Plus Ça Change At Arqana

[Wandering Eyes]

DEAUVILLE, France—Expectations were running high ahead of the Arqana Breeze-up Sale and, for some, hope turned to delight as the auction delivered the first, and what will likely remain the sole, seven-figure breezer of the European season.

Despite some blockbuster early prices, the day’s trade had a sticky feel to it during the afternoon but picked up notably in the final hours to deliver a set of figures remarkably on a par with last year. The number of horses sold—113—was exactly the same, the clearance rate improved slightly from 75% to 78% and, as the till receipts were rung through at the close of play, a dip of only €71,000 occurred to bring the final tally to €14,797,000. The average was also fractionally down at €129,531, as well as the median of €75,000.

Not for the first time in Deauville it was an American-sired youngster leading the way after Grove Stud’s colt (lot 21) by American Pharoah elicited a bid of €1.1 million from Laurent Benoit on behalf of the Coolmore partners. The powerful colt from a top-drawer family had been bought for what now looks like a bargain price of $275,000 at Keeneland last September.

“It felt expensive at the time I signed for him,” said pinhooker Brendan Holland with a grin. “I looked at all the American Pharoahs at Keeneland and I loved their minds, they way they just came out and stood. This is a big colt but he is very light on his feet. To breeze as well as he did for such a big horse—he just did it very easily. When I go to America to buy [yearlings by] these sires I like to have some turf form on the dam’s side.”

The damline in question is one of the most prominent trans-Atlantic families of the modern era, that of Juddmonte’s blue hen Hasili (GB) (Kahyasi {Ire}). Her dam Kerali (GB) (High Line {GB}) features as this colt’s third dam and it is Hasili’s half-sister Dissemble (GB) (Ahonoora {GB}) who produced not just the sale-topper’s unraced dam Tare Green (Giant’s Causeway) but also the treble Grade 1 winner and late stallion Leroidesanimaux (Brz) (Candy Stripes).

Each of Hasili’s seven stakes-winning offspring started their racing careers in the stable of Andre Fabre before some were transferred to America and Bobby Frankel, and it is therefore apposite that this colt will also be trained in Chantilly by Fabre.

Agent Laurent Benoit said, “We had a good order from the Coolmore partners and Andre came here yesterday especially to see this colt and loved him. He is delighted to have his first American Pharoah colt to train from a family he knows so well.”

Into The Grove
The Grove Stud groove was still running strong late into the session when leading jockey Jamie Spencer placed the winning bid of €700,000 on Holland’s Lope De Vega (Ire) half-brother to mud-loving G1 Sussex S. winner Here Comes When (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}). By the time it came to signing the sheet, Spencer’s Newmarket ally David Simcock took charge and confirmed that he will train the colt for a new owner to his stable.

“We’ve been trying to buy at the last three sales and we’re delighted to have been able to get the one we really wanted,” he said. “Jamie has been integral to the process and we’ve worked closely throughout the sale. It was really important to buy a horse that we both liked. He’s for a new English client so it’s really exciting but the pressure is on now.

Seven of the top ten places on the leaderboard were occupied by fillies and they included another Grove Stud offering, lot 17, a Muhaarar (GB) half-sister to G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest winner Signs Of Blessing (Ire) bought for €280,000 by Stuart Boman of Blandford Bloodstock on behalf of Larry Young’s Speriamo Bloodstock. The filly will go into training in Germany with Andreas Wohler.

“We bought Clearly (GB) in this ring last December and she ran third in a Group 2 on her Australian debut last week.,” Boman said. ” [Larry] is also in Axana (Ger), who will be favourite for the German Guineas. This filly is all about next year. She is quite tall, but she galloped out strongly and was prepared by the best consignor in my view.”

While Mocklershill ended the sale as leading vendor by aggregate with 16 horses sold for a total of €3,441,000, Grove Stud led by average, with eight lots sold for an average of €349,355.

“This has been a really lucky sale for me and I’ve sold a stakes horse here for each of the last ten years,” said Brendan Holland.

 Mocklershill’s Leading Ladies
It didn’t take long for the bar to be set high for the day when Mocklershill’s Kingman (GB) filly out of Serena’s Storm (Ire) (Statue Of Liberty) entered the ring as lot 6. As a half-sister to dual Group 1 winner Rizeena (Ire) (Iffraaj {GB}) she already had plenty to recommend her, but the fact that her sire has been represented by a raft of classy winners this season, not to mention the favourite for today’s G1 Poule d’Essai des Poulains in Persian King (Ire), ensured that there was plenty of talk about the grey prior to the sale, and it didn’t prove to be unfounded. Anthony Stroud stepped into the fray to outbid Kerri Radcliffe at €800,000 and made the sole purchase of the day for Godolphin.

