Buoyant trade on day two of Tattersalls October Book 2 concluded with a record average and record turnover for a single day in the history of the sale. Year-on-year, the average climbed by 22% to 123,333 guineas and the median climbed by 25% to 87,500 guineas, whilst the clearance rate was a healthy 90%. Eight lots made 400,000 guineas or more, with the top lot of the day being Yeomanstown Stud’s LOPE DE VEGA colt who sold for 650,000 guineas to Blandford Bloodstock.
Yeomanstown Stud’s Lope de Vega Bought by Blandford Bloodstock
Blandford Bloodstock’s Richard Brown secured Yeomanstown Stud’s LOPE DE VEGA colt for 650,000 guineas. The colt was bred by the farm out of the Listed Marygate Stakes placed mare SILK BOW, who was bought at the Tattersalls December Mares Sale for 50,000 guineas in 2016. She is the dam of the Listed placed WINGS OF A DOVE, and last week’s winner SHARADD, who is now two wins from two runs for William Haggas and is already BHA rated 99.
“I thought he was an outstanding individual walking around the outside ring,” said Brown. ” You love seeing them in there and judging if they act like a professional or not.”
Expanding on the colt’s appeal, he said: “The mare has done it over and over again. He comes from a very good nursery in Yeomanstown Stud, and hopefully he is the sort of colt who will be running this time next year and then develop into a smart three-year-old.”
The price was a pleasant surprise for Yeomanstown Stud’s David O’Callaghan, who said: “We thought he’d sell very well, but I didn’t think he’d reach those heights. He is an exceptional horse, and the mare has done very well. She has produced a number of highly rated horses and the two-year-old looks very smart. For a Lope de Vega, he looks very forward and mature.”
Explaining the mating decision, O’Callaghan said: ” We usually try to buy foals by outside stallions to mix it up, but actually we are now probably sending more mares to outside stallions than we used to. We need to mix it up and appeal to everybody.”
He concluded: “The mare is an absolute beauty, built like a tank with a big walk. If you want to produce good looking yearlings, you need good looking mares, and she is most certainly one.”
Croom House Stud’s Blue Point Filly Heads to America
American bloodstock agent David Ingordo went to 600,000 guineas for Croom House Stud’s BLUE POINT filly, signing the docket stood alongside Determined Stud’s Matt Dorman. Out of the 2YO Listed-placed mare SHAPES, the filly hails from the family of Group 1 Dewhurst Stakes and Group 1 Lockinge Stakes winner BELARDO.
“She’ll go to America and she’ll end up with Cherie DeVaux,” said Dorman. “We love the stallion. We got a couple last year by Blue Point and he just keeps performing and delivering. This filly has a great physical, so she checked all the boxes. This is our first purchase this week in Book 2, and it was always the plan to stay on for Book 2.”
Of the trade at Park Paddocks he said: “It has been very strong for the good physicals and good pages. Some of these horses could have been in Book 1, and we were hoping to get a little bit more value! We were outbid on five or six already this week, but you’ve got to be disciplined. We are really happy with the five that we got last week also.”
Of plans for this filly, he outlined: “We are big fans of the turf programme in the US, and we’re also commercial breeders with a farm. Touch wood these purchases are going to run really well, but if they don’t, they can join the farm’s broodmare band. This is definitely a long-term project.”
Rabbah Bloodstock Secure Lope de Vega Colt for 525,000 Guineas
Ballyhimikin Stud’s excellent sale continued with Rabbah Bloodstock purchasing their LOPE DE VEGA colt for 525,000 guineas. Exceptionally well bred, the colt is out of the dual Group 3 winner TICKLED PINK, making him a half-brother to the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf winner VICTORIA ROAD. He hails from the talented family of Group 2 winner CASSANDRA GO which features Group 1 Irish 1000 Guineas winner HALFWAY TO HEAVEN, Champion older mare MAGICAL, triple Group 1 winner RHODODENDRON and four-time Group 1 winner and exciting young stallion AUGUSTE RODIN.
The colt’s breeder is Trevor Stewart, who has enjoyed a tremendous sale thus far, having sold a BLUE POINT filly for 1,100,000 guineas in Book 1 to Godolphin. He exclaimed: “I have to say, I did not expect that so it’s a lovely surprise. I was very nervous this afternoon, but it was worth waiting for.”
“I kept thinking, is this real?”, Stewart laughed. “The worry goes out when you get to that level. My wife will be happy again! Luckily, I kept her expectations well down, so she’ll get a big surprise now”.
Successful purchaser Jono Mills was acting on behalf of Rabbah Bloodstock and said: “He is a lovely colt, by a top stallion, from a leading farm. We are delighted to get him, and no training plans have been made yet.”
Well Related Sea The Stars Filly Makes 440,000 Guineas
Stauffenberg Bloodstock’s SEA THE STARS filly went the way of Paddy Twomey Racing for 440,000 guineas. She is out of the Listed winning mare ROSE RIZED, making her an own sister to the triple Group 3 winner and Group 1 placed ROSSCARBERY, trained by Twomey himself. Her granddam is the Group 1 Preis der Diana winner ROSENREIHE.
“Obviously she’s a sister to a very good horse, and I think she was a very developed filly,” said Philipp Stauffenberg. “I prepped her for the breeder Gestüt Wittekindshof and she was going down very well. They are very happy with the price.”
Expanding on the filly’s breeders, he said: “Gestüt Wittekindshof is very successful and has bred several Derby winners and Oaks winners. We also sold her full sister Rosscarbery for them. She made 130,000 guineas and I thought this filly had more substance and is a very good walker.”
Book 2 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale continues at 10am on Wednesday, 14th October.
