A Bertolini colt offered by Lyndhurst farm topped the NZ Bloodstock 2yo Ready to Run Sale when making $400,000 at Karaka on Tuesday.  Catalogued as Lot 240, the Bertolini colt is from the unraced Ebony Grosve mare Ebony Pearl.  He was knocked down to Hong Kong based businessman Johnny Ng.

Speaking on behalf of the new owner, Hong Kong bloodstock agent Willie Leung was full of praise for the standout youngster.  “He’s a precocious colt and has a beautiful action.  He’s also very well educated and will go to Cambridge until August 2010 before he goes up to race in Hong Kong.”

A strong and diverse buying bench competed for the 293 young horses on offer at Karaka.  Turnover was NZ$10.51 million at an average of $60,063.  That was only $300 down on the 2008 average.  The clearance rate finished one point higher than last year at 68%.

The $40,000 median matched the record achieved in 2006.  It was up 21% on last year’s median reflecting the depth to the middle market.

“The feeling on the sale grounds was one of a genuinely good sale, with buyers finding it challenging to secure the horses they wanted,” NZ Bloodstock Sales & Marketing manager Petrea Vela said.  “As often happens, it got stronger and stronger as the day progressed, but it was a discerning market and buyers were selective about what met their criteria.

“The buying bench was very strong and we’re thrilled with the level of support this sale received, particularly from our overseas markets in Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Korea.”

The leading individual buyer of the day was Hong Kong based agent Bahen Bloodstock Ltd which purchased 7 lots for $515,000, including a top price of $155,000 for a Savabeel gelding from the winning Centaine mare Champagne Heights.

For the third year in a row Mark and Shelley Treweek’s Lyndhurst Farm was the leading vendor of the sale, responsible for the top lot of the day (Lot 240) and three of the top five lots sold.  The second top price paid was $240,000 for the Exceed and Excel colt (Lot 21) bought by New Zealand Bloodstock as agent for a Hong Kong buyer.

Specialist preparers in this market for the past 10 years, Lyndhurst Farm’s enviable record of success has seen their draft produce top performers St Culpe, Eclair Fantastic and San Luis.