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Extreme Choice filly sells to Bon Ho for $260,000
Records were broken on the final day of the Inglis Melbourne Gold Yearling Sale on Monday with a new sale record price of $260,000 coming for a daughter of Extreme Choice (Not A Single Doubt), while a filly by Headwater (Exceed And Excel) sold for $200,000. The prices were well above the previous Gold Sale record of $120,000 set in 2018 and matched last year.
Bon Ho went to $260,000 to secure the filly by Newgate Farm's Extreme Choice filly who was catalogued as Lot 215 from the draft of Supreme Thoroughbreds. The filly is the fourth living foal out of the twice-raced Choisir (Danehill Dancer) mare French Origins who is herself a half-sister to French Listed winner Inhabitant (Zafonic). The filly's third dam is dual Group One winner Infra Green (Laser Light) who produced eight winners headed by the stakes winning trio Ecologist (Rainbow Quest), Infrasonic (Dancing Brave) and Green Reef (Mill Reef).
The Extreme Choice top lot was reared at Middlebrook Valley Lodge, having been bred by the farm's former owner Mike Mant. She was sent to Supreme Thoroughbreds last December to be prepped for this year's Premier Yearling Sale but after suffering a minor setback in the week leading into the auction, it was decided to withdraw her and send her to the Gold Sale instead.
Newgate Farm-based Extreme Choice has sired four winners in Australia in his first crop to date headed by his Golden Slipper Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) winning son Stay Inside and the son of Not A Single Doubt (Redoute's Choice) currently sits second on the leading first season sires table in Australia behind his barnmate Capitalist (Written Tycoon).
"Sometimes one person's bad luck is another's good luck and there's no doubt the timing has helped us get such a great price today,'' Supreme Thoroughbreds' Brent Grayling said.
"We thought she was a $120,000 yearling at Prem, we put a $100,000 reserve on her today and to get $260,000 for her is just absolutely wonderful.
"There was a lot of interest in her, she had 15 X-Ray hits which is big for any sale so we're delighted with the result.''
Supreme Thoroughbreds finished the sale as the leading vendor by average having sold eight of the 12 lots they offered for $356,000 at an average of $44,500 and median of $12,250.
The filly will remain in Australia to be trained by John Sadler.
"I have to firstly thank Jonathan D'Arcy for alerting me to this filly a few days ago," Ho said.
"Once I knew about her I got John Sadler to go and have a look at her and give me his opinion and he was very impressed, very fond of her so I decided to buy her.
"Her pedigree is very good and she looks very strong. I liked her myself as well.
"Extreme Choice is doing very well in Australia and I'm very excited to have this filly in my stable in what is my first ever purchase at the Inglis Gold Sale.''
A few hours later Griffith de Kock Racing, Peter Ford Bloodstock and Heywood Bloodstock went to $200,000 to secure the Headwater filly out of Little Indian (Not A Single Doubt). Sold by Blue Gum Farm as Lot 291, the filly is the second foal out of the dual winning Not A Single Doubt mare Little Indian who is a sister to the Group Two placed Fidelia who is trained by Griffiths and De Kock.
"Robbie basically said to me 'don't come home without her','' Corey Smith, racing manager for Griffiths De Kock Racing, said of the filly, who was offered on behalf of a large group of Victorian owners.
"She was the one we really wanted, we liked how she moved, she has a great walk, strong shoulder, we thought she was the best filly in the sale.
"I think a few of the Fidelia owners will be back in this filly and whoever does come in, they won't have a long time to wait to race her because she's a ready-made racehorse who looks like you could throw a saddle over tomorrow.''
Blue Gum Farm finished the two-day sale as the leading vendor by aggregate having sold all 21 of the yearlings they offered for $874,000 at an average of $41,619 and median of $32,000 and the farm's Phil Campbell was extremely pleased with the results.
"She's a terrific example for the Gold Sale whereby a nice filly who gets a little bit more time to physically and mentally mature can really come into her own, and that's exactly what this filly did,'' Campbell said.
"It's been a fabulous sale for us, we've sold from $6,000 to $200,000 to a broad range of buyers and we couldn't be happier.
"We were leading vendor at Premier and now leading vendor at Gold which is a great testament to what we do at home. We're bloody rapt.''
Over the two days, 261 of the 306 lots offered were sold for $4,970,250 at a clearance rate of 85 per cent while in 2020 178 of 248 yearlings offered sold for $2,647,900 with a clearance rate of 72 per cent. The aggregate sat at $19,043, up 28 per cent from $14,876 a year ago and median was $11,000, up ten per cent from $10,000 in 2020. A total of five lots sold this year for $100,000 or more, compared to just two lots last year
Griffiths De Kock Racing, Peter Ford Bloodstock and Heywood Bloodstock finished the sale as the leading buyers having spent $264,000 on four lots while Vinery Stud's Headwater was the leading sire (with three of more lots sold) with three yearlings selling for $253,000 at an average of $84,333.
Inglis' General Manager of Bloodstock Sales and Marketing Sebastian Hutch was delighted with the past two days of trade.
"I've no doubt the recent success of graduates of this sale in the likes of Australian Guineas winner Lunar Fox, Australasian Oaks winner Media Award and Saturday's Goodwood Handicap winner Savatoxl assured buyers stand up and take notice of the sale and the results over the past two days have been very pleasing as a result,'' Hutch said.
"To see the clearance rate of 85 per cent already, gross at almost $5 million and the average up to almost $20,000, it's very satisfying and it's been an extremely successful couple of days here at Oaklands.
"A special mention to Mr Ho and John Sadler who are fantastic supporters of Inglis and we wish them all the best with their beautiful filly in particular.''
