Hunt For Royal Ascot Rockets Gets Underway At The Goffs Breeze-Up Sale

[Wandering Eyes]

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 to the future and, just last year alone, Queen Mary heroine Leovanni (Ire) (Kodi Bear {Ire}) along with the similarly smart Aesterius, Powerful Glory (Ire) (Cotai Glory {GB}), Black Forza (Complexity) and Electrolyte were sourced at this sale. 

In fact, Leovanni heads a total of nine graduates who have gone on to achieve official ratings of 100 or greater. Not only can Blandford Blodstock's ace agent Richard Brown lay claim to buying the Queen Mary winner for £190,000, but he also bought Coventry Stakes second and third Electrolyte (Ire) (Hello Youmzain {Fr}) and Columnist (GB) (Ardad {Ire}), along with G2 Flying Childers winner Aesterius (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}). Some shooting, in fairness.

But some very smart horses, who undoubtedly will reach high ratings in time, have also been sourced from this sale as well. Take Glenderry (GB) (Mohaather {GB}) for example. He was bought by Jack Davison for £48,000 before being traded on to continue his career in Hong Kong after he achieved a rating of 93 when landing a competitive Dundalk maiden on his second start for the trainer in October. Along with bloodstock agent Barry Lynch, Davison has returned to Doncaster this week in search of more value. 

He said, “It's well-documented that this sale has a proven track record in producing Royal Ascot winners but, if you go against the grain, you can find value here. I think Glenderry breezed 68th on overall rankings but he was just a gorgeous horse that needed a bit of time. There is more than just early two-year-olds in this sale and, if you are prepared to think outside the box a little, you can find yourself a nice racehorse. I'm looking for the seven furlong or the miler type of horse. If something clocks really well, I'm out of the picture because I don't have the budget. But I love shopping at this sale and hopefully we can find one or two tomorrow that fits into our bracket.”

Buyers will undoubtedly have to get the cheque book out to secure lot 175, a Cotai Glory (GB) filly who breezed particularly well for Ellie Whitaker of EMW Equine. The Cotai Glory filly looks a shrewd purchase now given Whitaker sourced the daughter of juvenile winner Rosie Bassett (GB) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) for just £32,000 from Tally-Ho Stud at last year's Premier Yearling Sale. 

Barry Lynch and Jack Davison | Goffs

Whitaker, who is perhaps best known for selling the smart Royal Aclaim (Ire) (Aclaim {Ire}) through the breeze-up sphere, admits that the Cotai Glory featuring prominently in all of the timing sheets exceeded expectations. Meanwhile, lot 148, a colt by Sergei Prokofiev, also breezed quite well for the outfit. 

Whitaker said, “Delighted. We've brought two nice horses and one has gone a little bit better than we could have expected. Couldn't be happier, really. When you are watching the breeze on the screen, you can never really tell, but she [the Cotai Glory filly] has a huge stride and has always been very professional. Her homework has always been strong and we thought she was a nice filly so she's gone and proved that today. She can hopefully go on and prove it on the track now as well. The Sergei Prokofiev colt breezed well as well. He is a nice progressive horse so hopefully they can both go well tomorrow. Fingers, toes, legs–everything is crossed for the sale now.”

The breeze-up season got underway with a bang at Tattersalls last week where numerous records were broken at the Craven Sale. But away from the two seven-figure lots and record turnover [nearly 20 million gns], the 83% clearance rate pointed to a strong demand for breeze-up horses across the board. Goffs chief Henry Beeby agreed and said he is hoping for more of the same this week. 

“I thought it [the Craven Breeze-Up Sale] was very positive–there was so much interest at so many levels, which I thought was encouraging,” he explained. “There seemed to be a diverse range of buyers and that's also positive. We've had very good feedback for this sale–the catalogue is good and the reports from the vendors have been strong all the way through.”

Beeby added, “We think we have assembled a very strong group of horses and there are plenty of buyers here as well. We campaigned vigorously in the Middle East with extensive trips in Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Dubai and we're hoping that will result in increased interest from that part of the world tomorrow.”

There was a notable number of Middle Eastern buyers among the good footfall of people that were busy inspecting the barns following the breeze on Wednesday. Irishman Eoin Sullivan, who has been based in Asia for a number of years now, was one such agent responsible for bringing a group of Saudi Arabian-based owners and trainers to Doncaster this week for the breeze-up sale.

He said, “We are buying primarily for Saudi Arabia. There is a chance that we could leave something in Ireland or France and run them in Europe before importing them to Saudi Arabia. We've sent a few to Fozzy Stack and it seems to be working out well. Aziz Alizhabi and Abdullah Alamonif, who actually trains Abriq Alkhayl (Twirling Candy), who we bought here last year, have made the trip so we're looking forward to doing some business this week.”

Sullivan added, “There is a bit of momentum in the Middle East at the moment. I used to do a lot of business in Singapore before things went there so it's been a case of one door closing but another door opening with regards to me personally. So we have a few different orders to fill and the plan is to stay on and go to the Guineas Breeze-Up Sale as well.”

The sale, which features the progeny of Havana Grey, Wootton Bassett, Blue Point, Mehmas, No Nay Never and more, kicks off at 10am on Thursday.

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