Camacho Team Returns to Happy Hunting Ground at Tattersalls Autumn HIT Sale

[Wandering Eyes]

No British-based trainer was more active at last year's Tattersalls Autumn Horses-in-Training Sale than Julie Camacho, who came away from the five days at Park Paddocks with 10 new recruits for a total spend of 575,000gns.

Chief among them was Naqeeb (Nathaniel), a half-brother to the multiple Group 1 winners Baaeed and Hukum, who fetched 170,000gns from the Shadwell draft. Seven starts later, the five-year-old will go through the ring again on Tuesday as lot 726B, having recently gained a deserved success in a Listed race at Goodwood following a couple of near-misses on the big stage earlier in the year.

Nor is Naqeeb alone among the Malton trainer's high-profile graduates of this sale in recent years. On the eve of the 2025 edition, along with her husband and assistant trainer, Steve Brown, Camacho spoke to the TDN whilst travelling down to Newmarket, outlining their approach to the sale and what the next few days might have in store.

TDN: The Tattersalls Autumn Horses-in-Training Sale has been a happy hunting ground for you in recent years, certainly in 2024, when you purchased 10 horses. Would it be safe to assume that you have a busy couple of days ahead, trying to get around and see as many horses as you can?

Steve Brown: It's definitely a sale that we enjoy and we've had some good success from it in previous years. We've slightly less to do this year, but we're looking forward to it and we've got a good list of horses to look at.

In previous years, we'd tend to buy more horses in training than yearlings. This year, one or two of the owners expressed the wish to buy a few more yearlings. We spent about 450,000gns at Books 2 and 3 at Tattersalls, so it's a slight change of approach. But, like anything in life, it's about balance. We'll still be active for a nice horse this week, hopefully.

TDN: Is there anything in particular that you look for in a horse when buying at this sale. Are there any non-negotiables in terms of how they vet or anything like that?

SB: Absolutely. They need to vet well and our vet, Peter Hynes, has a reputation for being pretty fussy. He's very good at highlighting possible issues going forward, so we're very much guided by him.

It's a three-part thing, really. Julie's brother, Matt Camacho, does a lot of work on the data and analysis of pedigrees and the possibilities of improving horses. Then, we have to like the horse, Julie and myself. The vets are the final tick in the box, really. There's quite a lot of work that goes into it to try and stay ahead of the game, so to speak.

TDN: Last year you bought Naqeeb out of this sale for 170,000gns. For a horse with his profile, were you surprised that you didn't have to stretch even more to get your hands on him?

Julie Camacho: We were pleasantly surprised to get him, to be honest. We thought he had the right profile for Australia and that they would be in for him. He's a grand horse and I'm sure you know he's a wildcard, so he's back down here now. Niall [O'Keeffe, owner] just thought that, if he was going to make money, it would be now rather than when he's another year older next year. We'd be delighted if he was to come back and, if he was to make plenty of money, that would be great for Niall as well.

TDN: This year he finished third in the Duke Of Edinburgh Stakes at Royal Ascot and second in a competitive handicap at the Qatar Goodwood Festival, before winning a Listed race back at Goodwood last time. He's been a terrific flagbearer for the stable, hasn't he?

JC: He has. He's a lovely horse to deal with and never been a moment's bother.

SB: He's a straightforward, sound and good-looking horse. The benefit we possibly had was that he'd been cared for well in his younger years. He certainly hadn't been overraced by William and Maureen [Haggas] and that gives you a chance. That's the sort of thing we look out for – how many times these horses have seen the track in their younger days. As a general rule of thumb, the more they've raced at two and three, the less likely there is to be improvement when they're getting older.

TDN: Any owner wants to find a horse that can take them to the big days. Was that the brief from Niall when you bought Naqeeb last year?

SB: It absolutely was. He wants to be represented at the big meetings and Ascot and Goodwood were special days out. For him to go and run so well, we were very proud of the horse and very pleased for Niall.

TDN: And you'd done it before for Niall, hadn't you? Your Ayr Gold Cup winner, Significantly, was a relative bargain at this sale when you bought him for 50,000gns in 2022.

SB: He was a horse who gave us a great season. He achieved everything we hoped he might and more.

JC: He's a happy hacker now!

TDN: Symbol Of Light, who is now rated 105, is another talented horse that you bought out of this sale for 60,000gns in 2022, while Lattam, who finished second last season in both the Lincoln and the Balmoral, was picked up for 50,000gns in 2023. Naqeeb and Lattam both came from William Haggas, while Symbol Of Light was picked up from Charlie Appleby. Do you think these horses often benefit from going to a so-called smaller yard, where they might get a bit more individual attention?

JC: It is totally different for them. For example, we turn the horses out every day. Symbol Of Light came with a bad reputation because he was such a bad ride, but he turned into a great ride with us.

SB: We do believe, as a general rule of thumb, that turnout is great for horses. And, when I say turnout, I mean a decent period out in the paddock every day. It's certainly a different situation to what they would have been used to in Newmarket.

But, as I said earlier, a lot of the time we benefit from the fact that the horses have been with really top trainers who handle them well when they're young. That's something we're very mindful of when we're buying, especially when we're paying a lot of money for a horse. We like to have a fair idea of what they've been doing in their younger days.

JC: We're all striving to get a very good horse, but their standards are so much higher than ours. A good horse for us is just a run-of-the-mill horse for them, isn't it?

SB: It is, but our yard has really upgraded in the last four or five years. Our standards are getting higher as well, hence the amount of money we spent at Book 2 and Book 3 and at recent horses in training sales.

Probably, the one we haven't talked about is [dual winner and Ayr Gold Cup runner-up] Desert Falcon, who has been a superstar. He's won nearly 100 grand this year and we paid 10,000gns for him [at this sale]. Again, he was a horse that had been with a patient handler [Sir Mark Prescott] when he was young and very much treated with respect. We've possibly reaped the benefit of that.

Obviously, we've bought horses where it hasn't worked out as well as we would have liked, but I guess that's life. As long as the balance is in the positive, we can see what we're doing as fairly successful.

TDN: And finally, what's the shortlist looking like for when you arrive in Newmarket this afternoon?

SB: The shortlist is a longlist at this moment in time. We'll have an intense day and a half of looking at horses and go from there. There will be some that you immediately dismiss, for soundness or how they look. They might be a small- or medium-sized horse with no scope, or less scope, to improve. I think as you get older and look at more horses, you work off the buying a house method where, if it doesn't catch your attention in the first 30 seconds, it's probably unlikely to. Because you look at so many horses, that has to be relevant.

JC: It's a bad premise when you're having to persuade yourself to like them.

SB: And there will be some horses you've seen run throughout the year where you think, 'I'll keep an eye on that one if it appears in the sales.' You go with this expectation and often they don't quite meet it. That's always a bit deflating.

JC: And then all of the ones you do like, Peter says no to – that is deflating!

SB: Let's just say we don't get our hopes up until they've been vetted!

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