Cover image courtesy of Inglis
At A Glance
Inglis has attributed the terrific record of graduates from the Classic Sale to a substantial surge in average, aggregate and median across the past three days.
The Zoustar filly, Lot 591, was the lone offering from Clarke and Croft Bloodstock and is headed to Port Stephens owner Bruce MacKenzie.
Cambridge Stud's Almanzor (Fr) again had a marquee result with the $360,000 paid for a colt from the draft of Sledmere Stud powering him to the top of the Book 1 averages for all sires.
Another first-season sire, Hellbent, got his best result for the week when Star Thoroughbreds paid $300,000 for one of his fillies.
The Book 1 average surged to $102,546, up from $86,980 in 2020.
The Book 1 aggregate surged past $50 million ($51.3 million) for the first time, up from $41.2 million last year.
The clearance rate for Book 1 hit 91 per cent, up from last year's mark of 86 per cent.
The Book 1 median ended at $80,000, up from $75,000 in 2020.
The Highway Session also boasted record results with a colt by Maurice (Jpn) securing the top price of $200,000 and the average jumping by nearly $12,000.
Graduates drive Classic revival
Inglis Managing Director Mark Webster has attributed the substantial success of the 2021 Inglis Classic Sale to the ongoing confidence star graduates from the Sale has given buyers willing to invest.
The Sale reached high water marks in terms of top price, average, aggregate and clearance rate as the bullish nature of the Australian bloodstock market continued on its upward trend.
Webster feels that while there is no doubt a rising tide of confidence in buyers investing in thoroughbreds in Australia, the racetrack success of the recent graduates drove considerable growth.
"I think the results reflect the way the graduates have been performing for the last couple of years more than anything else," he said.
Mark Webster and Julie Snook | Image courtesy of Inglis
"It’s a Sale that when we moved it from Randwick out to Riverside, we ran an incredible strong sale off the back of a host of horses that had recently run well for us, including a recent Slipper winner. Book 1 averaged $93,000 that first year and then it dropped back a little for the next two years.
"I'm just delighted that we are back to delivering on the potential we think the Sale has. Since then, we've had an Everest winner in Classique Legend and we have also had a graduate win the Melbourne Cup (Vow And Declare).
"They are really performing well in Hong Kong as well and we had a Group 1 winner the other day with Hot King Prawn. I think the results now reflect the quality that came out of it, and it’s on a growth cycle."
MacKenzie shoots for star filly
On a week where records were set every day, the new benchmark achieved on Day 3 was the highest-ever price for a filly at the Classic Sale, when Bruce MacKenzie paid $450,000 for Lot 591, by Zoustar.
The filly, the sole member of the draft from Clarke and Croft Bloodstock, is out of the five-time winner Empress Zakynthos (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}), the sister to Hong Kong stakes winner Divine Ten, out of the multiple stakes-placed mare Zakynthos Star (Dehere {USA}).
The sales ring battle for the filly featured Port Stephens-based MacKenzie and Denise Martin of Star Thoroughbreds, with MacKenzie seeing off the competition when he jumped the bidding straight from $400,000 to the final price of $450,000.
Lot 591 - Zoustar x Empress Zakynthos (filly) | Image courtesy of Inglis
"Everyone wanted her, she was a magnificent filly. She’s well-built and her temperament is amazing. I would go down every night and look at her. Her gate was open and I would pat her for 10 minutes and scratch her head. I’d tell her I was going to take her home," MacKenzie said.
“I have only bid on three but she was the one I wanted. You only have to look at her.”
MacKenzie said he is in no rush to decide whether the filly goes to the stables of Damien Lane or Kristen Buchanan.
It was a game-changing result for Sam Croft of Uralla-based Clarke and Croft, who had also sold the filly's dam as a yearling, before buying her back as a broodmare.
"We are so happy, I really thought she deserved a fair bit of money, but that is fantastic," she said. "Our previous best result was $150,000. So this is by far the best horse I have ever sold."
"We are so happy, I really thought she deserved a fair bit of money, but that ($450,000) is fantastic." - Sam Croft
"I think she will be a juvenile sprinter, but she should go on."
Empress Zakynthos has already delivered Croft a return of $140,000 on a Star Turn colt at this Sale 12 months ago, and is currently in foal to Pierata.
