2003 DECEMBER FOAL SALE DAY 4
PRESS STATEMENT
MORE RECORDS AT TATTERSALLS AS DECEMBER FOAL SALE CONCLUDES
New records for turnover, average and median were set at the Tattersalls December Foal Sale as the sale concluded with 173 lots sold for 6,434,200 guineas, a new record for the final session. With the fourth day average up 29% to 37,192 guineas and the median up 15% to 23,000 guineas, the four day total reached new record levels as the 20,000,000 guineas barrier was shattered for the first time. Trade over the four days saw 738 foals sold for 21,157,000 guineas, a rise of 23% on last year's record level resulting in an average of 28,668 guineas and a median of 17,000 guineas. The latter represented a stunning rise of 21% on last year's figure.
|
||||||
Cat |
Off |
Sold |
Agg |
Average |
Median |
|
2003 |
1,122 |
945 |
738 |
21,157,000 |
28,668 |
17,000 |
2002 |
996 |
816 |
585 |
17,247,700 |
29,483 |
14,000 |
|
||||||
Cat |
Off |
Sold |
Agg |
Average |
Median |
|
2003 |
271 |
214 |
173 |
6,434,200 |
37,192 |
23,000 |
2002 |
254 |
197 |
145 |
4,998,100 |
34,469 |
20,000 |
Bloodstock agent and Darley frontman John Ferguson has been dominant throughout the 2003 Tattersalls sales season and purchased the sale topping lots on the second and third day of the foal sale, and it was the same story on the fourth and final day of the December Foal Sale as he went to 300,000 guineas to secure the GREEN DESERT colt out of the GULCH mare SOLOSOLE. The colt, consigned by European Sales Management comes from one of the most illustrious families in the Stud Book, with SOLOSOLE being a grand daughter of ELLE SEULE, herself a daughter of the great FALL ASPEN, whose foals include Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum's 1000 Guineas winner MEHTHAAF, his Champion sprinter ELNADIM and also his 2003 Group 3 Nell Gwyn Stakes winner KHULOOD. Ferguson landed the colt after a prolonged battle with the BBA Ireland's Adrian Nicoll who was standing with Irish pinhooker Timmy Hyde after Greek based owner Leonidas Marinopoulos had made much of the early running. The sale provided another triumph for the Nunnery based stallion GREEN DESERT whose FOREST EXPRESS filly sold for 340,000 guineas yesterday as well as for the foal's connections who purchased SOLOSOLE for 52,000 guineas at the 2001 Tattersalls December Sale.
LOT 1179: GREEN DESERT - SOLOSOLE
Purchased by John Ferguson Bloodstock for 300,000 gns
The second highest price for the day was the 260,000 guineas, paid by Barronstown Stud's David Nagle for the DANEHILL filly out of the winning QUEST FOR FAME mare GRAIL. Nagle had to withstand the efforts of pinhooker John Troy and bloodstock agents Amanda Skiffington and James Wigan to secure the New England Stud consigned filly. The foal comes from one of Prince Khaled Abdullah's best and most active families with her dam GRAIL a half sister to top two year old and 2004 Classic prospect THREE VALLEYS out of SKIABLE, the half sister to HASILI whose four foals to race comprise Breeders' Cup winner BANKS HILL, Group 1 winner HEAT HAZE, young stallion and Breeders Cup Mile runner up DANSILI and the Classic placed INTERCONTINENTAL.
LOT 1163: DANEHILL - GRAIL
Purchased by Barronstown Stud for 260,000 gns
The next two highest priced lots were for daughters of first season stallion and dual Derby winner GALILEO. The first, out of the multiple Group 1 winning German mare ELLE DANZIG, continued the fantastic run of Paul and Sara Thorman's Trickledown Stud when she realised 220,000 guineas to the bid of Ronald Rauscher. The German based agent, who outlasted John Troy, and pinhooker Seamus Burn's son Damian, will take the filly back to his Union Stud in Germany before racing for owner Dr Christoph Berglar. The second of the GALILEO pair was the half sister to Group 1 placed GOLD ACADEMY who was purchased by Dublin based bloodstock agent John McCormack for 245,000 guineas. Consigned from Tom Gaffney's Churchtown House Stud, the daughter of DANCING BRAVE mare SOHA is likely to be re-offered at next year's Houghton Yearling Sale.
At the conclusion of the 2003 Tattersalls December Foal Sale, Tattersalls Chairman Edmond Mahony commented;
“All four of our yearling sales, starting with the Houghton and culminating with the December Yearling Sale last Monday, have broken new ground and they have had a major impact on the success of this week’s foal sale. The turnover has broken the 20,000,000 guineas barrier for the first time which in itself is a massive rise, but the real indicators have been the surge in the median and the higher clearance rate from the largest foal catalogue ever put together in Europe.
“The median shows the extraordinary depth to the market, and equally indicative has been the record number of lots breaking 50,000, 100,000 and 200,000 guineas. The Irish pinhookers, as ever, have led the charge, but all week they have been up against strong domestic competition as well as buyers from throughout Europe and further afield.
We have a strong catalogue of mares and fillies to come, and we can very definitely take encouragement from this week’s proceedings.”