AUSTRALIAN racing doyenne Gai Waterhouse is thrilled to be the trainer of the $2 million Hunter-bred colt from the Magic Millions.
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The colt, sold by Scone’s Yarraman Park Stud, fetched the top yearling price in a decade at Thursday’s second session of the Gold Coast sales. The partnership of Reg Inglis, Jon Kelly and Paul Frampton bought the horse, by Hunter stallion I Am Invincible out of Tai Tai Tess.
Waterhouse said the group was prepared to pay what it took to get the colt.
“Reg and Mr Kelly and Mr Frampton had marked the colt and they were not leaving without it,” Waterhouse told Sky Racing. “They were prepared to go to that price.”
Arthur Mitchell, from Yarraman Park, said the colt was I Am Invincible’s highest-selling yearling, eclipsing the previous record by $400,000. It’s the second foal for the Morphettville Guineas winner Tai Tai Tess.
“We weren’t expecting him to bring that much money but he was a lovely colt,” he said. “When the stand-out colts get in the ring and the right boys are on them, they want to buy them. It’s great for the sire and the staff have worked really hard, so I’m rapt for them.”
Sheikh Mohammed's Godolphin, buying at the sale for the first time in years, paid $600,000 for a filly by champion sire Snitzel out of 2012 Blue Diamond Stakes winner Samaready.
Trainer Tony McEvoy paid $600,000 for a Zoustar filly out of Solar Charged, a full sister to Sunlight, which is favourite for the $2 million Magic Millions 2YO Classic (1200m) on Saturday.
The Magic Millions got off to a cracking start on Wednesday with a record opening day average.
A colt by Fastnet Rock, which stands at Coolmore Stud at Jerrys Plains, reached the $1 million mark. Hunter breeds featured heavily, including Arrowfield Stud’s Snitzel-Madame Andree brown colt – which, as the third foal for unraced War Emblem mare Madame Andree – sold for $900,000 to Sydney bloodstock agent James Harron.
Another stand-out was a Deep Field colt from Reggae, which was offered by Kia Ora Stud, near Scone, and bought for $675,000 by Justin Bahen for Orbis Bloodstock
On day one a total of 182 lots were sold for a $39.17 million gross and an average price of $215,220. Day two pushed the gross to $89.6 million – $10 million more than the same stage last year.