New Zealand superstar racemare Legarto topped Day One of the 2026 Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale on the Gold Coast when selling for $2.8 million.
A Group One winner at Flemington and four time Group One winner in her native country, Legarto was presented on behalf of her connections by Attunga Stud and she was purchased by the Devil Night Syndicate.
"She’s the mare of the whole sale and we love her," the Devil Night Syndicate's Jun Zhang said. "We fell in love with her when we first saw her."
"We're going to send her to Segenhoe. We purchased Segenhoe and we need some very elite mares to support our stallions, Devil Night and Private Harry."
Zhang expected strong interest in the mare and he was delighted to be able to secure their number one seed of today's auction.
"Every mare is very special, so we can’t put any price tag on them."
"I think she was the one and we had to get her."
The second top seller of the day was January's Magic Millions Subzero winner Snitzanova who was offered as part of the Ciaron Maher Racing draft. She sold for $1.8 million to the Private Harry Syndicate.
"I thought she was probably worth that," syndicator Nathan Bennett said. "She's a pretty good mare and can still race on."
"Nerve-wracking (business). Once you get into the million mark you're hoping for another bid here and there and we were lucky enough to get a few."
"It’s a huge turnaround for the owners. They paid $200,000 for her as a yearling and then to go on and win over a $1 million on the track and produce $1.8 million in the ring is a huge result."
"I’m just stoked for all the owners involved and that they’ve got a good payday," Bennett added.
Another of the day's stars was the Group One sprinter Stretan Angel who sold for $1.6 million to Arrowfield Stud.
It was a full circle for the mare who was purchased by trainer Phillip Stokes for $64,000 at the 2022 National Yearling Sale on the Gold Coast. She earned over $1.3 million on the track.
"I liked everything about her," Arrowfield's John Messara said. "I liked the pedigree. I like the way she looked. I had a good look at her, and I liked her performance."
"Three-times Group One placed in the best races - the Goodwood, the Newmarket, Lightning Stakes - those sort of races."
"She'll suit our horse, The Autumn Sun, perfectly. We’re buying mares to suit the horses that we’ve got and that mare we bought for that purpose."
"It is a tough battle out there. The top end is very competitive. We’re lucky to have good partners and we’re lucky to have active stallions."
"I am a big believer in The Autumn Sun. You can see what he has done. He's got a very good strike rate and he can throw a champion. I think he's had five or six Group One winners already."
The former connections of Stretan Angel were thrilled with the result and that she is headed to one of the leading stud farms in the country.
"We bought her here out of this (National) Sale, out of a placed Bernardini mare, so not much to go on, but just a nice type."
"We got some of our very good clients and friends in it, they’ve raced horses with us for a long time, and to do the full circle and get this result at the end of it is huge."
"It's a big thrill," Stokes added. "I’m really rapt for everyone."
Across the day over $34 million was traded on 137 lots sold at an average price of $249,303. The clearance rate is currently 85 per cent and climbing.
"I'm delighted," Magic Millions Managing Director Barry Bowditch said. "I thought it had a really good vibe to it and it had great theatre."
"The depth in the market was extremely solid and that’s evident in the fact that we’ve cleared 85 percent of the stock. It was very genuine market."
"Obviously you can look at the sale and compare it to last year, but I think it's hard to compare when you're not comparing apples with apples."
"Each year's got a different level of quality and a different line of horses, but I think for the catalogue that was here today it has exceeded our expectations," Bowditch added.
To view the results of the sale or to make an offer on a passed in lot click here.
Day Two of the 2026 Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale will be held from 10am (QLD time) tomorrow (Wednesday).
SALE STATISTICS
(2025 Day One in Brackets)
Lots Catalogued: 177 (199)
Lots Sold: 137 (131)
Lots Passed In: 25 (31)
Lots Withdrawn: 15 (37)
Sale Gross: $34,154,500 ($47,574,500)
Average Price: $249,303 ($363,164)
Top Price: $2,800,000 ($5,250,000)
Median Price: $110,000 ($160,000)
Sold %: 85 (81)
DAY ONE TOP SELLERS
$2,800,000 - Legarto (Lot 408)
Attunga Stud (As Agent) / Devil Night Syndicate (Vic)
$1,800,000 - Snitzanova (Lot 454)
Ciaron Maher Racing (As Agent for Bennett Racing) / Private Harry Syndicate (Vic)
$1,600,000 - Stretan Angel (Lot 465)
Yarraman Park Stud (As Agent) / Arrowfield Stud (NSW)
$1,500,000 - Lilac (Lot 411)
Yarraman Park Stud (As Agent) / Kastsumi Yoshida (Japan)
$1,500,00 - O' Ole (Lot 428)
Attunga Stud (As Agent) / Katsumi Yoshida (Japan)
$1,500,000 - Captured By Love (Lot 503)
Newgate Consignment (As Agent for Te Akau Stud) / Sheng Geng (China)
$1,100,000 - Memo (Lot 420)
Newgate Consignment (As Agent for Snowden Racing) / David Redvers B'stock/Widden Stud (NSW)
