SUPERLATIVES are in short supply to describe many of the recent European sales of bloodstock, the levels of trade at the upper echelons fuelled by the market presence of many acquisitive players, all keen to get their hands on the best bloodlines and racing prospects available.

The story is different in the lower reaches, but Tattersalls has consistently been reporting new heights reached for the sale-markers based on turnover (an all-time record), average and median. The demand for the best on offer is a global phenomenon, and books of quality stock, such as that compiled by Tattersalls for their December Mares Sale, are seeing buyers prepared to pay a premium for the crème de la crème.

All but a pair of the 23 lots to bring 600,000gns or more this week were offered at one of the two Sceptre Sessions, and 20 of these were during Tuesday’s second lot. Ten lots realised a million guineas or greater, all of whom were coming off the track, many to continue to race and others to be mated in the spring.

The Group 1 Irish Oaks winner You Got To Me has the honour of being the third-highest priced filly or mare sold at the December Sale when making 4,800,000gns to Amo Racing. The main players in the bid to acquire her were Will Walden, Graham Smith-Bernal of Newsells Park Stud - who was a part-owner of the classic winner - and Kia Joorabchian who was with agent Alex Elliott. Some amusing banter from auctioneer Alastair Pim did not take from the seriousness of the business at hand when Joorabchian landed the winning bid.

’The one’

“We are trying to do the right thing,” Joorabchian said afterwards. “We have to compete and we have been trying to compete for many years, and have probably burnt so much cash by trying to pick ‘the next one’. Why try to pick ‘the next one’ when you have ‘the one’ here?

“Ralph Beckett wants her back, and I said as long as he does not injure her, he can have her back! If she stays in training, she is not a horse to take away from her current trainer, and Ralph has done a wonderful job with her.

“We were getting to a point that we were thinking she was overpriced, but she could be very cheap in the long run. At least we know she is proven; she won the Irish Oaks amazingly, and I am so happy because the guys that owned her, Valmont, are dear friends of mine.”

You Got To Me is a Tattersalls December Foal Sale graduate of 2021 when bought by BBA Ireland for 62,000gns, and then a Book 2 yearling when purchased by Alex Elliott for 200,000gns.

Two other significant purchases by Amo Racing, who spent 8,375,000gns this week on 10 lots, were Oghill House Stud’s Sweety Dream for 775,000gns and Watership Down Stud’s Hidden Dimples for 600,000gns. Sweety Dream is carrying a Night Of Thunder full-brother to Group 3 winner Romantic Style who ran fourth in this year’s Group 1 Poule d’Essai des Pouliches-French 1000 Guineas.

A Group 3 winner herself, Sweety Dream’s first three foals are winners, and two are blacktype winners.

Hidden Dimples is a French stakes winner by Frankel, and she is in foal for the first time to Too Darn Hot. Her stakes-placed dam is a half-sister to Group 2 winner Gregorian who was runner-up in the Group 1 Prix Jean Prat.

TWO wildcard entries were among the 10 seven-figure lots this week.

Leading the way was Graffard Racing’s Vertical Blue, a daughter of Mehmas and one of the best European juvenile fillies of the year. She sold to Resolute Bloodstock for 3,200,000gns. The first foal of her dam, a dual winning daughter of Sea The Stars, Vertical Blue won the Group 1 Prix Marcel Boussac on her most recent start.

John Stewart of Resolute Bloodstock bid online, leaving Newsells Park’s Graham Smith-Bernal as underbidder. The filly was bought as a yearling for €50,000. Speaking by telephone from the USA, Stewart said: “Vertical Blue was my number one pick, and I had targeted her. I know a lot about the filly as she is trained by Francis-Henri Graffard and he trains Goliath for me. She will be going back to be trained by him.”

Of his other Sceptre Session purchases, Stewart said: “The others will be coming to the US and will be staying in training. I want to dominate turf racing at Keeneland, I want to do an Aidan O’Brien there, and around 80% of my horses are turf horses. The horses I have bought will act on a soft track.

“I have been very busy with work – the horses are something for the spare time – and I was unable to attend in person. The Tattersalls staff have been very helpful, as well as my general manager Gavin O’Connor and Francis-Henri Graffard, who has looked at the horses for me.”

