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356 lots catalogued for HTBA sale which gets underway on May 2
A total of 356 yearlings have been catalogued for the Inglis’ inaugural running of the HTBA May Yearling Sale, which begins it’s two-day run at Riverside Stables on May 2.
An enhanced version of the former Scone Yearling Sale, the May Sale presents buyers a final opportunity to purchase a quality yearling in NSW before the breeding stock sales take centre stage.
The catalogue includes yearlings by leading sires such as Capitalist (Written Tycoon), Deep Field (Northern Meteor), So You Think (High Chaparral), Zoustar (Northern Meteor) and Sebring (More Than Ready) and of the 356 yearlings set to go under the hammer, 334 are BOBS eligible.
Sebastian Hutch, general manager bloodstock sales and marketing at Inglis said he felt the catalogue should satisfy a demand in the market with many people still with horses to buy following the tremendous strength seen in the yearling market to date in Australia.
“In terms of the form guide for the sale like the HTBA Sale, I suppose our Classic Sale is a strong indicator as to where demand is likely to sit,” Hutch told Racing & Sports Bloodstock.
“Traditionally people operating at the Classic Sale are not a dissimilar buying bench certainly for the majority of the catalogue of the HTBA Sale. The fact that the clearance rate at a sale like Classic was so high gives us a level of confidence that a sale like the HTBA Sale will satisfy the significant demand in the market.
“We have a large number of patrons who have been, to be perfectly honest, been frustrated by the strength of the market. The degree of enthusiasm, that in the very least, has meant that a large number of people have not found good value to the level that they were expecting.
“Weather you’re a professional participant as a trainer, a syndicator or a trader whether you buy a horse to race and trade on through the ready to race sale, lots have found it hard to buy. Competition has been fierce and the HTBA sale represents a great opportunity for people to buy the stock that they’ve been unable to all year and, to that end, the growth and the size of the catalogue and then consequently the quality of the catalogue is very timely.”
Hutch said that there was a great selection of yearlings by both young and proven stallions available in the catalogue.
“It’s not a select sale, so they’ll be stock in the catalogue that we haven’t seen but certainly of the stock we have seen there are horses that we think will be very acceptable to the vast majority of buyers,” he said.
“The fantastic thing about the bloodstock market is that beauty is very much in the eye of the beholder and opinions will differ significantly across a broad spectrum of stock. The profile of a number of stallions represented will have evolved significantly from when we considered yearlings last July, August and September.
“When you consider stallions, and very specifically, the first crop stallions like Capitalist, Shalaa, Flying Artie, Extreme Choice, Star Turn etc, these are stallions that have had their reputations enhanced, in some cases, exponentially from when the early sale catalogues were being put together.
“That again is going to enhance their demand and then significantly the sale also gives people the opportunity to have another crack at the progeny of proven stallions for example; All Too Hard, So You Think, Zoustar, Dundeel, Shamus Award. Right the way through the book, there are proven stallions and they’re well represented.
“It’s a very credible opportunity for people to find value and certainly the feedback that we’ve had through the year is that people are targeting the sale. From an auction house's point of view that’s exactly what you want to hear.”
The sale kicks off a week-long festival of auctions at Riverside which also includes the Australian Weanling Sale (May 6), the Chairman’s Sale (May 7) and the Australian Broodmare Sale (May 9).
All yearlings purchased at the HTBA May Yearling Sale are eligible for the $6m Inglis Race Series, which includes the Inglis 2YO Challenge (1100m) at Scone which is open to graduates of this sale and the Highway Session from the Classic Sale, plus the Showcase Session from the Premier Sale, and Inglis Digital-sold yearlings. Click here to view the catalogue.