The filly was the most expensive of the 14 Zoustars sold in Book 1, with an aggregate of $2.035 million and an average of $145,357 for the Widden Stud stallion.
It was a pair of Newgate stallions which topped the aggregate sales by stallions, with Capitalist enjoying a remarkable week, with the top two lots, and over $3.5 million in sales across 17 lots. Deep Field's progeny raised a total of $3.27 million with 30 sales.
Another outstanding Almanzor result
It was another remarkable Sale for Cambridge Stud's Almanzor, who led all stallions on average (three or more sold) on $221,667 across six lots, clear of I Am Invincible ($220,000) and Written Tycoon ($207,500).
What got Almanzor over the line in that regard was another of his highlight colts, Lot 617, which reached the day's second highest price of $360,000 to Zhongli Thoroughbreds from the draft of Sledmere Stud.
Lot 617 - Almanzor (Fr) x Fortune's Choice (colt)
“We waited two days for this colt. We spotted him early. The Sale has been really good to Zhongli. We purchased Hit The Shot here, so we were trying to go down that avenue in finding a nice, athletic horse that will be a nice miler-stayer," Quinton Cassidy of Zhongli Thoroughbreds said.
“I was actually quite surprised. All the good judges have been on the Almanzors, so that gives you a good indication of how they are going to sell and they are doing so."
A trainer for the colt is yet to be decided.
Royston Murphy of Sledmere Stud said the strong result was a great reward for Little Avondale Stud who decided to send the Almanzor colt to the Classic Sale.
"It's a great result for Little Avondale, Sam and Cat (Williams, Little Avondale proprietors) send these horses over and our job is quite easy as they always send really nice horses over. He was the star colt for them and as everybody says, these horses have been so busy this week. To go and get that result with our last horse is great," he said.
"He (Lot 617) was the star colt for them (Sam and Cat Williams) and as everybody says, these horses have been so busy this week." - Royston Murphy
This week at Riverside Stables, Almanzor has had a colt, Lot 224, sell for $400,000 on Sunday, and then two colts sell for $360,000. That follows on from the popularity of his progeny at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, where he was the leading first-season sire on average, and at the New Zealand Bloodstock National Yearling Sale at Karaka, where he was leading sire on aggregate overall.
"I think he's a great coup for New Zealand. Every one I have seen are such lovely, athletic horses. They are free-moving horses with a lot of scope and presence about them," Murphy said.
"It’s good to see a new horse like that come into the fray. A lot of the time we are concentrating on these short and sharp horses, but I think he's going to be a big horse for the future.
"It’s nice to see people that have invested in him and get the just rewards. We all try to pick the right stallions and those people have done well out of him. I'm sure we will see him hit the track over the next few years and succeed for the guys over there."
Almanzor (Fr) | Shuttling to Cambridge Stud
Martin Hellbent on Yarraman freshman
Another first-season sire to do particularly well this week has been Yarraman Park's Hellbent, who has had 24 of his first crop sell for a total of $2.5 million and an average of $104,167.
His highest-priced yearling of the week was the Lot 555, the filly out of Crystal Rock (Fastnet Rock), offered by Middlebrook Valley Lodge, which was purchased by Star Thoroughbreds and Randwick Bloodstock for $300,000.
That result was a great one for Middlebrook Valley's Verna Metcalfe, who bred the filly herself from a mare from the family of Not A Single Doubt. Crystal Rock has already produced the stakes-placed Big Parade (Deep Field).
Verna Metcalfe | Image courtesy of Inglis
“I own her, I bred her with my husband, of course, and she is an absolute queen. I couldn’t be more rapt to have Denise Martin buy her as she will go to a good trainer (Chris Waller) and be well looked after," she said.
“I haven’t had a foal out of the mare for two years. She’s a very difficult mare to get in foal. I had her in foal this year but she decided not to carry it.
“Big Parade was an absolute star as well, but this filly is a touch more sensible than Big Parade could be. She is a lovely, athletic filly and Hellbent is going to make a great sire."
"She (Lot 555) is a lovely, athletic filly and Hellbent is going to make a great sire." - Verna Metcalfe
Star Thoroughbreds' Martin took a particular shine to the filly and wasn't going to leave without her.
