The temperature in Sydney soared on Wednesday as did the action at Newmarket where Lankan Rupee’s brother sold for $1.80 million.
The Redoute’s Choice colt was one of 21 purchases for Gai Waterhouse, Julian Blaxland and partners over the last two days rendering them the leading buyer having outlaid $8,882,500.
An 81% clearance rate has been achieved so far with 291 lots sold at an average of $281,211.
A total of 41 lots by 17 different sires have been purchased for $500,000 or more by 24 different buying groups, underlining the depth of the buying bench seeking elite yearlings at the Easter Sale.
The full-brother to Lankan Rupee (Redoute’s Choice x Estelle Collection) was offered by Coolmore Stud as Lot 285 and bidding was fierce as soon as he stepped into the ring.
International and local buyers were all active on the colt, but Gai Waterhouse, Julian Blaxland and Nordic Breeding and Racing landed the final bid of $1,800,000 to purchase the brother to the 2013/14 Australian Horse of the Year and world’s equal highest rated sprinter of 2014.
“The pedigree is exceptional, and he is a strong, masculine colt which has a wonderful physique which backs up the page,” said Waterhouse. “We’re very excited to have him in the stable, and I’m very fortunate my investors were a bit stronger than the rest. We hope he’ll be winning the Golden Slipper this time next year!”
A syndicate that included James Bester, Gerald Ryan and Damien Flower secured the second top priced lot when going to $1,100,000 for the Snitzel half-brother to stakes winners Divorces and Disputes (Lot 290).
Ryan also went to $1,100,000 when beating off heated competition from Hawkes Racing and Northern Farm to secure a sister to Group 1-placed two-year-old Lake Geneva. The daughter of Fastnet Rock from Hips Don’t Lie was offered from Coolmore Stud as Lot 340.
Frankel had his first progeny step into an Australian auction ring today and $610,000 was required for Angus Gold on behalf of purchase the filly on behalf of Shadwell Stud out of South African Group 1 winner Chocolicious (Lot 237) from Three Bridges Thoroughbreds.
Australian Thoroughbred Bloodstock directed the mating of the mare in England, and the filly was subsequently born and raised in Victoria, sold in Sydney and will now be sent to South Africa for Mike de Kock to train and possibly take to Dubai later in her racing career.
“Frankel is the greatest horse I’ve had the pleasure of seeing on a racecourse, and anybody who has been around for a while would say the same,” said Gold. “The mare herself was very tough and very fast. In South Africa she won a Group 1 as a two-year-old, and she’s by a stallion that Sheikh Hamdan bred himself in Kahal.”
Cressfield’s Frankel offering out of Jeu De Cartes (Lot 357) was secured by Kastumi Yoshida for $850,000. The filly is the first foal of a half-sister to Nom De Jeu, and will race for Yoshida’s Northern Farm in Japan.
“The filly walks very well and she is the Frankel we wanted,” said Yoshida. “The dam line has produced some top stayers so she is well-suited to racing in Japan.”