready to Run Sale graduates also include Turn Me Loose, Te Akau Shark, Beat The Clock, Gingernuts and Mongolian Khan.

Pedigree standouts in this year’s sale include a Contributer half-brother to Lucky Sweynesse (Lot 116), a Super Seth half-sister to Gr.1 Queensland Derby (2400m) hero Kovalica (Lot 298), a Turn Me Loose half-brother to multiple Group One winner and sire Kermadec (Lot 69) and a Mongolian Khan half-sister to emerging star Globe (Lot 353).

There are 92 sires represented, including proven stallions Savabeel, I Am Invincible, Proisir, Snitzel, Fastnet Rock and Per Incanto plus a host of emerging young sires including Justify, Super Seth, Harry Angel, The Autumn Sun, Too Darn Hot and U S Navy Flag.

The 2023 edition of the New Zealand Bloodstock Ready to Run Sale will take place at the Karaka Sales Centre on 22 and 23 November, with Breeze Ups to be conducted on turf at Te Rapa Racecourse on 16 and 17 October.

View the catalogue online here.

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