RECENT point-to-point winner Piper Park topped Friday's Tattersalls Jockey Club Sale at Cheltenham when sold by handler Harley Dunne to British trainer Tom Lacey for £205,000.

The four-year-old daughter of Walk In The Park out of the King’s Theatre mare Shannon Theatre justified being sent off favourite when a debut winner in October at Umma House in Westmeath, winning by two lengths and in a fast time. Dunne had bought the filly, in partnership with Rob James, for €58,000 as a store.

“I was hopeful she’d make that as she’s a beautiful filly,” said Dunne. “She was well entitled to make that, but you just don’t know when you come here. I’m absolutely over the moon for everyone involved in her and all the lads in the yard. She was going down well so I was hopeful she’d get to that kind of money, but you never know until you get into the ring.”

Through the evening’s sale 30 horses sold producing a turnover of £2,300,000. The average price was £74,194 and the median price £58,000, while nine horses realised £100,000 or more. The leading purchaser was Lucinda Russell and Paul McIvor, who bought five lots for a total of £460,000, while the leading consignor was Colin Bowe’s Milestone Stables who sold five lots for a combined total of £383,000.

Colin Bowe's top lot was Honky Tonk Highway, a four-year-old filly by Milan who fetched £165,000, bought by Ryan Mahon and Dan Skelton Racing. She has run once when beating a field of 10 in a fast-run maiden at Tattersalls in Meath at the end of October.

Out of St Gregory, a five-time-winning mare by Presenting, Honky Tonk Highway had been purchased by Bowe for €55,000 as a three-year-old store.

Bloodstock agent Ryan Mahon said: “She has been bought for an existing owner with Dan Skelton. She’s a good staying mare, she jumped well on heavy ground and kept on strongly at the line. There are a few clients at Dan’s who are looking to get a few nice fillies at the moment and this client in particular already has a few so we are just looking to expand on that. With any luck they turn out to be good and then they’ve got some residual value for further down the line.”

Tom Malone and Paul Nicholls were the successful purchasers at £155,000 of Warren Ewing’s Saint Kristobal, a son of Jeu St Eloi. The French-bred four-year-old was a winner at Tattersalls at the end of October and is out of the blacktype mare Belle Josee, the winner of five races and listed-placed in France.

“I am a big fan of the stallion who has been purchased out of France to stand at Glenview Stud with the Cashmans,” said Malone. “Saint Kristobal is a nice sort – he is a big raw horse and a work in progress.”

SALE STATISTICS

Current year Previous year Change %

Catalogued 50 63 -21

Withdrawn 9 8 +13

Offered 41 54 -24

Unsold 10 4 +150

Sold 31 50 -38

Total (gns) 2,300,000 4,288,500 -46

Median (gns) 58,000 63,500 -9

Average (gns) 74,194 85,770 -13

% sold 76% 93% -18