Many consignors will have breathed a sigh of relief as the Goffs Premier Yearling Sale returned encouraging results on the first day of trade on Tuesday. Statistics were down on 12 months ago, but a pleasing clearance rate of 82% suggested a healthier market than many feared, following selective trade at the breeze-up and store sales.
The day’s average price of £41,048 marked a 14% drop from last year’s overall figure, while the median price fell by 11% to £31,000.
Sarah Fanning was among the vendors celebrating, as her Havana Grey filly topped trade at £240,000, having been bred when the sire sensation stood for £6,000.
The January-born grey, who is the first foal out a 72-rated Showcasing mare, was knocked down to Avenue Bloodstock’s Mark McStay on behalf of Ira Gumberg’s Skara Glen Stables.
Top lot bound for Ireland
“She was a gorgeous filly, she’s got the Queen Mary Stakes written all over her,” McStay said of his prized purchase, before revealing she will be trained by Donnacha O’Brien.
“Havana Grey is a great sire who’s done fantastically well with the likes of Vandeek, Jasour and Elite Status, and his fillies are really good too. Doncaster is renowned for selling very sharp, fast two-year-olds and this filly looks like another one.”
The sale will long live in the memory of Muriel Knox and her son Josh, who bred the session-topper from a band of just five broodmares in North Yorkshire. “My heart was pounding,” exclaimed a delighted, if shaken, Muriel Knox.
"This is our best result in 30 years of breeding by a long, long way. It’s a victory for the smaller breeder! We’ll spend the money on improvements on the farm. It’s made life a lot easier.”
Sarah Fanning’s only other offering of the day, a filly from the first crop of A’Ali, brought £130,000 from Stoud Coleman. The filly continues a fine career for her dam Walaaa, who was bought for just €14,000 and produced a Listed winner as her second foal.
A’Ali is himself a graduate of the Premier Yearling Sale, where he cost Star Bloodstock £35,000, and resold for £135,000 at the venue’s breeze-up sale. The Tally-Ho Stud-bred son of Society Rock went on to win four Group races and began his stallion career at a covering fee of £7,500.
Red Box strikes again
There was a sense of déjà vu early in the session, as a Mehmas colt out of Red Box was sold by Houghton Bloodstock for £240,000, with his brother Redemption Time having topped the 2021 renewal at £220,000.
The buyer on this occasion was Highflyer Bloodstock’s Anthony Bromley, who signed with Phil Cunningham of Rebel Racing. Trainer Richard Spencer joined Bromley in the ring, where the agent relegated Billy Jackson Stops and George Scott to the role of underbidders.
The Highflyer/Cunningham combination bought six lots for a total of £730,000 on Tuesday, including a Dark Angel colt from Yeomanstown Stud for £170,000 and a Sergei Prokofiev colt from Whitsbury Manor Stud for £140,000.
On the day’s trade, Bromley remarked, “The top of the market is very strong as we’re all on the same horses. I think the upper quartile will look robust in the final analysis.”
The Sergei Prokofiev colt mentioned above made an impressive return on Whistbury’s 16,000gns outlay at the Tattersalls December Foal Sale. It was one of a number of fine returns for pinhookers throughout the day, where even the most expensive pinhook returned a profit.
That was Clive Cox’s £170,000 purchase of Lot 243, a Jamie Railton’s Blue Point colt who cost Cigar Bloodstock 110,000gns in December. He was one of 14 yearlings to make a six-figure price on Tuesday, with 18 achieving that accolade at last year’s corresponding session.
Trade resumes at 9.30am on Wednesday.