Cover image courtesy of Inglis
At A Glance
The Sale average increased to $19,202 up from $17,566 in 2020 and $15,797 in 2019.
The median increased slightly on last year's mark of $10,000 to reach $12,000, the same level as 2019.
The overall gross of $5.05 million was over double what the Sale realised last year, with 263 horses sold compared to 136.
The bigger catalogue also contributed to a softer overall clearance rate of 80 per cent, short of the 86 per cent achieved in 2020 and 90 per cent in 2019.
The Sale-topping colt, Lot 238, by Russian Revolution, was offered by Kingstar Farm, and was initially secured for just $18,000 as a weanling.
The second-highest price on Day 2 was the $85,000 that Darby Racing paid for Lot 236, a filly by Capitalist.
Darby Racing ended the Sale's biggest buyer, spending $228,500 across six yearlings.
Vinery Stud was the most successful vendor on aggregate, with $437,000 in sales across 14 yearlings.
Russian Revolution colt destined for Singapore
It was bloodstock agent Bevan Smith who came together with Singaporean digital health businessman Kuldeep Singh Rajput to secure the day's top lot, paying $145,000 for the colt by Russian Revolution offered by Kingstar Farm.
Rajput's burgeoning thoroughbred interests have seen Smith busy buying several yearlings in Australia this season for him, including Lot 238, the colt out of Lucinda's Moon (USA) (Malibu Moon {USA}), who is headed to Singapore-based trainer Michael Clements.
Lot 238 - Russian Revolution x Lucinda's Moon (USA) (colt) | Image courtesy of Inglis
Smith picked him out early-on as his best of the Sale and was rapt to have won the bidding dual for him.
"He was the nicest colt here at the Sale, I thought. I saw a lot of Snitzel in him to be honest. Obviously, Russian Revolution is a first-season sire, who was a very good racehorse and a son of Snitzel and I could see a lot of Snitzel there. A lot of others have made the same remark as well," Smith told TDN AusNZ.
"That's why he was so popular. He was just a really good, athletic horse, a good size, had a good walk. That sireline really appealed and he was the one here that we wanted to buy."
"That's why he (Lot 238) was so popular. He was just a really good, athletic horse, a good size, had a good walk. That sireline really appealed and he was the one here that we wanted to buy." - Bevan Smith
His dam is an unraced sister to juvenile Grade 3 winner Moonwalk (USA), and a half-sister to ThatswhatImean (USA) (Belong To Me {USA}), who won a Listed China Doll S. at Santa Anita as a 3-year-old.
It's a pedigree big on speed and precocity and Smith expects the colt to be ready to hit the ground running when he does reach Singapore, after going through breaking-in and pre-training in New Zealand.
"Being destined for Singapore, we are always pretty patient with the horses, with 2-year-old races not really being big up there, he won't be pushed early," he said.
"He’ll go through our system, get broken in in New Zealand, trial up and then head to Singapore and I’d expect him to be up there fairly early by Singapore terms and he looks like a nice, fast, sprinting type."
Bevan Smith (middle) signs the docket for Lot 238 | Image courtesy of Inglis
Among Smith's four previous purchases in partnership with Rajput this year was a colt by Shalaa (Ire) for $160,000 at the recent Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale.
"Kuldeep has been great. He's new to the game, but he is very enthusiastic and given it a good crack. We have bought some very nice horses here in Australia. We also bought two 2-year-olds at OBS Sale in America last week as well," he said.
"We are building a nice team of horses for him and it’s a very exciting time to have someone like Kuldeep on board. He's wanting to buy quality, so it’s nice being able to go to the sales and buy the ones you do want."
Sandblom's smart purchase
The colt was originally a canny $18,000 digital purchase by Kingstar Farm owner Matthew Sandblom at the Inglis August Digital Sale. The colt generated a 705 per cent return on that modest initial investment.
"Matthew picked him out online as a weanling and it was good picking by him," Kingstar Farm's Manager, Adam Cook, said. "He's been nurtured down at Hollymount Stud until nine weeks before the Sale, where we got him into prep up at Kingstar."
Adam Cook | Image courtesy of Inglis
Cook said the colt had just continued to bloom ahead of the Sale and the level of interest in him always pointed to a good result.
"Coming into the prep, he was a nice horse, and then he improved throughout the prep. When we got him down here to the sales complex, immediately he was busy. So we were quietly confident in the days leading up, given the parades he had and x-ray hits. We went into the Sale with confidence and got a result that we were thrilled with."
The dam, Lucinda's Moon, was purchased by Scott McQueen at last year's Inglis Australian Broodmare Sale and was sent to Capitalist last spring.
Pinhook result highlights pleasing Sale for Inglis
Inglis General Manager Bloodstock Sales and Marketing, Sebastian Hutch, said the pinhook result was well-deserved for Kingstar Farm and Sandblom.
