Gavelhouse Plus is giving breeders the chance to add a Group One performer to their broodmare band with the auction of multiple black-type placegetter Myakkabelle.
The daughter of War Decree has retired from the racetrack after a 19-start career that produced two wins, seven placings and more than $210,000 in stakes.
Her strongest performances came during a high-class campaign as a three-year-old, where she started off with a pair of spring victories over 1400m and 1600m before finishing fifth in the Gr.2 Eight Carat Classic (1600m), fourth in the Gr.2 Sir Patrick Hogan Stakes (2000m), third in the Gr.2 David & Karyn Ellis Fillies’ Classic (2000m), second in the Gr.2 Lowland Stakes (2100m) and third in the Gr.1 New Zealand Oaks (2400m). The Fillies’ Classic, Lowland and Oaks were all won by the season’s clear standout filly, Leica Lucy.
Myakkabelle was trained by Ben and Ryan Foote for an ownership group that included Jim Bruford, who bought her for $55,000 from Inglewood Stud’s Book 1 draft at Karaka 2023.
“When I’m buying fillies, I always look at the pedigree page and especially the broodmare sires,” Bruford said. “I particularly identify with Sadler’s Wells, Danehill, Danzig and Blushing Groom, and they appear in her pedigree.
“I’ve always liked War Decree as well, and I’ve had some good success with his progeny – not only Myakkabelle, but also Third Decree, who has won nine races and has been a multiple black-type performer.
“I also thought Myakkabelle was just an absolutely lovely type of a filly who would continue to improve and develop with time and maturity.
“She came up very strongly as a three-year-old. She was up against Leica Lucy, who was a bit of a standout that year, but she performed very well in the Oaks and in a couple of Group Two races leading into it.
“At the time, we thought she would only have even better things ahead of her as an older horse. But unfortunately she had a niggly leg injury as a four-year-old, which curtailed her programme and we put her in the paddock. We brought her back, steadily managed her and thought we had her back on track, but that niggly injury to a tendon – which was only a very minor injury – flared up again.
“It’s not major at all, but it’ll affect her if we try to race her. We decided the best option was to retire her rather than break her down or cause any more significant problems.”
Myakkabelle has plenty of pedigree credentials to go with her racetrack performance. Her dam is an unraced half-sister to the British black-type winners Ayrad and Dawn Of Hope, while another half-sister, But Beautiful, is the dam of Group Two winners Immediacy and Bella Waters.
The second dam, the stakes-placed Sadler’s Wells mare Sweet Firebird, is a half-sister to the multiple Group One winner and successful sire Stravinsky, while the third dam Fire The Groom won eight times including Arlington Park’s Gr.1 Beverly D Stakes (1900m).
“She has the depth of pedigree there,” Buford said. “She also has relatives coming through – a couple of Profondo colts, along with an Auguste Rodin filly that was born this spring. Inglewood Stud own the dam, and they tell me they’ve booked her to go back to Auguste Rodin again this season.
“On top of all that, Myakkabelle was just a very honest mare as well as being an excellent type. She’s a big strong mare, more than 16 hands. She’s currently at Cambridge Stud, and after he went to pick her up, Cameron Ring said to me, ‘What a lovely mare.’ He just thought she was a really nice type.
“I think she’ll make a lovely broodmare prospect. It’s just a pity that we had to retire her from racing. I was expecting her to go on to be prominent in Cup races here in New Zealand and potentially in Australia too.”
The Gavelhouse Plus auction of Myakkabelle is now underway, with bidding closing from 7pm on Monday November 16.
