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Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale gets underway on Tuesday
The Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale - the jewel in the auction houses crown - is set to get underway on Tuesday, with seven days of trade set to kick off at 12pm on Tuesday, following the annual spectacle of the barrier draw for the operation’s lucrative race day.
While it has been a difficult 12 months for every industry, amidst the coronavirus pandemic, Magic Millions managing director Barry Bowditch told Racing & Sports Bloodstock he is confident the catalogue is brimming with the usual quality and can weather the storm that has thwarted much of people’s lives over the past year.
A total of 1273 yearlings have been catalogued for the sale, with Book 1 running from Tuesday to Saturday, while Book 2 kicks off it’s two-day sale on Sunday and Bowditch said the buyers' feedback on the yearlings Magic Millions have assembled has been ‘phenomenal.’
“The feedback on the catalogue has been quite phenomenal to be honest,” said Bowditch. “I would say breeders have put a lot of faith in the sale over the last few years and this year stepped it to another level and brought the very best horses that are ready for an early start.
“The buyers that are around are talking it up and are very positive about the horses on the ground. Of course, inspections are a little bit quieter than normal as we haven’t got the internationals on the complex, but the ones that are here looking at the horses are very positive about the horses that are catalogued.”
Given the ever-changing situation surrounding the pandemic, Bowditch said it was important for buyers to get out on to the farms for pre-inspections and the buyers and vendors alike stepped up to the plate in terms of making their way to the farms for inspections.
“The on-farm inspections have been amazing and I think to give the buyers credit, they have read the climate and thought of the changing world and the unknown,” said Bowditch. “You can’t just sit back and wait, so they have been very proactive in getting out on the farms to inspect these horses.
“It is such a big catalogue there were a lot of horses to see and the vendors have really stepped up this year, whether it be the hospitality on the farms, the adaptability to have inspections any time this year has been amazing and really allowed the buyers to get out there and see these horses.
“The vendors have done a lot of the heavy lifting this year and the information and the transparency of what they have made available for the buyers is outstanding. If this week works and goes off well I couldn’t be more thrilled for the vendors because they have put a lot of work into making all this happen.”
In recent years the Gold Coast sale has been somewhat of a mecca for international purchasers to flock to, but this year there will be some familiar faces absent from the buying bench. However, this a difficulty the industry has learnt to deal with and Bowditch believes enough is being done to assist buyers unable to make it physically to the sale and is confident there is plenty of interest from overseas clients.
“We own part of these horses the moment they walk on to the grounds and we need to get them sold for our clients and vendors,.” said Bowditch. “We have engaged with anyone that couldn’t be here and make their job of buying yearlings when they are not here as easy as possible. That is our job and we have done our best to do so.
“There are plenty of people showing interest from all over the world, whether it be they are stuck in Sydney or the UK they are still showing interest. We have a fantastic online bidding platform and we have our agents on the ground doing everything they can to make buying from overseas as easy as possible. They are all set to play their part, but there really is nothing like being here is there?
“It is a shame they can’t be here, but they are still getting prepared to buy horses and rightly so given the quality of the catalogue and if they’re not buying here they’re missing out.
“We have one of the greatest industries in the world, where the prize-money is fantastic and people just want to be a part of it.”
But when the first yearling enters the ring at midday on Tuesday, Bowditch is hopeful everyone’s hard work will pay off and the high-quality horses will take centre stage.
“The catalogue speaks for itself and the people that are here have enjoyed the horses, whether we have enough people here that is the question mark, but I am hopeful it will be another successful week for Magic Millions,” he said.