"It’s a pretty spectacular pinhook by anyone's measure and he’ll rank amongst the best pinhooks of the year by percentage profit, that's quite a fantastic effort," Hutch said.
"It’s a pretty spectacular pinhook by anyone's measure and he’ll (Lot 238) rank amongst the best pinhooks of the year by percentage profit, that's quite a fantastic effort." - Sebastian Hutch
"It’s credit to the team at Kingstar and they are great supporters of ours. Matthew Sandblom is a tremendous supporter of the industry as a whole, and he is active as both a vendor and buyer here and his passion for the industry is something we are very grateful for."
It was the first time the HTBA May Sale has been staged in this format, having been held in a COVID-19 impacted environment last year, while prior to that it was staged as the Scone Yearling Sale.
The strong results in turnover appear a strong vindication for Inglis' decision to move the Sale to its main Riverside Stables complex ad expand the catalogue.
"There are a lot of reasons to be very pleased. We have had turnover of $5 million, with a clearance rate of 80 per cent or above, and we’ve had 23 horses reach $50,000 or more. The top-priced lot today is the second highest price in the history of this Sale whether it be the HTBA May Sale or the old Scone Sale, so there's a lot of reasons to be very pleased," Hutch said.
"We had profiles of people who would have never traditionally been involved in the Sale, engaged over the last two days. That's very encouraging. They are not just New South Wales buyers, but interstate trainers and we have had some good interest from South-East Asian countries. There seems to be very good scope for this Sale to grow."
Darby dials in
Darby Racing picked up six yearlings across the two days, including the day's second top-price for a filly by leading first-season sire Capitalist.
Lot 236 was offered by Riversdale and she is out of Loveitt (Sebring), who is a half-sister to multiple stakes winner Mimi Lebrock (Show A Heart) and Group 3 winner Heavenly Thought (So You Think {NZ}) and a sister to Group 3 winner Shoko. It is also the family of G3 Black Opal S. winner Barbaric (I Am Invincible).
Lot 236 - Capitalist x Loveitt (filly) | Image courtesy of Inglis
Darby Racing also bought Lot 11, a colt by Flying Artie for $50,000, Lot 226, a filly by Vancouver for $35,000, Lot 311, a colt by Sooboog for $25,000, Lot 36, a colt by Supido for $23,500 and Lot 266, a colt by Bon Hoffa for $10,000.
In other noteworthy results, Michael Costa Racing secured a filly by Dawn Approach (Ire), who sired the winner of Saturday's G1 English 2000 Guineas, Poetic Flare (Ire). Lot 282, from Tyreel Stud was purchased for $72,000.
Another stallion which had a big weekend, Star Turn, secured a strong result of $70,000 for Lot 348, a colt offered by Vinery Stud which was purchased by Lees Racing. Star Turn had his first stakes winner in Miss Hipstar on Saturday as well as his first winner in Hong Kong.
Lot 348 - Star Turn x Spotty Socks (colt) | Image courtesy of Inglis
Attention now turns to the Inglis Australian Weanling Sale, which begins at 10am AEST on Thursday.
"It's a busy time and the focus of our team has been on the Yearling Sale for the last few days, but it’s been eye-catching the amount of people already out inspecting weanlings," Hutch said.
"There is strong foot traffic here from primarily pinhookers, but other parties as well. It feels like interest in the better weanlings will be very strong."
