Prowess Sells for $1,425,500

Media Release - Thursday August 8

Trans-Tasman Group One winner Prowess (NZ) (Proisir) became the fifth mare to break the million-dollar barrier on Gavelhouse Plus when she sold for $1,452,500 on the online platform on Thursday evening.

Prowess has followed in the footsteps of the $1,202,500 purchase Spanish Whisper (Lope de Vega), $4,100,000 record-breaker Avantage (Fastnet Rock), $1,750,000 buy Baggy Green (Galileo) and $1,100,000 purchase Amarelinha (NZ) (Savabeel).

Prowess was sold today for $1,425,500.

There was huge anticipation in the lead-up to the sale of Prowess, whose spectacular victories in the Vinery Stud Stakes (2000m), Bonecrusher New Zealand Stakes (2050m) and Karaka Millions 3YO (1600m) made her the best-performed daughter of Proisir to be offered in a public auction.

Bidding hovered around the $800,000 mark for most of the auction’s final day on Thursday, but it came to life within the final 10 minutes as major studs on both sides of the Tasman joined the fray. Bids were exchanged in quick succession throughout an action-packed 20 minutes before the elite five-year-old was knocked down to an Australian buyer for $1,452,500.

Advertisement

Prowess won eight of her 12 starts and more than $1.5 million in stakes for an ownership syndicate headed by Dean Skipper, who watched on with delight as he prepared to depart from Queenstown for an Australian holiday.

“We’re absolutely stoked,” Skipper said. “It’s a great result for us and a great result for her, and now she can go on to the next phase of her career and get every opportunity to succeed.

“Going into this auction, anything was going to be a bonus. We buy horses to race, not sell. We had our fun with her and got a fantastic return, along with some memories that we’re going to have forever. So to cap it all off with this auction result tonight, we’re just really stoked. We couldn’t have asked for anything more.”

“It was obviously an honour to be able to sell her for Dean and Janie Skipper,” said gavelhouse.com general manager Haylie Martin.

“She was a $230,000 buy at Karaka through Roger James and Robert Wellwood and they’ve had a wonderful adventure racing her. With her racing and sale proceeds they’ve now usurped $3,000,000 so it’s a great result.”

“As always we are grateful to the purchaser and also Cambridge Stud who got the mare on the market at the million mark and were strong throughout.”

Prowess was trained during her top-class racing career by Roger James and Robert Wellwood. Earlier this month, James described her as one of the finest horses to have graced his Cambridge stable.

“I've been lucky to have a number of high-class horses over the years, and she was right up in the very top category,” James said.

“Her career was just highlight after highlight. She scored a scintillating win against an elite field in the Karaka Millions, then became the first three-year-old filly to win the New Zealand Stakes at weight-for-age in more than 30 years. And then, of course, she carried on across to Sydney and dominated the Vinery. She was something quite special.

“On top of what she showed on the racetrack, she was just a fabulous horse to do anything with and is an exquisite physical specimen.”

Visit the profile page for Proisir

Proisir in upcoming sales:
Advertisment
More Reading...
2024 Melbourne Cup Result - It's Knights Choice
The 2024 Melbourne Cup has been run and won with Knight’s Choice, a five-year-old gelding by Extreme Choice victorious.
$1.2million for Mare in Foal to Frankel
There are four mares to be offered at Magic Millions National in foal to Juddmonte Farm’s champion sire Frankel and the first of them Grande Dame (GB) sold for $1.2million to James Bester Bloodstock/Morning Rise Stud.
Kiwi Bred Grey Wins Subzero for OTI at Flemington
New Zealand-bred gelding Cloudland proved a handful for James McDonald at Flemington on Tuesday, but the champion jockey was in a forgiving mood after they had claimed top honours in the Subzero Handicap.
All Too Hard's Arran Bay Brave in the Furphy Plate
Phillip Stokes admitted his preference was to run Arran Bay in the Listed John Letts Cup at Morphettville but was overruled by the owners, who made the correct decision in favouring the Listed Furphy Plate (1800m) at Flemington.
El Vencedor wins G3 Balmerino Stakes
El Vencedor is making a habit of picking up major victories at Ellerslie, adding the Gr.3 Balmerino Stakes (2000m) to his burgeoning record at Tuesday’s Melbourne Cup Day meeting.
Sires With Winners - Tuesday November 5
Here is the full list of 145 stallions which had winners throughout Australasia today with winners and result details.
Knights Choice a True Underdog Story
Punters were left stunned when the Queenslander Knight's Choice and Japanese visitor Warp Speed (JPN) emerged from the pack to fight out a dramatic finish to the $8,560,000 Group 1 Lexus Melbourne Cup (3200m) at Flemington.
Rosemont and Partners Stakes Quinella on Cup Day
Written Tycoon posted his second new stakes-winner on Melbourne Cup Day when promising three year-old gelding Catoggio took out the Listed VRC Amanda Elliot Stakes (1400m)  for Rosemont Stud and partners, who also race the second horse Bosustow.
$6million Frankel Mare Tops Fasig -Tipton November Sale
The Fasig-Tipton November Sale, billed as the World’s Premier Breeding Stock Event, was held Monday at the company’s Newtown Paddocks in Lexington, Kentucky. Twenty-five offerings sold for $1,000,000 or more, led by a trio of Grade/Group 1 winners with international appeal.
Kiwi Bred Gringotts Wins $3million Big Dance
Talented New Zealand-bred gelding Gringotts(NZ) (Per Incanto) delivered a big payday for his connections with victory in Tuesday’s A$3 million Big Dance (1600m) at Randwick.