The
first day of The Championships at Randwick on Saturday features four Group I
events worth over $8million, so with the fields and barriers now decided, let's
take a look at the Sale Mail.
Click here for Sale Mail on the four big Randwick Group I events - $3million
Doncaster Handicap (1600m), $2.5 million TJ Smith Stakes (1200m), Australian
Derby (2400m) and Sires Produce Stakes (1400m).
Prices for a runner on this key carnival day range greatly with the Inglis
Sires Produce Stakes featuring the Magic Millions sale-topper Chauffeur, the
most expensive at $1.6 million.
Quality sprinters Malaguerra and Voodoo Lad set to contest the TJ Smith Stakes,
are among least expensive runners, purchased for $32,000 and $36,000 from the
Inglis VOBS Gold Sale and Scone Yearling Sale respectively.
New Zealand Derby and Rosehill Guineas winner Gingernuts seeks his third Group
I prize in the Australian Derby and is a $42,500 NZB Ready to Run graduate.
Proven Group I winner Palentino was the sale-topper at the 2014 Magic Millions
Tasmanian Yearling Sale when snapped up for $85,000 and runs in the Doncaster
Handicap.
The 2017 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale gets underway next week and The
Championships features quite a list of contenders offered at the sale including:
Gunnison, Summer Passage, Trapeze Artist, Prized Icon, So Si Bon, Hardham, Chautauqua, Tivaci, Rock Magic, Russian
Revolution, Derryn, Sense of Occasion, etc.
The Lance O'Sullivan and Andrew Scott trained Snitzel colt Summer Passage is an
interesting runner in the Group I ATC Inglis Sires Produce Stakes having been
purchased at Inglis Easter from the Highgrove Stud draft for $800,000 last year
before being sent to New Zealand.
Second on debut at Pukekohe on January 28, the Hong Kong owned colt has won his
next two starts including the Group I Sistema Stakes at Ellerslie so returns to
Australia in hot form and is the real dark horse of the race.