A Fastnet Finish To Inglis Easter

[Wandering Eyes]

SYDNEY, Australia–The Inglis Easter Yearling Sale came to a close on Wednesday in Sydney with an additional 119 lots offered in Book 1, and 83 offered for Book 2. Fastnet Rock, as he did on Tuesday, provided the session-topping colt, a full-brother to current-season Group 1 winner Shoals (Aus) bought that filly’s trainer Anthony Freedman from the Arrowfield draft for A$2.3-million. Fastnet Rock thus provided the two highest-priced yearlings of the sale and four seven-figure lots in total.

Three sires separated themselves from the pack during Book 1, and unsurprisingly those were I Am Invincible (Aus), Fastnet Rock (Aus) and Snitzel (Aus). I Am Invincible was Book 1’s leading sire by average (32 sold, A$564,062), followed by Fastnet Rock (30 sold, A$554,167) and Snitzel (38 sold, A$542,237). I Am Invincible had five seven-figure lots and Snitzel seven. The other sires to achieve seven-figure lots were Redoute’s Choice (Aus), Deep Impact (Jpn) (two from two offered), Frankel (GB), Not A Single Doubt (Aus) and Pierro (Aus).

The three breakout first-season sires by average (three or more sold) were Darley’s son of I Am Invincible, Brazen Beau (Aus) (six sold, A$351,667) and Newgate’s pair of Deep Field (Aus) (Northern Meteor {Aus}) (eight sold, A$295,000) and Dissident (Aus) (Sebring {Aus}) (10 sold, A$222,000).

Some on site described the market as a bit more polarized at the top end than what is typical of an Australian yearling sale, and despite a clearance rate that was down 3% from last year, when all was done and dusted at the end of Book 1 figures were on par from last year. A total of 335 yearlings changed hands over the three days for A$116,457,500, compared to 308 sold for A$109,320,000 last year. The average and median both dipped slightly: the average 2.1% to A$347,634, and the median 3.8% to A$250,000. (Note figures continue to be updated on the Inglis website as private sales are added. These figures reflect the numbers upon the conclusion of the sale on Wednesday evening).

“I think we have to be very happy with the way the sale’s panned out,” said Inglis’s National Bloodstock Director Jonathan D’Arcy after the conclusion of Book 1. “There were certainly times where things got very strong in the ring and other times where it quieted down a bit. But that’s a yearling sale anywhere in the world. The production costs of these yearlings is quite high and so from time to time I can understand that vendors do want to protect their position. There are some horses that will go home unsold but on the whole we’ve had over A$116-million turn up to be spent on these yearlings.”

A Shore Thing…

Arrowfield and Pinecliff Racing’s dual Group 1-winning mare Shoals (Aus) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) has done plenty this season to boost the profile of her younger full-brother, who was offered at Easter on Wednesday as lot 400, and thus it took A$2.3-million for trainer Anthony Freedman to ensure he would join his sister in his stable.

“You have to pay for these colts,” Freedman acknowledged. “I thought he was the colt of the year. Knowing the family as well as I do I was very confident he was the right type. He’s very much like his sister but bigger and stronger, so it gave me the confidence to go to that sort of money. I only really looked at him twice but I saw enough of him to know he was the right horse. It’s a lot of money but it’s the best family in this country and probably the Southern Hemisphere, and colts like that are hard to get.”

Shoals notched her first Group 1 win in the G1 Myer Classic at the Melbourne Cup Carnival in the spring, and added the G1 Surround S. just weeks ago.

With her pedigree, Shoals must be one of the most valuable fillies in the country, and indeed if her brother can achieve close to what she has on the racetrack he will be a many multi-million dollar stallion prospect. They are out of The Broken Shore (Aus) (Hussonet), herself a daughter of the great producer Shantha’s Choice (Aus) (Canny Lad {Aus}) and therefore a half-sister to Redoute’s Choice (Aus) and fellow Group 1 winners Platinum Scissors (Aus) and Manhattan Rain (Aus), as well as the excellent producer Monsoon Wedding (Aus) and the dam of young Coolmore sire Rubick (Aus).

“I think knowing the family and training Shoals meant I had that intel,” Freedman said. “That gave me the confidence. I think he’s the right type of Fastnet Rock colt, he’s not too big, and I think he’s just a bigger version of Shoals. I didn’t want to walk away without having a good crack at buying him.”

Messara later confirmed that Arrowfield had taken 25% of the colt.

“Once you get over a million, it’s in the laps of the gods,” Messara said. “I thought he was capable of making more, but then history is that it’s a fair bit of money. He was a horse that had a lot fewer unknowns about him than almost any other colt in this sale because he is by a proven sire, out of a multiple Group 1-producing mare, from a family that’s a sire-making family. He just had everything and he was a good individual. It’s a risk-mitigation exercise if you want to go into the stallion business and that horse had a lot of the features you would seek.”

“I jumped immediately and got 25%. He could have ended up in the hands of people who didn’t want me in as they might have been another stud, but as it turns out it was a bunch of investors and other breeders so I took a share. I’ve got the best of both worlds; we got a great price and I retained a share.”

