Scene Set Bright For Breeze

[Wandering Eyes]

DEAUVILLE, France—The sale which last year produced one of the horses embroiled in the controversy of last weekend’s Kentucky Derby gets underway later today and only time will tell whether or not another War Of Will (War Front) will emerge from the 150 or so juveniles selling at the Arqana Breeze-up. His buyer Justin Casse is among the throng of potential buyers currently in Deauville, however, as is new Hong Kong trainer Douglas Whyte, parading the sales grounds with former weighing-room colleague Ted Durcan, as well as Olympic eventer Mark Todd.

By the time the first drops of rain began to fall in Deauville on Friday afternoon, the horses were all back in their stables after galloping on the back straight of the turf course adjacent to the sales complex—a switch from the home straight after a complaint from a French trainer last year as to potential damage to the track from the breezers. One rider suffered a suspected broken leg after being thrown from a recalcitrant colt in the collecting area before his breeze. In the no-nonsense fashion of the hardy men and women engaged in preparing these horses for sale, a replacement jockey was swiftly found and the horse’s breeze was completed in a more civilised manner.

How soon any of those on display later today will soon be seen in a parade ring at the races is anyone’s guess but it’s clear that some of the major buyers at this year’s breeze-ups do not intend to hang around with their ‘ready to run’ purchases. Indeed, two of Godolphin’s new additions have already had entries. Path Of Thunder (Ire), bought at the Craven Breeze-up for 375,000gns, has been one of four runners this season for his first-season sire Night Of Thunder (Ire) and finished third of four in the 2-year-old maiden at the Guineas meeting, while the record-breaking Kingman (GB) filly from the Craven, bought for 850,000gns and now named Divine Spirit (GB), was entered at Ascot yesterday but was withdrawn when the ground turned soft.

The vendor of the Kingman filly, bought last year for 92,000gns, was Tally-Ho Stud, which has three of offer at Arqana, including the sole juvenile in the sale by Pioneerof The Nile (lot 130). The colt, bought for $120,000 at Fasig-Tipton, is the second foal of Medea (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}), whose four victories include the GIII Eatontown S., and he is one of 28 American-bred juveniles in the sale.

Two of those are from the first crop of Pioneerof The Nile’s Triple Crown-winning son American Pharoah—a colt out of an unraced Giant’s Causeway half-sister to Leroidesanimaux (Brz) (Candy Stripes) offered by Grover Stud at lot 21, and a half-sister to GI Spinaway S. winner Mani Bhavan (Storm Boot) and GII San Felipe S. winner Hear The Ghost (Ghostzapper). She features as lot 155 from the draft of Tom Whitehead’s Powerstown Stud, which also has one of two Karakontie juveniles in the sale (lot 31).

“The American Pharoah and the Karakontie have been very popular,” said Whitehead, who received £220,000 for a Malibu Moon half-brother to the G2 Mill Reef S. winner Kessaar (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) at the Goffs UK Breeze-up Sale.

“We’ve have a good run this season. If you have the horse that’s deemed to be the one on the day then you’re ok, but it has been selective and I don’t see that there will be any change in the near future. We’ve been lucky this year with the horses we’ve bought in America but whether it’s American-breds, Irish-breds or English-breds, it’s about finding the right one. We buy everywhere and it just happens that we have a nice bunch of American-breds this time.”

He added, “This sale here has really improved and there are some lovely horses here—the pedigrees are fantastic, they are real Book 1 pedigrees. It was fine breezing down the back straight. I couldn’t really find any fault in it. The ground was lovely.”

Whitehead works the mammoth Keeneland September Sale in tandem with fellow breeze-up consignor Johnny Collins, the pair assisted by Chad Schumer and Nancy Sexton. While debate rages over whether or not Maximum Security (New Year’s Day) should have had the Kentucky Derby taken away from him, the winner, Country House (Lookin At Lucky), provided a timely update for a horse selected by the team last autumn. Lot 9, consigned by Collins’s Brown Island Stables, is a Palace Malice half-brother to Country House’s dam Quake Lake (War Chant), out of the Grade 1-placed Shooting Party (Sky Classic).

Three lots before the Palace Malice colt goes through the ring, one of the most talked-about horses of the sale will be offered as lot 6. The filly by red-hot young stallion Kingman (GB) is a half-sister to the former Clive Brittain-trained dual Group 1 winner Rizeena (Ire) (Iffraaj {GB}) and from a family which has done breeder Roundhill Stud proud over many years. The filly’s dam Serena’s Storm (Ire) (Statue Of Liberty) is a winning half-sister to multiple group winner and Australian-based stallion Puissance De Lune (Ire) (Shamardal) and to Queen Power (Ire) (Shamardal), who holds an entry for the Oaks.

” I have a lot of middle-distance horses and overall I’m happy,” said Willie Browne of Mocklershill, consignor of the Kingman filly among a large draft of 22. “She’s very nice and it’s a super family. I’m very happy with her breeze. I knew she wouldn’t be as quick as the No Nay Never filly (lot 134) but she did a very solid breeze.

“The good thing is there have been plenty of people here looking at our late-maturing horses which is a help. It was encouraging to see a lot of high-profile faces over watching the breeze.”

Among the agents in action at the sale the general consensus appears to be that the individuals assembled stand up to the enticing pedigrees on offer.

“It’s a strong catalogue and they’re a very nice bunch of horses. It was all very slick this morning,” was the view of Anthony Stroud, who has already been kept busy by Sheikh Mohammed this breeze-up season.

If those good pedigrees and reports can translate into top-drawer prices in the ring later today then the scene is set for a sales season highlight that even the forecast rain won’t be able to dampen.

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