TURMOIL reigns in Britain, and the country is set to have its third Prime Minister in 2022 following the resignation of Liz Truss this week.
Meanwhile, stability is the key in bloodstock circles as the yearling sales roll on. Arqana continued the almost inevitable story of a strong demand for flat stock this week, while Goffs are next up with some 550 yearlings on offer at their Autumn Sale. Then Tattersalls Ireland and Tattersalls will bring the curtain down, all in November.
Of course, there are National Hunt yearlings also to be sold in the coming months.
With such strength in the market, attention turns now to what stallions will be added to the roster in Europe for 2023. To date, there have been relatively few to report, though this week alone two important additions were announced.
A few weeks ago it was revealed that the 2021 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner, Torquator Tasso, will stand at Gestüt Auenquelle for an introductory €20,000.
The latter is an important addition to the ranks in Germany, and especially so following the death of his sire Adlerflug last year. Enterprising breeders in Ireland and England will also be considering Torquator Tasso as he comes from the female line of an array of Group 1 and champion sires, among them Galileo, Sea The Stars, Tertullian, King’s Best and Tamayuz.
Here in Ireland we can look forward to welcoming State Of Rest to the ranks at Rathbarry Stud, while Perfect Power and Baaeed are very exciting additions to the teams at Dalham Hall and the Nunnery Stud respectively.
The fee for Stradivarius at the National Stud in Newmarket has already been announced, and he will command £10,000 for his first year at stud.
One sire we are losing to France is Galileo Gold. Co-owned by Tally-Ho Stud and Al Shaqab Racing, he will move to the latter’s Haras de Bouquetot for 2023, in spite of a growing popularity with breeders here.
This year Galileo Gold covered 162, more than quadrupling the numbers of mares serviced in both 2020 and 2021. His first crop, now three-year-olds, include Group 1 winner Ebro River, Group 3 winner and Group1-placed Oscula, and two other stakes winners.
Next week we will start to carry the stallion fees for 2023, though none of the major farms in Ireland or England have announced their plans yet. The story is very different in the USA, and we will chart the ups and downs of the trends as the fees are published. Watch this space.