Shoals is the first foal out of The Broken Shore, and her 2-year-old filly Tides (Aus) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}), also with Freedman, is set to debut soon. She is followed by a colt foal by Medaglia d’Oro, and the mare is back in foal to Fastnet Rock.

“She has a colt foal by Medaglia d’Oro that Magic Millions and Inglis will be competing for next year,” Messara said. “He’s a very nice colt. The 2-year-old filly is in the hands of the same trainer; I think Anthony Freedman will buy every member of that family the way it’s going. We gave him the first two fillies and I think he’ll buy the rest. Tides is heading for a listed race in Queensland to start in six to eight weeks. If she’s able to get black-type, the mother will have two-for-two and you’d have to think the Medaglia d’Oro colt would be sought after next year.”

Shoals has a potential date in Royal Ascot’s G1 Diamond Jubilee S. in June, but Messara said the filly first has to get over a small setback.

“Shoals had a little veterinary mishap after being given a needle and it got infected,” he explained. “She’s had two or three weeks of just swimming and walking and no real trackwork. She’s reasonably fit because he’s kept doing something with her and so we’re still aiming to try to run her in the G1 Robert Sangster in Adelaide. If she misses that she may run in the G1 Goodwood H. which is two weeks later. If she were to win one of those, that would signal to us that’s she’s in top order still. She’s had the needles to travel overseas so she would aim for Ascot.”

Arrowfield ended Easter as far and away the leading vendor, with 31 sold for A$18,265,000. Coolmore was second with 28 sold for A$10,945,000.

“It’s been a good week,” Messara said. “We brought some really nice horses here to inaugurate the new Riverside Stables. We expected to do well and we’re really pleased with the results in the end. Having said that, the market is still a bit picky. They paid plenty for the horses they liked and they discarded the ones they didn’t. There is no middle road at the moment and I think that’s much the case everywhere, not just here.”

“I think it’s probably healthy that it’s no more than that,” Messara said of the almost A$350,000 average. “That’s a lovely figure. We’ve consolidated and there’s a base to grow from. The market is getting very professional. If you come with the wrong item, you’ll be punished.”

Spendthrift Secures A Snitzel…

Representing a similar cross to the sale topper–the Danehill line over Hussonet–later in the session was Milburn Creek’s Snitzel (Aus) colt out of the young stakes winner Walk With Attitude (Aus), and he will race in the Spendthrift colours after that operation went to A$1.55-million to secure him, fighting off Godolphin. Spendthrift has enjoyed success this season with Irukandji (Aus), who just week ago became the first stakes winner for first-season sire Dundeel (NZ), and Spendthrift’s U.S. general manager Ned Toffey said, “we were right about where we thought we’d be for this colt. He ticks all the boxes about as well as anything.”

Asked how a son of Snitzel might be received in America if shuttled, Toffey said, “it’d be a heck of a challenge. Snitzel is certainly the kind of horse that is developing the kind of reputation that might get there at some point. It’s a tough way to go but first thing’s first, let’s hope we can win some races and get to the point where we have to make that decision.”

Walk With Attitude is from the family of last year’s G2 Superlative S. winner Gustav Klimt (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) as well as Coolmore’s young dual hemisphere sire Pride of Dubai (Aus) (Street Cry {Ire}) and Invincible Spirit (Ire).

Redoute’s Colt Is Harron’s Choice…

As a three-time champion Australian sire, Redoute’s Choice (Aus) has naturally had a profound effect on the breed, and he has long reigned over the Inglis Easter sale as well through his own deeds as well as those of his sons.

The 21-year-old stallion was without a breakout horse over the first two days of the sale, but he corrected that during the final session on Wednesday when his colt out of Silla Regalis (Aus) (Encosta de Lago {Aus}) (lot 358) made James Harron stretch to A$1.5-million.

In addition to representing the highly successful Redoute’s Choice/Encosta de Lago cross, the colt is also out of a half-sister to Hong Kong champion Silent Witness (Aus) (El Moxie) and the triple group winner and Group 1-placed Sister Madly (Aus) (Redoute’s Choice {Aus}). Harron has enjoyed success as of late with Redoute’s Choice colts like Pariah (Aus) and Tchaikovsky (Aus), both bought from Arrowfield, and Harron admitted he was following a proven pattern.

“He was my pick of the sale,” the agent said. “I absolutely loved him from the minute I saw him. We’ve been targeting Redoute’s Choice because we’ve had quite a bit of luck with him with Pariah and Tchaikovsky and this guy really reminded me of those horses. Strong, really good attitude, fantastic action, so I’m delighted and relieved and get him–I lost a bit of sleep last night thinking about it. It’s a real speedy family and he looks like a speed horse.”

Of the market this week, Harron added, “It’s been very strong on the nice lots. There’s been good competition. We came here targeting a couple colts in particular and we’ve been very pleased with what we’ve been able to get.”