“I thought she was special. We loved her from the moment we saw her and buying from a great farm like Verna’s is always an endorsement of a quality yearling, so I thought I was going to have to take deep breaths several times over and we thought that would be about the mark," Martin said.
“I would say she will be a late 2-year-old and she will suit Chris’ stable ideally, allowing her to mature."
Lot 555 - Hellbent x Crystal Rock (filly)
Martin has made no secret of her love for Hellbent, buying a filly of his at the Gold Coast for $170,000 and then striking twice within a matter of minutes to secure the above-mentioned filly and then Lot 563, a colt out of Defrock (Canny Lad), making him a half-brother to the Group 3-winning Godolphin sprinter Deprive (Denman), for $260,000.
“From what we have seen on the Gold Coast and here, they look very much like I Am Invincible horses. They have got a wonderful way about them. They have got strength and have good attitudes. They are quality types. We have bought three and we might not have finished yet," she said.
Star Thoroughbreds was the fourth highest spender of the Sale, investing $1.315 million across six lots. Martin said she would have been keen to spend more, but found it hard in what was a hot market.
"When you come to a Sale with quality horses, many people see the same horses, so there are experienced buyers trying to buy the same horses," she said.
"It is wonderful for Inglis, it’s wonderful for all facets of the industry, for the broodmare sales, the weanling sales. It’s so buoyant and people are still engaged in racing and are buying quality horses. We had hoped to go home with six or seven and we might go home with five."
Bigger buyers' bench fuels hot competition
George Moore Bloodstock/Team Moore ended as the biggest buyers of Book 1 with $1.44 million spent across five horses, while Melbourne-based Kavanagh Racing, purchased 13 horses, more than anyone else, and spent $1.43 million.
The clear trend for the week was the desire for multiple buyers to get involved at all ends of the market. Despite over $51 million changing hands in Book 1, not one buyer spent more than $1.5 million.
Also notable was the participation of the major colt buyers, in seeking stallion prospects, something that Inglis is particularly proud of.
"Talking to the major buyers, and using James Harron as an example, who is a colt buyer with his stallion fund, they have done their own work with their stats in terms of the performance of the graduates and realised that it is a Sale they can't afford to overlook and they should be investing in," Webster said.
"They have done their own work with their stats in terms of the performance of the graduates and realised that it is a Sale they can't afford to overlook and they should be investing in." - Mark Webster
"This Sale is producing stallions and it is not as if it is happening overnight. I Am Invincible is a great example. He came through this Sale and made $60,000, and is now having sons like Brazen Beau and Hellbent, who came out of this little Sale here and have now got progeny going through themselves.
"The Sale has produced stallions for some time but I think it is now at a point where they are just doing it more regularly and that's helping with the growth."
Webster said the balance of the catalogue, with 620 horses offered in Book 1 and another 183 as part of the Highway Session, also seemed to have helped achieve the desired result.
"The model of 800 horses which is basically our stabling capacity, works, rather than trying to shuffle in new horses at the last minute that don't have the opportunity to be fully inspected," he said.
Newgate Farm ended as the leading Book 1 vendor on aggregate, realising $4.14 million for its 29 sales, clear of Arrowfield Stud, with $3.565 million, across 30 sales.
Woodside Park ended as the leading vendor on average with four sales at $220,000 apiece, clear of Davali Thoroughbreds on $187,500.
Highway surges on market confidence
The Highway Session also boasted significant growth year-on-year in all key metrics with the average up to $48,736 from $36,821 in 2020.
The clearance rate was also very strong at 88 per cent, a substantial jump on the 81 per cent in 2020, while the median rose from $30,000 to $37,500. The overall aggregate of the Highway Session jumped to $6.82 million, compared to $5.23 million last year.
The top lot sold for $220,000, with the penultimate lot of the Sale, Lot 802, a Maurice (Jpn) colt offered by Toolooganvale Farm, sold to Anthony Cummings.
Cummings trained the colt's dam's Group 2-winning half-brother Thunder Fantasy (Lucky Owners {NZ}). The dam, Flashing Speed (War Pass {USA}), was stakes placed.
Lot 802 - Maurice (Jpn) x Flashing Speed (filly)
Two lots in the Highway Session went for $170,000, in Lot 752, a colt by Mikki Isle (Jpn) sold to Grahame Begg, and Lot 760, a Dawn Approach (Ire) colt secured by Paul Moroney/HAOH Co.
