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ALCOHOL Free will be aimed at all the big-money sprints in Australia next year.
The four-time Group 1 winner was sold at 6pm on Tuesday for 5.4 million guineas at the Tattersalls December Mares Sale.
Sold by owner Jeff Smith, the four-year-old daughter of No Nay Never was bought by Michael Donohoe of BBA Ireland, who was sitting with owner-breeder Zhang Yuesheng of Yulong Investments.
Donohoe said: "We bought the dam of Alcohol Free last year (Plying, €825,000, Goffs) so this filly was always going to be on our radar. The plan is to send her to Australia and race on. The prize money is huge there and we hope to recoup a lot of what we paid for her. She will probably race for another season and then be covered by Frankel, maybe on southern hemisphere time."
Donohoe bought approximately 20 mares for Mr Zhang at Goffs last week and has been busy again in Newmarket this week, buying 25 so far. Many of the BBA Ireland purchases are expected to visit Lucky Vega, the stallion owned by Mr Zhang and standing at the Irish National Stud.
Bidding on Alcohol Free started at one million and quickly rose to three million. The price was rising at 200,000gns increments at this stage and it wasn't long before the five million mark was reached. M.V. Magnier of Coolmore Stud was the underbidder. At 5.2 million, Donohoe went up another 200,000gns and that was enough to secure the prize.
The final price was not far off the record six million paid by Coolmore for sprinting mare Marsha at this sale in 2017.
Saffron Beach
The two-time Group 1 winner Saffron Beach is returning to her own stable on Tuesday tonight, having been purchased for 3.6 million guineas.
She was bought by the Saudi Arabian Najd Stud but stays in training with Jane Chapple-Hyam and the Saudi Cup is her target.
"I am thrilled and very excited," said Chapple-Hyam. "It is a big honour, we have got a good winter to look forward. I think going around the ring she was waiting for the saddle, she was giving a few bops with her backend! She is in good order, she is tough. I believe she will get the nine furlongs in Saudi. Never know about the [dirt] surface but we will give it a go."
A four-year-old by New Bay, Saffron Beach had to be led up by two handlers in front of a packed sale ring. The bidding opened up at 500,000gns, and ended up to a battle between Badgers Bloodstock, who pulled up at 2.9 million, and the Northern Farm representatives and Najd Stud. The Japanese answered every bid very quickly and looked home and hosed at 3.5 million, but Najd Stud threw 3.6 million guineas bid causing Japan to walk away.
Superstar
The filly has been such a superstar for trainer Jane Chapple-Hyam and her owners the Sangster family and James Wigan.
Wigan said: "She has been wonderful for us. She looked fantastic tonight, Jane always has her looking fantastic and has done a wonderful job with her. We are very sorry to see her go, we have had a lot of fun."
Saud Al Qahtani said: "She is for the Saudi Cup, Inshallah she will go to the Saudi Cup, Inshallah she will win it! She has good breeding from the dam's side to act on the dirt, and we like her physically. We thought she would not make that much. We will see about plans after."
Bolger sale
Minutes before Saffron Beach entered the ring, the Jim Bolger-trained Gan Teorainn was sold for one million guineas to BBA Ireland on behalf of owner Zhang Yuesheng.
The two-year-old Saxon Warrior filly has only won one of her seven starts but she also finished second in the Group 1 Prix Marcel Boussac on Arc day at ParisLongchamp.
Like Alcohol Free, she too will race in Australia. "She has a big frame and vetted exceptionally well," said Donohoe.
Clare Manning of Boherguy Stud and granddaughter of Jim Bolger, said: "We brought her here thinking she was worth a million all day long, but to actually get is brilliant, an unbelievable result. She has been an absolute pleasure to deal with and I hope she is lucky for Mr Zhang next year. She is a fine, big filly - people who saw her were surprised how big she is. She has two classic entries for next year and I can't see why she wouldn't be there or thereabouts in both of them."
BBA Ireland also gave 775,000gns for Lady Hayes, a four-year-old Kodiac filly in foal to Frankel. When trained by Roger Varian, Lady Hayes was placed in Group 2 and Group 3 company.
By 5pm on Tuesday, BBA Ireland had spent almost 8.5 million guineas on 32 fillies and mares, making the agency by far the biggest purchaser of the week.
Tranquil Lady
Godolphin paid 2.7 million for Tranquil Lady. Trained by Joseph O'Brien for Teme Valley Racing, the three-year-old filly by Australia won the Group 3 Blue Wind Stakes at Naas in May and the Group 3 Prix de Flore at Saint-Cloud in October.
Minutes later Joseph O'Brien and M.V. Magnier paid 1.25 million guineas for Jumbly, a Group 3 winner this year for trainer Roger Charlton. Jumbly is by Gleneagles out of Group 1 winner Thistle Bird.
Godolphin also spent 1.4 million guineas on Love Is You, a four-year-old Kingman filly who won a listed race and is in foal to St Mark's Basilica.
Coolmore acquisition
M.V. Magnier had earlier paid 1.9 million for the dam of this year's Derby winner, Desert Crown. The 13-year-old Desert Berry (by Green Desert) is in foal to Nathaniel, meaning she is carrying a full-sibling to the unbeaten Derby winner. Desert Berry was sold by Gary Robinson's Strawberry Fields Stud in Cambridgeshire.
Magnier said: "At the end of the day she has bred a Derby winner and from our point of view the Derby is everything, the most important stallion making race, the Holy Grail of racing.
"She has bred a Derby winner, is carrying a full-sibling to a Derby winner, she is a very good mare. We have no plans as yet, but there are a lot of stallions that we could pick, any of the sons of Galileo. There are plenty of options. I heard that Desert Crown is in good form and is going to run next year."
Twomey quartet
One of the big attractions of Tuesday's session was the sale of four top-class fillies trained by Paddy Twomey. Top of the bunch was Group 1 winner Pearls Galore, but she was bought back in for 2.1 million guineas by the vendor.
Twomey trained La Petite Coco to win the Group 1 Pretty Polly Stakes this year and this four-year-old filly was bought by bloodstock agent Hugo Merry for one million guineas. A daughter of Derby winner Ruler Of The World, La Petite Coco was bred by Bernd and Ute Schone in Co Offaly and she was sold privately to Team Valor after showing promise in two maidens.
As well as winning her Group 1, La Petite Coco finished third in the Yorkshire Oaks this year behind future Arc winner Alpinista and future Breeders' Cup heroine Tuesday.
Merry, who was acting on behalf of a new partnership, said of the owners: "They are delighted, definitely want to keep her in training and think there is more to come on the track."
The third Twomey gem, the Group 1-placed Rosscarbery, was sold for one million guineas, while Rumbles Of Thunder, the Group 3 winner by Night Of Thunder, was another BBA Ireland purchase, snapped up for 580,000gns.
This year's Group 3 winner Ville De Grace (by Le Havre) was sold for two million guineas to Lordship Stud (One Agency). Her dam Archangel Gabriel sold for 800,000gns here on Monday night.
The Platinum Queen, the two-year-old filly who defeated her elders in this year's Prix de l'Abbaye, was sold by Middleham Park Racing for 1.2 million guineas to Katsumi Yoshida of Northern Farm in Japan.
The sale continues on Wednesday and concludes on Thursday.
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