The colt will follow Pariah and Tchaikovsky into the Peter and Paul Snowden stable and will run for Harron’s familiar colts’ syndicate.

Harron didn’t rest long before once again jumping in at seven-figures to secure a grandson of Redoute’s Choice, Arrowfield’s Not A Single Doubt (Aus) colt (lot 378), for A$1.05-million. The chestnut is the second foal out of the winning Star Pupil (Aus) (Starcraft {NZ}), a daughter of the multiple stakes winner and producer Ain’t Seen Nothin’ (Aus) (Nothin’ Leica Dane {Aus}).

Invinc-ability…

The Hawkes Racing training team received one of the priciest lots from this sale last year, Emirates Park’s A$1.7-million purchase Estijaab (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}), and John, Michael and Wayne Hawkes will certainly be hoping lot 370, a son of I Am Invincible (Aus), can follow in her footsteps and win the 2019 Golden Slipper after spending A$1.4-million on the colt.

The Gilgai Farm offering has the page to jump and run: in addition to being by Yarraman Park’s ultra-exciting young sire, he is a half-brother to the G1 Newmarket H. winner The Quarterback (Aus) (Street Boss).

“He is by a horse called I Am Invincible and he’s a half-brother to a Newmarket H. winner so it looks pretty fair if he can gallop,” Wayne Hawkes said of the price, adding the colt was bought on spec. “We have some good stable clients so we’ll just work him up.”

“The market has been strong,” Hawkes added. “It hasn’t been easy but it’s been strong.”

Of the Slipper winner, he said, “She’s doing well, she’s out in the paddock having a well-earned spell.”

The Hong Kong Jockey Club had spent A$1-million on an I Am Invincible colt on Tuesday, and it went to the same amount on Wednesday for another son of the Yarraman Park resident (lot 416) on Wednesday. I Am Invincible has started out quite well in Hong Kong, with 10 winners from 11 starters, and if he can keep his strike rate anywhere close to that, his sons should find favour at the Hong Kong International Sale in two years’ time.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club, after being absent from earlier sales this year in Australia due to quarantine disputes between the two nations, spent A$4.6-million on six yearlings this week. After signing for the I Am Invincible and a A$900,000 Snitzel colt (lot 417) in immediate succession, the Jockey Club’s Mark Richards said, “I think today’s been a little easier to buy than yesterday. There have been a few points where we’ve been able to buy horses at what we’d call a reasonable price. I thought the Snitzel was going to make a million or more, he was certainly that type so you’d have to say you’re pleased to get that at 900. The I Am Invincible is a lovely horse and the sire has a great record in Hong Kong at the moment. But I think it’s obvious that the top end is very, very strong. The middle has suffered a little bit. I’m sure there are more million-dollar horses this year than there have ever been before but I think some area has to lose out if that’s the case and I think the middle market felt it this time.”

I Am Invincible’s Wednesday haul also included a A$560,000 colt out of the dual Group 1 winner Secret Admirer (Aus) (Dubawi {Ire}) (lot 344) bought by trainer Tim Martin and a A$600,000 filly (lot 394) bought by trainer Tony McEvoy.

I Am Invincible stands at the Mitchell family’s Yarraman Park Stud and has been a true rags to riches story. A member of the first of four crops from his sire Invincible Spirit’s brief shuttling career, I Am Invincible was champion first-season sire in 2013/14 with a crop conceived at a fee of A$10,000. That fee bounced up to A$25,000, then A$50,000 and last year he stood for A$110,000. Arthur Mitchell of Yarraman, which owns half the horse, said another raise is in the books for 2018.

“His stud fee will go up a bit,” he confirmed. “We haven’t decided what it is yet.”

“He’s now been accepted as a serious stallion,” Mitchell said. “On the whole he gets a consistently good type of individual so that helps him as well and they can all run: colts, fillies, 2-year-olds, 3-year-olds. Ticking all the boxes is a horrible term, but he’s doing incredibly well.”

Mitchell said offers to shuttle the horse have been turned down–“we feel just as happy to keep him at home”–and while I Am Invincible hasn’t yet covered mares to Northern Hemisphere time, he is available.

I Am Invincible’s first son to stud, the G1 Coolmore Stud S. winner Brazen Beau (Aus), was Book 1’s leading first-season sire by average, and Mitchell said the signs are good for another son, the G1 William Reid S. winner Hellbent (Aus), who joins his sire at Yarraman this year.

“We’re now standing his next son Hellbent, he’s coming to us this year and he’s pretty much sold out already,” Mitchell said. “There are three sons at stud now and they’re all quite popular.”

The Easter sale drew to a close with an 83-horse Book 2 that saw 51 change hands (clearance rate 76%) for A$5,890,000. The average was A$115,490 (-3.1%) and the median A$100,000 (+11%), and top billing went to a Pierro (Aus) filly from Arrowfield Stud (lot 452) at A$330,000. She was bought by Brendan and Jo Lindsay, who recently took over ownership of the legendary Cambridge Stud in New Zealand.

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