The Mikki Isle colt, offered by Arrowfield Stud, is out of the Not A Single Doubt mare Zing And Swing, which is the extended family of Group 1 winners Zeditave and Melito (Redoute's Choice) as well as the brilliant 2-year-old Military Rose (General Nediym).
HP Thoroughbreds offered the colt by Dawn Approach, who is out of the five-time winner Ambivalent (Aussie Rules {USA}). It’s the family of Group 1 winner Devil Moon (King Cugat {USA}) and the iron tough stayer Skybeau (Dahar {USA}).
Lot 661 - Denman x Madame Von Teese (colt)
Upper Bloodstock paid $160,000 for Lot 661, a colt by Denman out of Madame Von Teese (Foreplay), which was offered by Kanangra.
The colt is out of the extended family of Listed winner Alart (Excellent Art {GB}) while The Everest winner Yes Yes Yes and dual Group 1-winning mare In Her Time (Time Thief) also feature on the page.
Positive signs heading into Premier and Easter
Webster said the scene was set for a successful yearling sales series for Inglis, heading into the Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale at Oaklands Junction, which runs from February 28 until March 2, and the Australian Easter Yearling Sale on April 6 and 7, back at Riverside Stables.
"The momentum should carry on now into Melbourne and Easter. Talking to clients that are here, they still haven't been able to buy everything they want, so we know that is a positive," he said.
"A lot of them reload ordinarily between sales, so I think heading into Melbourne and Easter, I don’t have any reservations about that."
Webster said one of the focusses between now and those sales would be to continue to work closely with international buyers to facilitate their participation.
Top lots
| 374 | Capitalist | Theatric | Colt | Kitchwin Hills, Scone | George Moore Bloodstock / Team Moore Racing HONG KONG | $625,000 |
| 182 | Capitalist | Mystical Tale | Colt | Davali Thoroughbreds, Luskintyre | James Harron Bloodstock NSW | $600,000 |
| 591 | Zoustar | Empress Zakynthos | Filly | Clarke & Croft Bloodstock, Uralla | B MacKenzie NSW | $450,000 |
| 492 | Zoustar | Blazing Snitzel | Colt | Newgate Farm, Aberdeen | China Horse Club / Newgate Bloodstock NSW | $425,000 |
| 224 | Almanzor | Perfect Offering | Colt | Lime Country Thoroughbreds Pty Ltd, Burradoo | Haras d'Etreham / Cambridge Stud NEW ZEALAND | $400,000 |
| 396 | Capitalist | Tricky Zippy | Filly | Newgate Farm, Aberdeen | Woodpark Stud NSW | $380,000 |
| 461 | Written Tycoon | Ariaz | Filly | Woodside Park Stud, Nagambie, Vic | James Harron Bloodstock / Freedman Brothers NSW | $380,000 |
| 41 | Invader | Hussidora | Colt | Bell River Thoroughbreds, Glen William | George Moore Bloodstock / Team Moore Racing HONG KONG | $375,000 |
| 309 | Almanzor | She Is Stryking | Colt | Wentwood Grange, Cambridge, NZ | Liam Howley Racing / Andrew Williams Bloodstock / Bevan Smith Bloodstock VIC | $360,000 |
| 514 | Invader | Cariad | Colt | Bell River Thoroughbreds, Glen William | James Harron Bloodstock NSW | $360,000 |
Top buyers
| George Moore Bloodstock / Team Moore Racing | HONG KONG | 5 | $1,440,000 | $288,000 | $625,000 |
| Kavanagh Racing | VIC | 13 | $1,430,000 | $110,000 | $180,000 |
| John Foote Bloodstock | HONG KONG | 8 | $1,395,000 | $174,375 | $270,000 |
