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| Staff Writer |
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In a historic moment for the Southern Hemisphere's two-year-old sales, the Inglis Ready2Race Sale at Riverside witnessed its first-ever million-dollar horse. The Written Tycoon filly out of Soriano (lot 166) commanded an eye-watering US$1 million, setting a new benchmark for the event.
Yulong emerged victorious in a heated bidding war for the catalogue's standout lot. The filly, initially purchased by Baystone Farm for US$200,000 at this year's Easter Yearling Sale, provided one of the most remarkable pinhooking results in recent memory.
Dean Harvey of Baystone Farm, still in disbelief, commented: "I can't believe it. I mean she was super popular all week, she was hard to fault and we knew how good she was talent wise but it's just all come together, Written Tycoon has had an amazing few months and she's just a queen of a filly but we didn't think she'd make that sort of money."
The sale's robust performance was underscored by eight lots realising US$500,000 or more, with 11 surpassing the US$400,000 mark and 18 lots selling for US$300,000 or above. The average price currently stands at US$167,065, marking a significant 58% increase from the previous year.
Vin Cox, representing Yulong, described the million-dollar filly as "pretty special", adding: "We've got absolute faith in our product and this is a gorgeous filly. They bought it off us for $200,000 at Easter and turned her into a $1m filly so a huge congratulations to the Baystone team."
A Deep Field colt out of Sheer Pleasure, presented by Shane McGrath Bloodstock, achieved the day's second-highest price of US$750,000. Clinton McDonald secured the colt, expressing high hopes for his future: "Everything he does he does with style and class, he has a beautiful action, great temperament and he's fast. With what he's shown us at home we expect to see him in the autumn, hopefully in the Blue Diamond like Hayasugi won for us this year."
This result was particularly significant for McGrath, who was presenting his first-ever draft at a two-year-old sale. The colt had been purchased earlier in the year for US$260,000 at the Easter Yearling Sale.
The day saw numerous successful pinhooking results, with several lots more than doubling their initial purchase prices. Notable examples included a US$240,000 purchase selling for US$600,000, and a US$115,000 investment realising US$550,000.
Sebastian Hutch, Inglis Bloodstock CEO, expressed his satisfaction with the sale's performance: "There are a hell of a lot of positives from the day and not for a second at the start of the day did I think we would be reflecting on a record-priced breezer and a $1m lot at the end of the day."
The sale attracted a diverse buying bench, including strong participation from Hong Kong, China, Malaysia, and Macau. Domestic buyers were also out in force, with renowned trainers such as Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, Ciaron Maher, Chris Waller, and Annabel Neasham all active at the sale.
As the dust settles on this record-breaking day, the industry eagerly anticipates the future successes of these promising young horses on the racecourse.