Hipodromos y caballos - Racetracks and horses BloodStockReview2013 | Page 66

66 1 B R E E D I N G-S T O C K S A L E S Record-breaker Immortal Verse hits right note at 4,700,000gns fRANKEL FACTOR AND HIGH-LEVEL DISPERSAL PAVE WAY FOR NEW HIGH MARKS AT tATTERSALLS AND gOFFS WHILE bREEDERS’ cUP STARS LIGHT UP THE ACTION IN kENTUCKY by Sophia Barnett TATTERSALLS DECEMBER As a climax to a record-breaking year at Park Paddocks, the Tattersalls December Breeding Stock Sale saw the European record broken for a broodmare when the hammer fell on dual Group 1 winner Immortal Verse at 4,700,000gns. Purchased by Adrian Nicoll of BBA Ireland for Coolmore, Immortal Verse surpassed by 100,000gns the sum paid for Magical Romance in 2006. In foal to Dansili, Coronation Stakes and Prix Jacques le Marois heroine Immortal Verse was one of five mares to breach the million-guinea barrier during the four-day breeding-stock section of the auction. Of the ten mares offered in foal to the mighty Frankel, it was unsurprisingly the Oaks winner Dancing Rain who drew the most attention. In a sales ring packed more fully than many could remember, the daughter of Danehill Dancer was fought over by Grant Pritchard-Gordon, David Minton and Rob Speers before John Ferguson purchased her for Sheikh Mohammed with a single winning bid of 4,000,000gns. The Frankel factor was also at play in the purchase of the Group-winning Dansili mare Dream Peace. Although not yet at stud, the mare was purchased for 2,700,000gns by Hugo Lascelles with the intention of covering her with the great champion in the spring. Coolmore were also in action via agent Stephen Hillen, securing the Cheveley Park Stakes heroine Rosdhu Queen for 2,100,000gns, while another young Group-winning filly, Purr Along, became the fifth lot of the week to make seven figures when purchased by a partnership between Newsells Park Stud and Sheikh Fahad Al Thani for 1,000,000gns. Returns soared across the board for the four-day mares’ segment, with the aggregate of 62,997,700gns an increase of more than 43 per cent on last year and the highest aggregate achieved since the pre-recession sale of 2007. The average of 87,497gns was a rise of nearly 52 per cent and the median gained 47.4 per cent to 28,000gns. As ever, a hugely international buying bench assisted in the production of those record figures alongside strong domestic support, and buyers from Australia, America and Chile were among those who made significant purchases. The foal sale was capped by a Dubawi filly out of the Group winner High Heeled who was purchased by John Ferguson for 450,000gns. Fillies accounted for the top three prices during the four-day foal sale, with the highest-priced colt being the son of Galileo out of Irish 1,000 Guineas winner Saoire, purchased for 325,000gns by Blandford Bloodstock. FASIG-TIPTON KENTUCKY NOVEMBER This daughter of Dubawi and Group 3 winner High Heeled topped the Tattersalls December Foal Sale at 450,000gns Fasig-Tipton had a hard act to follow this year after last year’s sale-topping price of $10 million for 2011 Horse of the Year Havre De Grace at the company’s Kentucky November breeding-stock sale. That price may not have been matched, but the company still saw 24 horses sell for seven-figure sums. They were headed by the superbly bred Galileo mare Betterbetterbetter, who was offered in foal to red-hot Kentucky sire War Front. The four-year-old was purchased for $5.2m by Mandy Pope’s Whisper Hill Farm, which was also responsible for the purchase of Havre De Grace. The four-year-old’s sole win came in a K racingpost.com/bloodstock