The Weekly Wrap: Hard to Fathom Fashion Cont
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TUESDAY, 3 SEPTEMBER 2019 PEDIGREE INSIGHTS: GHAIYYATH THE WEEKLY WRAP: HARD by Andrew Caulfield TO FATHOM FASHION Dubawi's colourful story is a perfect reminder that attitudes-- and prices--are constantly changing in the bloodstock world. Subject to the usual difficulties which face young stallions before their progeny prove themselves, Dubawi was priced at only ,15,000 in his fourth year in 2009, having attracted no more than 91 mares in 2008. Even that substantial price cut (from i40,000) didn't have the desired effect, with Dubawi's book falling further in 2009, to only 68. Then Dubawi's first crop hit the track running, with the G2 victories by Poet's Voice and Sand Vixen highlighting his considerable potential, and Dubawi began the restoration of his profile which ultimately saw him become Britain's highest-priced stallion in each of the last four years. As his profile rose, Dubawi began to receive more mares sired by the mighty Galileo. Cont. p5 IN TDN AMERICA TODAY LIAM’S MAP COLT TAKES HOPEFUL, ASMUSSEN TRIFECTA Bjorn Nielsen (left) pictured with Stradivarius after his second Basin (Liam’s Map) won the GI Runhappy Hopeful S. during the consecutive Weatherbys Hamilton Stayers= Million | Emma Berry final card of the Saratoga meet. His trainer, Steve Asmussen, saddled the first three home. Click or tap here to go straight to by Emma Berry TDN America. For many of us, the last few weeks have been spent with one eye on the sales ring and the other on the racecourse. It would seem that, other than for those who can continue to be predominantly owner-breeders, the days of being able to breed racehorses with the focus solely on their future days on the track are long gone. It has long been a mystery that the type of horse most people would love to own is now infrequently the type many people set out to breed or to buy as a yearling. A Nathaniel (Ire) filly, anyone? Last year the median price for his yearling fillies was 26,000gns, roughly on a par with his covering fee this season. Yet who wouldn't want to race Enable (GB)? Similarly, try selling a small chestnut colt who is likely to be best at around two miles from his 3-year-old season onwards. Even if he is by the mighty Sea The Stars (Ire), many agents would convince their clients that they should be buying something that could be running at Royal Ascot less than a year later, with the tantalising possibility of being offered eye-watering sums from a buyer in Hong Kong. Longevity is now rarely a consideration. Cont. p2 TDN EUROPE • PAGE 2 OF 10 • THETDN.COM TUESDAY • 3 SEPTEMBER 2019 Doncaster give a better indication of what is to come in the lower tiers of the market. Hard to Fathom Fashion Cont. from p1 The questions regularly asked are whether there are too many With British prize-money dramatically sales, too many horses being bred, too much racing or too few off-kilter with most of the rest of the world owners coming into the sport, and all of those could reasonably and likely only to regress, it is hard to argue be answered with a boost to prize-money. But, just like Boris with such a business proposition-despite the Johnson, despite his grandiose fiscal promises, British racing has obvious risks involved--except to say, where is no magic money tree. The situation could be eased, however, the fun in that? with a fairer spread. Fortunately for Bjorn Nielsen, he took the As far as we are able to take any sale at face value when there view that it was better to keep the diminutive are plenty of new sires to be promoted, the Premier Sale figures Stradivarius (Ire) to race himself when bidding in the ring didn't are encouraging, especially the clearance rate. The presence of a reach the required amount. The horse's earnings of almost ,2.5 solitary Kingman (GB) colt, both at Goffs UK and in million tell only part of the story as he has another ,2 million in Baden-Baden, made a big difference to the overall feel, with a Weatherbys Hamilton bonuses to add to that tally. ,440,000 record-breaker on Tuesday followed by a i700,000 It's not really about the money at that level though, is it? For top-priced colt in Germany--a sum which was overshadowed two glorious seasons Stradivarius has remained unbeaten. For only by the sale of Gestut Brummerhof's Sea The Stars filly at all that Nielsen has publicly (and admirably) stated that his life's i820,000, which set a new high for the sale by more than ambition is to breed a Derby winner, it is hard to imagine that