It was the second lucrative transaction for Mocklershill in a matter of minutes as it followed the sale of lot 3, a Sea The Stars (Ire) filly from the family of Wednesday’s impressive Cheshire Oaks victrix Mehdaayih (GB) (Frankel {GB}), for €520,000. Jake Warren had the final say on this filly on behalf of Simon Scupham and Bermuda Thoroughbred Racing.

He said of the sister to G3 Cumberland S. winner Star Storm (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), “Simon Scupham is interested in quality fillies and we bought a fast No Nay Never filly in Newmarket. This filly is more the type who will hopefully develop into a nice 3-year-old. She has a fantastic pedigree and breezed very nicely.”

Completing a run of expensive fillies from Mocklershill was Friday’s fastest breezer, the No Nay Never half-sister to G1 Middle Park S. runner-up Jash (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}). Kerri Radcliffe had previously lost out on the Kingman filly but she was successful in securing the daughter of winning Dutch Art (GB) mare Miss Ezeza (GB) for €575,000.

“She’s been bought for Peter Leidel and George Bolton, who raced Lady Aurelia,” said the agent of lot 134. “I thought I might have to give more for her. She’ll be going to Joseph O’Brien.”

Towards the end of the session, Justin Casse went to €290,000 for another filly from the draft, lot 157, a daughter of Medaglia d’Oro. The late May foal is out of a Fusaichi Pegasus half-sister to GI Travers S. and G1 Cigar Mile winner Stay Thirsty (Bernardini) and to Without You Babe (Lemon Drop Kid), the dam of Tamarkuz (Speightstown) and Without Parole (GB) (Frankel {GB}).

Second-season Sires In Demand
Another standout filly by No Nay Never was Gaybrook Lodge Stud’s lot 18, a daughter of the dual Italian winner Super Marmelade (Ire) (Duke Of Marmalade {Ire}), bought by Jamie McCalmont for €500,000. Sold for €80,000 as a yearling in the same ring last August, the filly will race for a new German owner and be trained in Britain by Ralph Beckett.

“She is for a client who is new to the business and is setting up a long-term breeding operation under the name of Westerberg, said the agent. “Ralph will train her. We love No Nay Never and Ralph is keen on the damsire as his St Leger winner Simple Verse (Ire) was by Duke Of Marmalade. She did a great breeze and vetted well. We were very taken by her.”

The leading sire with more than one sold was Kingman by a wide margin, his four juveniles returning an average of €455,500. After the top-priced filly of the day detailed above came lot 84, another triumph for Mick Murphy and Sarah O’Connell of Longways Stables, who bought the half-sister to listed winner Dark Liberty (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) for €125,000 and resold her to Charlie Gordon-Watson for €650,000.

“She is very athletic and I love the stallion, I think he’s going to be one of the best ever,” said the agent who could not name his client. “She will be trained by Andre Fabre who particularly liked her.”

Another Kingman juvenile, this one a colt from Con Marnane’s Bansha House Stables, was initially bought back at €300,000 in the ring but was later sold privately for €315,000 to Joseph Burke. Lot 124 is out of the winning Pivotal (GB) mare Lucrece (GB), herself a half-sister to Group 1-winning sprinter Signs Of Blessing (Ire), a son of Kingman’s sire Invincible Spirit (Ire).

Burke confirmed that he had bought the colt on behalf of Sheikh Ahmed Al Maktoum. He said, “He will go into training with William Haggas. He’s a beautiful colt who breezed well and has a lovely stride. Kingman crossed with Pivotal mares has already produced three winners from four runners, including one stakes winner, Poetry (GB), which is what we hope this colt will be.”

Breezing to America
American-based trainers Neil Drysdale and Patrick Biancone will each have a juvenile to train from the sale. Drysdale’s wife Shawn Dugan was standing alongside Paul Shanahan when going to €320,000 on behalf of Coolmore for lot 132, an Exceed And Excel (Aus) filly consigned by Yeomanstown Stud. David O’Callaghan had bought the first foal of Mikandy (Ire) (Arcano {Ire}), a half-sister to stakes winners Dolled Up (Fr) (Whipper) and Zeiting (Fr) (Zieten), at Goffs last November for €145,000.

“She is a gorgeous mover with a great balance and we hope she can continue to do as well in proper races, but physically she really was the best filly in the sale to me, and she also has the pedigree,” said Dugan of the filly whose further family includes recent European Group 1 winners Precieuse (Ire) (Tamayuz {GB}) and Eqtidaar (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}).

Frenchman Biancone will be returning Powerstown Stud’s colt by Summer Front to the land of his birth after bidding €240,000 for the second foal of East India (Mizzen Mast) from the family of G1 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Raven’s Pass (Elusive Quality). The colt by Airdrie Stud’s first-season son of War Front was sold as lot 77 and was previously purchased for $80,000 at Keeneland September Sale.

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