‘Best Ever’ Copa Bullrich On Tap

[Wandering Eyes]

Next week, Argentine sale firm Antonio Bullrich, named for its principal, kicks off the 14th renewal of its flagship yearling sale, Copa Bullrich. Days one and two of the sale take place on May 14 and 16 and comprise Book 1, while Book 2 is spread across June 4 and 6. On day one selling takes place at Palermo Racecourse in Buenos Aires, and the remaining three days are at the farm of seller Haras La Pasion.

“I’m not afraid to say this is the very best [Copa Bullrich sale] we’ve ever organized,” Bullrich said. “All four days are unbelievable.”

Indeed, the first horse through the ring on Tuesday (lot 1) should set the standard, being a 3/4-brother to American Horse of the Year Invasor (Arg) (Candy Stripes {Arg}), by Candy Stripes’s champion sire son Equal Stripes (Arg). Invasor, foaled in 2002, won the Uruguayan Triple Crown and was Horse of the Year in that Argentine neighbouring country before being purchased privately by Sheikh Hamdan and sent to trainer Kiaran McLaughlin in the U.S. There, he won five Grade Is including the Breeders’ Cup Classic before taking the G1 Dubai World Cup. The dam, Quendom (Arg) (Interprete {Arg}), spent a few years in the States, leaving behind Dubai listed winner Interpret (Distorted Humor) and a trio of gelded sons of Street Cry (Ire) and Tapit, and this is the third colt the 22-year-old mare has produced since returning to her native country.

“Having the chance to auction the half-brother to Invasor is a big deal, and the horse is unbelievable,” said Bullrich. “The horse is amazingly good-looking.”

The pedigree of the second horse through the ring will also resonate internationally; lot 2 is by champion sire Orpen and is a full-brother to the remarkable seven-time Group 1 winner Malpensa (Arg), who has gone on to emulate herself as a broodmare in Japan with the G1 Kikuka Sho and G1 Arima Kinen victor Satono Diamond (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}).

Lot 6 is a rare commodity in Argentina, being a daughter of Uncle Mo and the Group 1 winner Stormy Kiss (Arg) (Bernstein). Stormy Kiss left six foals in the U.S. and was covered Southern Hemisphere time by Coolmore’s champion sire before returning to Argentina to foal down this filly.

“We have a superstar by Uncle Mo, which is very rare for this part of the world,” Bullrich said. “I was astonished when I saw her. She’ll be one of the stars.”

Resonating on a local level will be lot 35, a colt from the first crop of John F Kennedy (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) who is a half-brother to Group 1 winner Alampur (Arg) (Catcher in the Rye {Arg}), who gave the page a boost last week when winning the G1 Gran Premio Republica Argentina.

The second day of the sale will mainly concern the stock of La Pasion, a leading local breeder which produced last year’s winner of the G1 Gran Premio Carlos Pellegrini–Argentina’s most important race–Il Mercato (Arg) (Not For Sale {Arg}).

Day 3 on June 4 is all about Haras Firmamento, and represents a very rare occasion indeed because the 41 yearlings catalogued are all by Mastercraftsman (Ire). Firmamento leased Mastercraftsman to shuttle to Argentina in 2016 and he was bred exclusively to their mares, producing about 100 foals. Mastercraftsman had previously shuttled to Chile, and he returns to Firmamento in 2019 to stand alongside GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf winner Hit It A Bomb (War Front).

“It’s a very rare thing” Bullrich said. “Firmamento has the entire crop of Mastercraftsman, who I think is one of the top horses in the world, and they’ve decided to sell all the colts and a few fillies. Mastercraftsman has been very successful in Chile; he had the first and second in the G1 Latinoamericano [in March].”

“Firmamento is a leading, leading breeder,” Bullrich added. “They have been leading breeder 17 times, and they raise horses unbelievably well.”

Argentina’s economy has struggled as of late, but Bullrich pointed out that that provides opportunities for internationals to scoop up quality horses at a favourable exchange rate. He pointed out, however, that local interest remains the backbone of the market.

“People here love horses, so they’re going to buy, but it’s a great opportunity for foreigners to come over and buy horses at a great price with international pedigrees,” Bullrich said. “They can take advantage of the financial market and leave their horses here to train for way less money. If the horses turn out to be really good they can take them overseas. We’ve done it before and we’ve done it successfully.”

Click here for the catalogue for Book 1 of Copa Bullrich.

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