MM Sires Book One Wrap

Tara Madgwick - Sunday January 10
A booming market this year at Magic Millions produced interesting results in terms of sire averages with some notable winners and losers.

One of Darley's flagship sires in Australia for a long time now, Exceed and Excel finished the 2016 Magic Millions Yearling Sale as leading sire by average with 11 youngsters averaging $364,545 for Book One.



Turning 16 this year, Exceed and Excel was one of the early Australian acquisitions for Darley and has also been one of its best, the Group I winning son of Danehill siring some 109 stakes-winners worldwide headed by 10 Group I winners.

His success has translated to the Northern Hemisphere which is never easy for Australian bred sires and four of his Group I winners have come in the Northern Hemisphere.

Exceed and Excel topped the averages here as a result of consistency with no million dollar yearlings on his tally.

His best result was the colt from Common Smytzer that made $800,000 in the opening session for Ampulla Lodge when snapped up by George Moore Bloodstock / China Horse Club, while not far behind was a filly from Set for Fame that made $775,000 for Segenhoe Stud to the bid of Shadwell Australasia.

Snitzel had huge numbers and was in hot demand producing the sale-topping colt from Mirror Mirror that made $1.6 million for Strawberry Hill Stud when bought by Jadeskye Racing/ Gerald Ryan.

He also had colts consigned by Arrowfield from Flidais and Nocturnelle that sold for $1.1 million and $1million.

Snitzel is hot in the sale ring, but has fallen into a lull on the race track having not sired a single stakes-winner in Australia since the start of August, this fact doing absolutely nothing to dampen buyer enthusiasm.

At last year's sale, Darley's Golden Slipper winner Sepoy was the hot ticket sire in the first season division and sold so spectacularly well with 26 yearlings averaging $286,346 that he finished third on this list to Fastnet Rock and Redoute's Choice.

12 months is a long time in the bloodstock world and with no winner on the resume, Sepoy slipped this year with 21 yearlings averaging $133,333, his best result a filly from Absolute Dream that made $280,000, a far cry from his sale-topping colt last year from Sister Madly that made $1.2 million.

There's a lesson here, which those that have been around bloodstock a long time know all too well, just because it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, does not mean it's a duck!

If the Sepoys come out running in the back end of the season as they very well may, the people that have stuck solid and bought them again this year will be the ones having the last laugh.

Golden Slipper winner Pierro led the first season sire division this year in a competitive race with his former racetrack rival All Too Hard, while Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom (USA) split the pair, albeit with just three yearlings sold.

Pierro

Bred by Darley and sired by their champion sire Lonhro, Pierro was famously sold by Darley as a weanling at Magic Millions and then re-offered at the Gold Coast by Musk Creek Farm with Gai Waterhouse the successful bidder at $230,000.

To cut a long story short, he proved a superstar on the track and was bought by Coolmore in a multi-million dollar stud deal that sees him now as one of the most promising young sires in the country. (Pierro set the sale ring alight on Friday - read about it here)

The bargain priced success story of the division was that of Newhaven Park's Delago Deluxe, who mirrored the success of that other bargain basement and now established heavyweight sire I Am Invincible in achieving great results from an $11,000 fee.

The Group I winning son of Encosta de Lago had 10 yearlings average $169,000 with a top price of $250,000 shared by colts from Increase and Morning Swim that were sold by Newhaven Park and bought by Shadwell Australasia and Blue Sky Bloodstock.

2016Gold Coast Yearling Sale Book One
SIRE AVERAGES (3 or more sold - $200,000 average and above)

Sire

Sold

Aggregate

Average

Top Price

Exceed And Excel - Darley

11

4,010,000

364,545

800,000

Snitzel – Arrowfield

48

15,825,000

329,688

1,600,000

Fastnet Rock – Coolmore

30

9,850,000

328,333

1,000,000

Street Cry- deceased

14

4,525,000

323,214

725,000

Redoute's Choice – Arrowfield

16

4,360,000

272,500

700,000

Savabeel – Waikato Stud

5

1,355,000

271,000

510,000

Pierro – Coolmore

37

9,715,000

262,568

1,500,000

Animal Kingdom – Arrowfield

3

750,000

250,000

310,000

More Than Ready - Vinery

13

3,005,000

231,154

400,000

Starspangledbanner – Rosemont Stud

5

1,125,000

225,000

540,000

All Too Hard - Vinery

38

8,430,000

221,842

510,000

I Am Invincible – Yarraman Park

19

3,935,000

207,105

525,000

Not A Single Doubt – Arrowfield

23

4,700,000

204,348

650,000


Click here for the full list
.

Visit the Breednet Sales Centre for all statistics for Book One.

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