| Star Thoroughbreds / Randwick Bloodstock Agency (FBAA) | NSW | 6 | $1,315,000 | $219,167 | $320,000 |
| James Harron Bloodstock | NSW | 3 | $1,140,000 | $380,000 | $600,000 |
| Darby Racing / Will Johnson Bloodstock | NSW | 10 | $1,035,000 | $103,500 | $200,000 |
| MG Price Racing & Breeding Pty Ltd | VIC | 8 | $795,000 | $99,375 | $150,000 |
| Matthew C Smith Racing | NSW | 8 | $765,000 | $95,625 | $160,000 |
| B Ho | HONG KONG | 3 | $680,000 | $226,667 | $280,000 |
| Lindsay Park Racing / Andrew Williams Bloodstock | VIC | 6 | $670,000 | $111,667 | $170,000 |
Top vendors by aggregate
| Newgate Farm, Aberdeen | 29 | $4,140,000 | $142,759 | $425,000 |
| Arrowfield Stud, Scone | 30 | $3,565,000 | $118,833 | $200,000 |
| Yarraman Park Stud, Scone | 18 | $2,530,000 | $140,556 | $320,000 |
| Widden Stud, Widden Valley | 27 | $2,103,000 | $77,889 | $200,000 |
| Sledmere Stud, Scone | 15 | $1,965,000 | $131,000 | $360,000 |
| Kitchwin Hills, Scone | 12 | $1,800,000 | $150,000 | $625,000 |
| Bell River Thoroughbreds, Glen William | 10 | $1,735,000 | $173,500 | $375,000 |
| Lime Country Thoroughbreds Pty Ltd, Burradoo | 13 | $1,590,000 | $122,308 | $400,000 |
| Bhima Thoroughbreds, Scone | 18 | $1,372,500 | $76,250 | $180,000 |
| Middlebrook Valley Lodge, Scone | 13 | $1,310,000 | $100,769 | $300,000 |
Top vendors by average (3 or more sold)
| Woodside Park Stud, Nagambie, Vic | 4 | $220,000 | $880,000 | $380,000 |
| Davali Thoroughbreds, Luskintyre | 6 | $187,500 | $1,125,000 | $600,000 |
| Holbrook Thoroughbreds, Scone | 3 | $176,667 | $530,000 | $280,000 |
| Bell River Thoroughbreds, Glen William | 10 | $173,500 | $1,735,000 | $375,000 |
| Cannon Hayes Stud, Scone | 3 | $173,333 | $520,000 | $240,000 |
| Burke Bloodstock, Martindale | 3 | $160,000 | $480,000 | $230,000 |
| Toolooganvale Farm, Scone | 4 | $156,250 | $625,000 | $270,000 |
| Kitchwin Hills, Scone | 12 | $150,000 | $1,800,000 | $625,000 |
| Newgate Farm, Aberdeen | 29 | $142,759 | $4,140,000 | $425,000 |
| Yarraman Park Stud, Scone | 18 | $140,556 | $2,530,000 | $320,000 |
Top sires by aggregate
| Capitalist | 17 | $3,520,000 | $207,059 | $625,000 |
| Deep Field | 30 | $3,272,500 | $109,083 | $280,000 |
| Hellbent | 24 | $2,500,000 | $104,167 | $300,000 |
| Shalaa | 18 | $2,052,500 | $114,028 | $230,000 |
| Zoustar | 14 | $2,035,000 | $145,357 | $450,000 |
| I Am Invincible | 8 | $1,760,000 | $220,000 | $320,000 |
| Merchant Navy | 21 | $1,685,000 | $80,238 | $220,000 |
| Russian Revolution | 17 | $1,470,000 | $86,471 | $160,000 |
| Pariah | 17 | $1,435,000 | $84,412 | $200,000 |
| Invader | 10 | $1,335,000 | $133,500 | $375,000 |
Top sires by average (3 or more sold)
| Almanzor | 6 | $221,667 | $1,330,000 | $400,000 |
| I Am Invincible | 8 | $220,000 | $1,760,000 | $320,000 |
| Written Tycoon | 4 | $207,500 | $830,000 | $380,000 |
| Capitalist | 17 | $207,059 | $3,520,000 | $625,000 |
| Savabeel | 3 | $176,667 | $530,000 | $200,000 |
| Snitzel | 3 | $153,333 | $460,000 | $200,000 |
| Zoustar | 14 | $145,357 | $2,035,000 | $450,000 |
| Maurice | 8 | $138,750 | $1,110,000 | $170,000 |
| American Pharoah | 6 | $134,167 | $805,000 | $160,000 |
| Invader | 10 | $133,500 | $1,335,000 | $375,000 |