Top lots
| 238 | Russian Revolution | Lucinda's Moon | Colt | Kingstar Farm, Denman | Kuldeep Singh Rajput / Bevan Smith Bloodsock SINGAPORE | $145,000 |
| 165 | Capitalist | Glistening Light | Colt | Huntworth Stud, Exeter | P Moffatt / Mitchell Williams Bloodstock VIC | $140,000 |
| 81 | Ocean Park | Brooklyn Roads | Colt | Riversdale, Scone | Merchant Bloodstock NSW | $85,000 |
| 236 | Capitalist | Loveitt | Filly | Riversdale, Scone | Darby Racing NSW | $85,000 |
| 141 | Star Witness | Elsewhere | Colt | Tyreel Stud, Agnes Banks | John Foote Bloodstock QLD | $80,000 |
| 40 | Russian Revolution | Adorabeel | Filly | Fairview Park Stud, Grose Wold | John Foote Bloodstock / Matthew Smith Racing NSW | $75,000 |
| 98 | Deep Field | Chinner Street | Colt | Murrulla Stud, Wingen | Dullingham Pty Ltd QLD | $75,000 |
| 282 | Dawn Approach | Novena | Filly | Tyreel Stud, Agnes Banks | Michael Costa Racing QLD | $72,000 |
| 34 | Pariah | Watchful Eyes | Colt | Murrulla Stud, Wingen | Upper Bloodstock HONG KONG | $70,000 |
| 348 | Star Turn | Spotty Socks | Colt | Vinery Stud, Scone | Lees Racing NSW | $70,000 |
Top buyers
| Darby Racing | NSW | 6 | $228,500 | $38,083 | $85,000 |
| T Martin | NSW | 10 | $214,000 | $21,400 | $42,000 |
| Kuldeep Singh Rajput / Bevan Smith Bloodsock | SINGAPORE | 1 | $145,000 | $145,000 | $145,000 |
| P Moffatt / Mitchell Williams Bloodstock | VIC | 2 | $143,000 | $71,500 | $140,000 |
| Joseph & Jones Racing | NSW | 6 | $138,000 | $23,000 | $48,000 |
| John Foote Bloodstock / Matthew Smith Racing | NSW | 3 | $125,000 | $41,667 | $75,000 |
| Michael Costa Racing | QLD | 3 | $121,000 | $40,333 | $72,000 |
| John Foote Bloodstock | QLD | 2 | $104,000 | $52,000 | $80,000 |
| Merchant Bloodstock | NSW | 1 | $85,000 | $85,000 | $85,000 |
| Dullingham Pty Ltd | QLD | 1 | $75,000 | $75,000 | $75,000 |
Top vendors by aggregate
| Vinery Stud, Scone | 14 | $437,000 | $31,214 | $70,000 |
| Middlebrook Valley Lodge, Scone | 20 | $310,500 | $15,525 | $42,000 |
| Kingstar Farm, Denman | 10 | $310,000 | $31,000 | $145,000 |
| Murrulla Stud, Wingen | 9 | $270,500 | $30,056 | $75,000 |
| Huntworth Stud, Exeter | 4 | $224,000 | $56,000 | $140,000 |
| Riversdale, Scone | 6 | $217,500 | $36,250 | $85,000 |
| Goodwood Farm, Murrurundi | 8 | $210,000 | $26,250 | $60,000 |
| Fairview Park Stud, Grose Wold | 8 | $207,500 | $25,938 | $75,000 |
| Tyreel Stud, Agnes Banks | 3 | $196,000 | $65,333 | $80,000 |
| Evergreen Stud Farm, Heatherbrae | 8 | $195,000 | $24,375 | $35,000 |
Top vendors by average (3 or more sold)
| Tyreel Stud, Agnes Banks | 3 | $65,333 | $196,000 | $80,000 |
| Huntworth Stud, Exeter | 4 | $56,000 | $224,000 | $140,000 |
| Riversdale, Scone | 6 | $36,250 | $217,500 | $85,000 |
| Twin Hills Stud, Cootamundra | 4 | $35,750 | $143,000 | $55,000 |
| Ashleigh Thoroughbreds, Scone | 5 | $33,700 | $168,500 | $48,000 |
| Vinery Stud, Scone | 14 | $31,214 | $437,000 | $70,000 |
| Kingstar Farm, Denman | 10 | $31,000 | $310,000 | $145,000 |
| Murrulla Stud, Wingen | 9 | $30,056 | $270,500 | $75,000 |
| Holbrook Thoroughbreds, Scone | 4 | $28,000 | $112,000 | $54,000 |
| Goodwood Farm, Murrurundi | 8 | $26,250 | $210,000 | $60,000 |
Top sires by aggregate
| Capitalist | 9 | $430,000 | $47,778 | $140,000 |
| Star Turn | 10 | $284,000 | $28,400 | $70,000 |
| Flying Artie | 12 | $275,000 | $22,917 | $50,000 |
| Russian Revolution | 4 | $250,000 | $62,500 | $145,000 |
| Press Statement | 10 | $222,500 | $22,250 | $60,000 |
| Dissident | 11 | $198,000 | $18,000 | $65,000 |
| Deep Field | 4 | $188,000 | $47,000 | $75,000 |
| Star Witness | 4 | $161,000 | $40,250 | $80,000 |
| Pariah | 5 | $139,000 | $27,800 | $70,000 |
| Dawn Approach | 3 | $132,000 | $44,000 | $72,000 |
Top sires by average (3 or more sold)
| Russian Revolution | 4 | $62,500 | $250,000 | $145,000 |
| Capitalist | 9 | $47,778 | $430,000 | $140,000 |
| Deep Field | 4 | $47,000 | $188,000 | $75,000 |
| Dawn Approach | 3 | $44,000 | $132,000 | $72,000 |
| Invader | 3 | $41,000 | $123,000 | $50,000 |
| Star Witness | 4 | $40,250 | $161,000 | $80,000 |
| So You Think | 3 | $33,333 | $100,000 | $55,000 |
| Headwater | 4 | $28,625 | $114,500 | $62,000 |
| Star Turn | 10 | $28,400 | $284,000 | $70,000 |
| Pariah | 5 | $27,800 | $139,000 | $70,000 |