i100,000. any other horse will bring him such a sustained level of joy as his wonderful staying champion. Now that we know this 5-year-old so well, equally importantly it is a joy in which all those who love racing can share. Really the only upside to staying stallions being out of favour with commercial breeders is that we are likely to be given the chance to see Stradivarius race on next season. But it's a strange old world in which horses who barely raised a flicker of public interest on the racecourse are suddenly flavour of the month at stud and at the sales--for one season at least. A Tale Of Two Sales On the face of it, the European yearling sales season has started in perhaps stronger fashion that might have been imagined, with improved figures at Arqana August and new records set at the Goffs UK Premier Sale and at BBAG. It is also Frank Dorff, Dr. Guenter Paul and Jocelyn de Moubray of Gestut likely that the sobering figures at the one-day Silver Sale in Rottgen with Matt Coleman | Emma Berry TDN EUROPE • PAGE 3 OF 10 • THETDN.COM TUESDAY • 3 SEPTEMBER 2019 The Weekly Wrap: Hard to Fathom Fashion Cont. Charlie Vigors, who consigned the Goffs UK sale-topper on behalf of his breeders Bob and Pauline Scott, said they took a chance that the colt would stand out in Doncaster, and so he did. With 51 yearlings by the young Juddmonte sire to come in Books 1 and 2 at Tattersalls October, it was a smart move. For breeder Gestut Rottgen, which sold the Kingman colt at Vice President, International Operations Gary King BBAG, it was the only time the operation had used the stallion. It Twitter: @garykingTDN probably won't be the last. Agents representing four [email protected] international entities went after him and, as is often the case, + 1.732.320.0975 Sheikh Mohammed had the final say. The hard-working Matt Coleman did a pretty good Where's Wally impression in International Editor Baden-Baden, popping up in his striped polo shirt among the Kelsey Riley crowd in varying locations all over the sales arena to bid on four Twitter: @kelseynrileyTDN horses throughout the day for Godolphin. The agent's tenacity [email protected] gave the sale a huge boost, with almost a quarter of the European Editor turnover coming through the exchange of those two fillies and Emma Berry two colts. Twitter: @collingsberry Similarly, Angus Gold at Doncaster on Sheikh Hamdan's behalf [email protected] accounted for more than 10% of the Premier Sale aggregate. Associate International Editor Australians Adjusting Focus Heather Anderson Twitter: @HLAndersonTDN For a number of years, the pilgrimage for Australian buyers looking for European stayers was to Newmarket for the Marketing Manager Tattersalls Horses-in-Training Sale. With plenty of private deals Alayna Cullen for such horses now commonplace throughout the season, a Twitter: @AlaynaCullen number of those buyers have taken a step farther back in the [email protected] chain to buy middle-distance yearlings, and the BBAG sale, with its plethora of stock from proven stamina-led families, seems Contributing Editor the perfect place to start. Alan Carasso Twitter: @EquinealTDN As featured in the TDN last week, this has been the method employed by Australian Bloodstock for some years now, and Cafe Racing others, such as Brad Spicer, are following suit. Sean Cronin It is not a practice restricted to Australian buyers either. A Tom Frary shrewd syndicate of British owners has also targeted the BBAG [email protected] sale over a number of years with the aim of finding value in the yearling market to race middle-distance horses in Britain for Irish Correspondent several seasons in the hope that they will achieve a level that is Daithi Harvey enticing to Southern Hemisphere buyers. Regular Columnists Whichever tactic is deployed--either finding a whizz-bang Chris McGrath | Andrew Caulfield 2-year-old or a longer-term prospect--the aim remains the John Berry | Kevin Blake same: to sell that horse to the highest bidder overseas. A successful outcome in this scenario naturally should mean reinvestment in young stock from those parties, but it is a IN TDN AUS/NZ TODAY situation which gives rise to mixed feelings. In many ways, it is a source of pride that bloodlines in this part THE ART OF THE DEAL of the world are still so respected and in demand, but it is part Bren O’Brien speaks with Jake Norton of the Melbourne Racing of a precarious situation for the European countries as racing Club about the MRC’s Everest scheme. Click or tap here to go nations. Cont. p4 straight to TDN Aus/NZ.