The market on the second day of the ARQANA Breeding Stock Sale proved significantly more selective than both on the opening session and the equivalent one a year ago.
The 71% clearance rate, down from 81% in 2015, caused the day’s aggregate to take a 16% plunge to €5,042,500 yet, as has often been the case at auctions around the world this season, there was plenty of demand for the quality offerings and the average price progressed almost 5% to reach €27,555. The median was also up to €22,000.
Broodmares proved the hottest commodity of the day with the three six-figure price tags of the day being achieved in that category. The priciest of the trio, VEZINA (lot 301) was making her third trip to this sale and went down to Jeremy Brummitt for the second time. The first took place four years ago on behalf of Bjorn Nielsen when the daughter of Bering was offered from La Motteraye Consignment. This time around, Brummitt went to €105,000 to secure the grey in the name of Seven Hills Bloodstock. Upon signing the docket, the agent indicated that he was acting for a partnership which would involve Jan and Maja Sundström's Team Hogdala, whose daughter Anna consigned the mare through her Coulonces Consignment.
Vezina is a half-sister to the Group-winning mare Marie de Ken, who went on to produce the Gr.1 performers Charmo and Ana Marie for Ecurie Bader. Although not able to win herself, Vezina has gone one better than her sibling in the breeding shed as a mating with Holy Roman Emperor resulted in the Gr.1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud scorer MORANDI. “She is lovely mare that I am actually buying for the second time”, confirmed Brummitt, before quipping: “After many hours of hard thinking we have decided to send her to Holy Roman Emperor next year.”
A group of young breeders originated from the trotting world teamed up to make their first foray into thoroughbred stock, which materialised in MELBOURNE SHUFFLE (lot 283), for which they paid €100,000. Offered by Haras d'Etreham, the four-year-old daughter of Street Cry has some strong credentials to her name as a winner out of a full sister to the Gr.1 heroine and top class producers SEQUOYAH and LISTEN. Thus, her catalogue page features the names of Henrythenavigator, Queen Cleopatra, Magician, Dolphin Street, and the icing on the cake was the Siyouni cover she carried around the ring.
Victor Langlais, who operates under the name Carel Bloodstock and has already invested in mares alongside Henri Bozo and Lady O'Reilly, signed the docket and indicated that he was investing for the first time on behalf of a new partnership involving Jeoffrey Lerner's Haras de Marancourt, Ecurie du Graal and Emmanuel Leclerc. “This mare hails from a good family that keeps producing black type horses”, he commented. “Her two-year-old half-sister was Listed-placed this season and could win a Group race next year. She will go to Haras de Marancourt and the Siyouni foal she is carrying will be offered at auction. Our aim is to develop a commercial venture.”
Four lots before the session drew to a close, COMIQUE (lot 479), the final representative of the Wertheimer et Frere draft, commanded €100,000 from Alain Decrion who signed on behalf of Pierre Talvard of Haras du Cadran. Offered in foal to Makfi, she is a daughter of Distorted Humor out of the Grade I victrix CORRAZONA who produced no less than five black type horses headed by the Gr.1 Hollywood Gold Cup runner up OLMODAVOR. Talvard was making his second expensive purchase from the Wertheimer et Frere consignment, having bought PAS DE REPONSE for €750,000 the previous day. “She is for a partnership involving several friends, he explained. She really appealed to me and we have a mating in mind but will give it a good long thought before we make a final decision.”
Quality foals proved in high demand with nine of them exiting the ring with price tags in excess of €50,000. They were headed by a New Approach colt (lot 456) who went the way of Charlie Vigors’ Hillwood Bloodstock for €80,000. Offered by Anabelle Aimé’s Haras de Castillon, he is the second foal out of the Rail Link mare Awe Struck, a half-sister to three Stakes winners including the Gr.1 Matron Stakes heroine Emulous.