Bill's Columns

Once the Kentucky mixed sales are finished in mid-November, the principal European mixed sales take place over the next month, at Goffs in Ireland (Kildare), Tattersalls in England (Newmarket), and Arqana in France (Deauville). According to figures compiled by Brianne Stanley of The Bill Oppenheim Group, this is another sector which returned very steady results compared to 2018: this year 3,036 horses sold at European mixed sales, for a total of €178,285,572, an average of €58,724. Last year 3,078 sold for €180,580,375, and averaged €58,668. The number sold dropped by 1%, the gross dropped by 1%, while the average was up by €56, or one-tenth of 1%. Interestingly, both Goffs (which was up €7m) and Arqana grossed €34-million; Tattersalls’ December Sale in Newmarket grossed 91-million guineas, or about €113-million.

Europe’s three established superstar sires – Galileo, Dubawi, and Frankel – had limited representation at this year’s European mixed sales; in fact, world number one Galileo had no foals sell, nor any mares in foal. Dubawi had two foals average €784,706 ($868,047), while Frankel had three foals average €537,701 ($591,966), and four mares in foal average €417,180 ($461,859). In fact probably the most prominent names at the mixed sales were the Irish National Stud’s stalwart Invincible Spirit, who will be 23 years old in 2020, and his son Kingman, who was bred and raced by, and stands at, Juddmonte. Invincible Spirit had five foals sell, ranking third behind only Dubawi and Frankel, for an average of €326,714 ($360,558). Kingman had six foals average €271,112 ($299,141, having stood for £55,000 in 2018), and led all sires at the European mixed sales with nine mares in foal averaging €914,710 ($1,012,854). American sires Justify (€858,561/$951,216) and War Front (€742,042/$822,123) had one and two sell in foal, respectively. No Nay Never, who shares top billing among European second-crop sires with Kingman, had nine mares in foal average €487,774 ($539,741), and Lope De Vega had 11 in-foal mares average €478,655 ($529,868). France’s leading sire, Siyouni, had nine mares in foal average €399,545 ($442,316).

Another eight sires averaged over €100,000 for their foals which sold, including the top three first-crop weanling sires, which were the Coolmore pair of Churchill (14/€115,953/$127,894) and Caravaggio (31/€113,880/$125,595), and France’s Haras d’Etreham’s Almanzor (14/€105,132/$116,031), Europe’s top middle-distance 3-year-old of 2016. Also registering 6-figure foal averages were: Sea The Stars (23/€220.846/$243,672); Dark Angel (11/€198,973/$220,095); Lope De Vega (17/€143,024/$157,869); No Nay Never (17/€105,666/$116,621); and Golden Horn (6/€100,686/$110,906), whose first 3-year-olds will be racing in 2020. Wootton Bassett, Almanzor’s sire, had 16 weanlings sell from 16 catalogued, for an average of €94,012 ($103,820).

Four other first-crop weanling sires averaged over €50,000. Darley had a pair in Postponed, a son of Dubawi who won four G1 races and three G2’s at distances from 10-12 furlongs, and had 11 foals average €76,153 ($83,818); and the top miler Ribchester, by Iffraaj, who had 32 first-crop foals average €58,197 ($64,228). Two very well-bred sons of Galileo who don’t stand at Coolmore also made their marks, the Irish National Stud’s Decorated Knight (7/€64,994/$71,714), and England’s Cheveley Park Stud’s Ulysses (18/€61,673/$68,047). Decorated Knight is out of a full sister to You’resothrilling (dam of Gleneagles, also by Galileo) and Giant’s Causeway; Ulysses is out of the 2001 G1 Epsom Oaks winner Light Shift, from a celebrated Niarchos family.

England’s Tweenhills Stud stood two of the four leading European first-crop covering sires: Roaring Lion, who sadly died at Cambridge Stud in New Zealand before covering any mares there, had 9 in-foal mares from his only crop average €148,821 ($164,355), while 15 mares in foal to Australian sire sensation Zoustar (he has his first 4-year-old racing there in the current season), from his first Northern Hemisphere season, averaged €93,982 ($104,063). Coolmore’s U.S. Navy Flag, a son of War Front and the first horse since Diesis to sweep the G1 Middle Park – G1 Dewhurst 2-year-old double and came back to win the G1 July Cup at three, had 11 mares in foal average €138,696 ($153,454), including a €525,000 full sister to Winter at Goffs. And Juddmonte’s 2018 G1 Breeders’ Cup Mile winner, Expert Eye (by Acclamation), had 17 mares in foal (from 19 catalogued) average €74,382 ($82,197).