3 minute read
Agent goes picks up a filly and a colt for $800,000 apiece.
James Harron is not usually known for purchasing filly's at the yearling sales, but he told Racing & Sports Bloodstock he was happy to make an exception for an Arrowfield Stud-consigned daughter of their resident stallion Snitzel (Redoute's Choice), who he paid $800,000 for during Thursday's Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale.
"I wasn't really planning on coming here and buying a filly, but I absolutely fell in love with her and she looks like an absolute rocket-ship and I spoke to some of my big clients and they agreed, so we decided to have a crack at her and delighted to get her," said Harron.
"She is a very electric type of filly and very speedy. She has great depth and is a very alert type. I don't think she will learn how to gallop, we will just keep her nice and relaxed and she will do the rest."
Catalogued as Lot 503, the filly will head into training with Anthony and Sam Freedman stable in Melbourne.
The daughter of Snitzel is out of unraced War Emblem (Our Emblem) mare Madame Andree, making her a three-quarter sister to Group 3 scorer Anders (Not A Single Doubt), while she is a sister to stakes performer Battleground.
Further afield this family is littered with stakes winners, including Grade 1 scorer Exciting Story (Diablo) and Listed-winning duo Strong Memory (End Sweep) and Sweeping Story (End Sweep), who in turn produced Sweeping Paddy (Paddy O'Prado) and C S Incharge (Take Charge Indy).
Harron said he fell in love with her during the farm inspections and felt he could not leave the sale without her.
"She is a lovely filly and obviously her three-quarters brother Anders has been a bit of a headline horse over the last 12 months and shows the speed in the family, so we are excited about her," said Harron.
"Arrowfield themselves were in love with the filly and had an endorsement for her and I can see why. I saw her at the farm and just fell in love with her and thought she looked very quick. I think she has a bit of attitude and finesse about her and hopefully she can show it on the track."
Earlier in the day, Harron got his name on the buyers sheet when he paid Widden Stud $800,000 for a colt by their resident stallion Zoustar (Northern Meteor).
The colt was catalogued as Lot 483 and he is out of unraced Sepoy (Elusive Quality) mare Lone, who is herself a half-sister to Listed winner Gai's Choice (General Nediym) - the dam of fellow Listed scorer I Like It Easy (Pierro).
Lone also counts stakes-winning duo Atmospherical (Northern Meteor) and Peron (Husson) among her other half-siblings.
The colt's third dam is Listed winner Presina (Prego) - the grandam of Group 1 winner Eagle Falls (Hussonet) and Group 3-winning duo Fabrizio (High Chaparral) and Mahara (Hussonet).
Harron said he rated the colt the Zoustar in the sale, so was delighted to be able to secure him and he will join the Snitzel filly in the Freedman's Melbourne stable.
"It is an amazingly vibrant market so we were happy to get him for that," said Harron. "He was one of our top picks of the colts in the sale and I thought he was the best Zoustar in the sale. He has a lovely fast pedigree behind him, so I was really pleased to get him.
"He has a great middle and is quite forward. I don't think he will be very early, but probably more precocious than most Zoustars and he has a good family behind him. I think he will really keep developing and he has plenty of scope to develop into a lovely three-year-old.
"He has obviously come off Widden, who stand the stallion, and they obviously know how to breed to that horse and we were really pleased to get him. He is quite a mature horse, certainly for a Zoustar."
After buying two colts during Wednesday's session, Harron's purchases now stand at four for the week with the agent spending a $3,725,000 on the quartet.