Irish purchases

Two other notable purchases by Resolute were Village Voice for 1,300,000gns and A Lilac Rolla for 1,000,000gns. Both fillies were trained in Ireland. Village Voice was consigned by Simmonstown Stud for her owners, bloodstock journalist and consultant Bill Oppenheim, departing Tattersalls marketing director Jimmy George, and bloodstock agent Patrick Cooper.

The four-year-old daughter of Zarak won the Group 3 Prix de Flore at Saint-Cloud and was purchased by BBA Ireland for 38,000gns at the Tattersalls Guineas Breeze Up Sale in 2022. She was trained by Jessica Harrington. Village Voice last time out finished fourth in the Group 1 British Champions Fillies and Mares Stakes at Ascot.

The Group 1 Irish 1000 Guineas runner-up and Group 1 Falmouth Stakes third A Lilac Rolla also fell to an online bid from Stewart’s Resolute Bloodstock. The three-year-old filly by Harry Angel was trained by Paddy Twomey to win the Group 3 Leopardstown 1000 Guineas Trial. She was a Tattersalls Ireland September Yearling Sale-purchase by Amanda Skiffington for €40,000 from Castledillon Stud.

Coleman collects

A second wildcard to sell for seven-figures was the juvenile The Palace Girl, She made 1,550,000gns, bought by John Sykes’ Florida-based Woodford Thoroughbreds and consigned by Kevin Coleman’s Slievebrook House.

“She’s beautiful. She had to be to make that,” said Coleman. “The pedigree update, what she’s done herself, the company she was in that day, and what she’s done here this week. She’s a very nice filly and everyone’s going to be delighted. It means we can pay for the yearlings we bought this year! We have about 35 in and we’re maxed out at this.”

A daughter of Areion, The Palace Girl was runner-up to Aidan O’Brien’s Giselle on her only start at the Curragh, while her year-older half-sister Tamfana won the Group 1 Sun Chariot Stakes and placed in the Group 1 Prix de Diane-French Oaks.

Also this week Woodford Thoroughbreds paid 750,000gns for the Sioux Nation Group 3-winning four-year-old Oujda, offered from The Castlebridge Consignment. She landed the Prix de Seine-et-Oise at the end of October for owner Orla Murtagh and trained by her husband Johnny. The filly had been listed-placed once in France when acquired privately by the Murtaghs during the summer.

FINISHING in the first four in six Group 1 races for trainer George Boughey and owners Highclere Thoroughbred Racing, and gaining the best of her six wins in the Group 2 Sapphire Stakes at the Curragh, was enough to entice M.V. Magnier to spend 3,000,000gns on the four-year-old Mehmas filly Believing. She is going back to Boughey’s Saffron House Stables, with the aim of winning a Group 1.

Bidding opened at 500,000gns and narrowed to Blandford Bloodstock’s Richard Brown and an online bidder, until Magnier made his first bid at 2,700,000gns, rounding up the opposing 2,800,000gns bid to 3,000,000gns. Boughey said: “I had a suspicion that she could make what she did, but it is great for Highclere to have such good fillies to race, and the shareholders are a great group who have travelled around the world with her. It is a perfect ending for them.

“We have had a few horses lately for Coolmore connections and we are delighted to have a filly to race at a high level for such a great operation.”

River Of Stars, a five-year-old daughter of Sea The Stars and winner of four races, including the Group 3 Bronte Cup, sold for 1,650,000gns, bought by Oakley Creek. She was trained by Ralph Beckett for Woodford Thoroughbreds, who purchased her as a foal for 400,000gns. She finished second last time out in the Group 1 Prix de Royallieu. Beckett said: “She has been a joy to campaign thanks to her robust constitution, and you’d be very hopeful she’ll make a terrific broodmare.”

Lumiere Rock

Narvick International, for Grand Stud, spent 1,300,000gns for the four-year-old Group 2 Blandford Stakes winner Lumiere Rock, a daughter of Saxon Warrior, whose placed efforts included running third in the Group 1 Prix de l’Opera.

A 55,000gns yearling, she raced for Michael O’Flynn and was trained by Joseph O’Brien. The same purchasers spent 900,000gns to secure August’s Grade 2 Flower Bowl Stakes winner Idea Generation, a daughter of Dubawi and part of the draft from European Sales Management.

Also selling for the same amount was the Henry de Bromhead-trained Term Of Endearment, and this five-year-old Sea The Moon mare was a 50,000gns yearling.

Three of Term Of Endearment’s four wins were at pattern level, including the Group 2 Lillie Langtry Stakes at Goodwood. She has won some £290,000 during her career to date. Term Of Endearment was the star of the draft from Alex Elliott’s Imperium Sales.

