JUST the third staging of the Tattersalls August Sale produced new highs for average and median, while turnover was a shade below last year’s two-day sale.

Once again there was a remarkable clearance rate of 92%, just 19 lots failing to trade in the ring.

There was little surprise that the three-year-old War Front colt Operating topped the sale at 250,000gns. Winner twice in five starts, he sold to Najd Stud for the second-highest price achieved at the sale.

Trained by John and Thady Gosden and offered by The Castlebridge Consignment, he has an official rating of 91.

The Saudi Arabian-based Najd Stud was bidding by telephone through Tattersalls’ Jimmy George, who commented: “The team has been following the sale at home and they had a few on their shortlist that they have had a go at, but Operating was the number one target. He is a nice prospect and very much fits into the mould that the Najd Stud team has bought in the past.”

The colt is a full-brother to Group 3 winner Intelligence Cross and the dual listed winner and Group 1 placed Warning Flag.

Four-time winner

The Castlebridge Consignment also contained the second highest-priced lot of the long session of selling. An opening bid of 160,000gns for the four-time winning Kodiac colt Mr McCann was a tactical, but ultimately futile, ploy to frighten the opposition.

However, interest was strong in the Hugo Palmer-trained colt and the hammer eventually fell at 210,00gns, with Alastair Donald of SackvilleDonald the successful purchaser. The well-regarded colt finished fourth in May in the Group 2 Mehl-Mulhens-Rennen (German 2000 Guineas).

Donald commented: “He is for Bahrain, the same destination as this morning [the agency bought Soapy Stevens for 125,000gns]. They are hard to find; three-year-olds with that kind of rating and that kind of price. He is pretty rock solid; he goes on all ground, he is a good-looking type and vets very well.

Good market

“I think it has been a really good market. I think it makes much more sense to get your money in before the yearling sales and it saves two months’ training fees. For the fast ground horses they are going to lose their ground shortly.”

Mr McCann is out of the Group 1 Prix Marcel Boussac-placed Copperbeech, a daughter of Red Ransom, and was bought for 45,000gns at the Tattersalls December Foal Sale by Mags O’Toole, before reselling for £65,000 as a yearling from Lynn Lodge Stud to SackvilleDonald at Doncaster. SackvilleDonald’s two buys made them the day’s leading purchasers.

The Covex Kid heads to Bahrain

DEMAND from overseas is a feature of sales for horses with form.

A three-year-old son of Mehmas, The Covex Kind has improved from an official rating of 46 in May to his current rating of 80 for trainer Amy Murphy. This prompted frenetic bidding before he was knocked down for 160,000gns to HH Sultan Aldeen MS Al-Khalifa.

Ali Majeed conducted the bidding for the now five-time winner. He said: “The horse is to now be trained by Fawzi Nass in Bahrain. The horse has some improvement, he will suit 10 furlongs and firm ground.”

Bought for £26,000 at the relocated Tattersalls Ireland September Sale, The Covex Kid has given Murphy and her owners great pleasure. She commented: “He has been an absolute dude of a horse. He is really straightforward and has gone from strength to strength throughout the whole summer, and I don’t think he is finished here. It won’t be the last we will hear of him. He has got a great constitution and a great racing brain. He loves fast ground, goes around a bend so well. I think Bahrain will be perfect for him.”

Murphy added: “He has been owned by a syndicate and I am thrilled for them. Hopefully my owners can reinvest in the yearlings, the sales are just around the corner!”

Also travelling abroad is Mostly Cloudy, who has been a dream flag-bearer for trainer Gemma Tutty in her first season with a licence. He has posted an impressive sequence of five wins, and sold for 150,000gns to Mulcaster Bloodstock. Fifth most recently in the Group 2 Lonsdale Cup, the son of Harzand heads to Australia.

Great job

Tattersalls’ Jimmy George was bidding on behalf of Guy Mulcaster, and commented: “Mostly Cloudy was bought very reasonably [23,000gns] here at last year’s Autumn Horses in Training Sale and Gemma Tutty has done a great job with him. He looks an ideal type to go on in Australia.”

Tutty had mixed emotions following the sale. She said: “It is bittersweet. My best horse gone but it has been an amazing return, and hopefully the owners will reinvest. He has really put me on the map and done wonders for the profile of Kings Bloodstock and myself in finding him and buying him. It has been a hell of a journey. We are sorry to see him go, but I hope he has a wonderful career in Australia.”

Nationwide gets ready for export

NATIONWIDE, a four-year-old son of Exceed And Excel who has won four races this year for owner-trainer John Butler, and gone from a handicap mark of 77 in April to 93 was bought for 130,000gns by Oliver St Lawrence for Fawzi Nass.

The new owner said: “He goes to Dubai, for myself and Sheikh Nasser’s Victorious Racing. The horse should be suited by the dirt as he has shown good all-weather form. Hopefully he can transfer that to the dirt in Dubai. He will ship in three weeks’ time. His form has been impressive this year. Maybe we should take John Butler with him to Dubai!”

The four-year-old colt, who was bought by Butler for just 10,000gns at Tattersalls last October, was a €43,000 Tattersalls Ireland September Yearling.

Qatar-bound

Jamie Lloyd was successful at 125,000gns for Zulu Tracker, a son of Footstepsinthesand from Ed Walker Racing. He is set to join another purchase made by the Meah/Lloyd Bloodstock team and head to Qatar.

“He is another for [trainer] Tom Molloy,” Lloyd said. “We bought a younger horse earlier and it is nice to buy him a top-class older horse, something to go to war with.

“He looks like a very progressive type, he has won his last few races and he is on the improve. Footstepsinthesand is one of the most international sires in the catalogue; he can go anywhere in the world and do the job. I am very happy and the trainer is even happier than I am.”

Zulu Tracker, a 50,000gns Tattersalls October Book 2 graduate, has won his last three races, and is now rated 85.

Mahony encouraged by demand

TATTERSALLS chairman Edmond Mahony was understandably pleased with the day’s trade, and said: “We saw records broken across the board at the recent Tattersalls July Sale, and it has been encouraging to see the Tattersalls August Sale follow on in similar fashion.

“This is only the third renewal of the sale, and very much the smallest catalogue for this new fixture, but the level of trade has demonstrated the sustained global demand for horses in training at all levels of the market, and the extraordinary ability of sales of this nature at Tattersalls to attract buyers from throughout the world with such consistency.

“Domestic British and Irish buyers have been competing strongly throughout the day and the diverse international participation has as ever made a huge contribution to a successful sale. The customary strong contingent from the Gulf region has been active from start to finish and the Gulf buyers have faced stiff competition from all corners of the world including Australia, Hong Kong, India and the USA.”