NOEL Meade was at the Horse Racing Ireland awards on Monday night when Caught U Looking, the three-year-old daughter of Harzand that he trained to win the Group 3 Park Stakes at two, and who ended her second season with a listed win at Naas, was going through the sale ring at Tattersalls.

He looked quite shocked, but obviously delighted, when he learned that she has sold for the best price of the day, realising 1,800,000gns to Yulong Investments, signing as Willingham.

Caught U Looking was consigned by Tally-Ho Stud who owned her in partnership with her breeders, Peter and Sabina Kelly, and they stood together as she was knocked down to the online bidders.

An opening bid of 200,000gns was quickly advanced to Federico Barberini’s offer of a million guineas, while Amo Racing’s Kia Joorabchian and Will Walden, sitting with John Sykes, played prominent roles. The last-named duo ended as underbidders.

Peter Kelly explained how he and Sabina remained involved: “I bred her and always wanted to stay in her. Noel Meade wanted to buy her and so, when he bought her, I stayed in for a half. Tony was then interested in her and so he bought in. I was so chuffed that he wanted part of a horse I had bred. He has been a wonderful partner the whole way. I knew she was going to go better than I had hoped as she had 12 or 13 vets, and the right people were on her.”

An emotional Sabina added: “Oh my gosh! It was incredible, she has always been a pet, we have always loved her. I am in shock, it is amazing! We weren’t expecting that. She is a superb filly, and it is sad to see her go, but she has been brilliant and we have had a great season.”

Next Via Sistina?

Purchaser Vin Cox of Willingham said: “She has been bought to race on. We want to do a Via Sistina [bought last year for 2,700,000gns and winner of five Group 1 races since in Australia] with her. Bids were coming from all corners of the auditorium, which is great as you want to see competition. You hate to be the only one out there. She made around where we thought we might end up. She is well-performed filly; she has a pretty good profile to race on.

“We are not suggesting that she could turn into the same sort of horse [as Via Sistina]. We’d love her to, but you need to keep the feet on the ground and hope she can win some nice races.

“It is no secret that staying horses from this part of the world can perform exceptionally well in Australia, and she has already performed well. James Ferguson did a great job with Via Sistina last year, so we will probably send her to James and he can look after her for the short term and then we will put her on a plane.”

In addition to her wins, Caught U Looking ran well at Group 1 level and finished fifth in the Oaks and the Irish Oaks, and sixth in the Fillies’ Mile. She is out of the Mastercraftsman mare Wild Mix, who was bought through Emerald Bloodstock at the Tattersalls Autumn Horses In Training Sale for 7,000gns. Caught U Looking is her first foal. She had a colt by Supremacy in 2023 who was bought by Karl, Kelly and Lucy Burke for 220,000gns in Book 1, a filly by Cotai Glory this spring, and was covered by New Bay.

Coolmore invests

The first Sceptre Session also saw a pair of 625,000gns lots. The three-year-old Showcasing filly Unbreak My Heart was first, bought by M.V. Magnier from Whitsbury Manor Stud where she was bred by the Harper family. Magnier said: “It’s a family we know very well as we have her Group 2-winning half-sister Heartache, who has produced Salt Lake City and Exactly for us. Exactly is an exciting two-year-old by Frankel who has been third in a couple of Group 1s this season and we are excited about her for next year.

“Ed Harper and his father have been very good breeders for a long time now and this is a great family that has produced blacktype horses in every generation. She will go to either City Of Troy or Auguste Rodin.” Unbreak My Heart won last year at two and ended her juvenile season by running third in the Group 3 Cornwallis Stakes.

Shortly afterwards, Ringfort Stud sold the Fastnet Rock mare Rocana to Charlie Gordon Watson for 625,000gns. Carrying to first season sire Chaldean, she is the dam of two stakes winners with her first three foals, the Group 3 Chester Vase hero Youth Spirit and the Listed Feilden Stakes winner Canberra Legend.

“We had a bit of luck with a pinhook, we like Fastnet Rock, and she is for Too Darn Hot,” said Gordon Watson who was buying the mare on behalf of Watership Down Stud. The bit of luck was with the mare’s two-year-old son Echala. A son of Too Darn Hot, he was sold to Gordon Watson for Watership Down for 150,000gns as a foal, and resold as a yearling for double that figure.