Equinties - those stable tours

Gm Equinauts

Book 1 at the Tattersalls October Yearling Sales is always a spectacle so far removed from the everyday man, it’s often hard to comprehend. Park Paddocks is full of hopes, dreams, and deep pockets, with so many looking to secure the best horses in the world. It’s incredible stuff.

Let’s dive in.

HEADLINE ROUNDUP

IFS, BUTS, AND MAYBES

The Tatts yearling sale has become white hot in recent years due to the addition of Kia Joorabchian, and his philosophy of ‘if it looks good and the page is good, money is no object’.
Case in point, yesterday’s 3.6 million guineas purchase of a FRANKEL colt out of the Group 2 winner ALJAZZI. He bought the full sister, PARTYING, at the sale last year, and she was the top lot 12 months ago. Although she is in training with Kevin Philippart De Foy, she has yet to hit the track, but connections must be pleased with her at home to go and buy the same bloodline for nearly four million guineas.

Joorabchian and Alex Elliott outbid MV Magnier of Coolmore, and he was in no mood to let the family line stray outside of his purple silks of Amo Racing. Joorabchian said: “The boys loved him, we have a lot of people around us who really liked him, and we couldn’t really let him go. We want to keep the family tight and see how it works out. Obviously if he’s a very good horse he’s going to be a stallion, and if he’s not, he’s not going to be a stallion.”

Of course, a colt by FRANKEL out of a Group 2 winner could be a stallion if “he’s a very good horse”, but this almost goes without saying. Especially for an operation like Amo Racing who are trying to build this ‘empire’. They are really waiting for that big Group 1-winning monster to be their stallion going forward. Of course, this lad could be it, but jeez, that’s a lot of pressure to put on the shoulders of a yearling you bought a mere minutes earlier.

Anyway, will this sibling to PARTYING head to Philippart de Foy?

“Yeh, probably, although we haven’t decided that yet. Partying is at Freemason. Obviously we like her otherwise we wouldn’t have gone for the brother! 

“Who knows though, she still hasn’t run, although this is a completely different project. If the filly doesn’t run she’s still got a huge residual value. She can be a broodmare, and we have five stallions, so that’s important. But if he doesn’t go, it’s a completely different kettle of fish.”

Although PARTYING was the sales topper last year, her full brother couldn’t repeat the same feat, as Big Sheikh Mo turned up to Park Paddocks and splashed 3.7 million guineas to take home a SEA THE STARS colt out of the Listed winner CRYSTAL ZVEZDA.

Joorabchian, obviously, was involved in this bidding war as well, but he wasn’t the man who secured the final bid. Who knew he could actually say no to a horse?!
Anyway, the colt’s dam is a half-sister to CRYSTAL OCEAN, the 2019 Prince Of Wales’s Stakes winner, and he is by SEA THE STARS himself.

On the top lot of yesterday, Anthony Stroud said: “He’s exceptionally good-looking and from a very good stud farm. He’s by Sea The Stars, it’s a very good Rothschild family and he was majestic in the way he moved. He’s an extremely lovely horse. Obviously the family works well with Sea The Stars, he’s an unbelievable stallion. He really stood out to us among the horses here.” 

THOSE STABLE TOURS

With the jumps returning, there are things to look forward to and things to, well, despise.

Bumper previews, novice hurdle certainties, old friends reappearing and the buzz of hope in a potential massive improver are some things that help up get out of bed in the morning.

On the other hand, pointless stable tours make us want to fill our morning coffees with strong, strong urine.

Speaking of, Willie Mullins is back on the Sporting Life website, and well-known ‘news’ accounts on Twitter are repeating his quotes on the timeline. We’re not trying to be facetious, but word for word, this is what Mullins says about FACT TO FILE.

"He has plenty of options, but I think I’ll probably go down the Ryanair Chase / Gold Cup route.”

So, you’re telling us that he could be one for either the Ryanair OR the Gold Cup? Blow me down.

Look, this isn’t Mullins’ fault, and this isn’t really anything Sporting Life can control. He has such high profile horses stabled in Closutton that it’s pretty obviously what specific campaigning could look like for some horses. For example, GALOPIN DES CHAMPS will go to the John Durkan, Savills Chase, Irish Gold Cup, and Cheltenham Gold Cup. That is the same path he’s taken over the two previous seasons.

Anyway, was there anything useful from Mullins Sporting Life column?

We’d say that GAELIC WARRIOR is the definite one from Closutton for the King George, and this makes sense. He’s a bit of a fiend going right-handed, and to be honest, the King George has been a race for him for the last two seasons. He deserves his chance to try this contest, undoubtedly.

KOPEK DES BORDES, who was labelled as a potential Champion Hurdle type, will probably go over fences. This is probably the correct decision, but he wasn’t the most fluent over his hurdles at times last season. He obviously has an engine, but if he starts booting the roots out of a few fences, he won’t be the most popular.

For the first time in a while, Willie could have a few darts to fire at the Stayers’ Hurdle.
BALLYBURN is going back over the smaller obstacles as he couldn’t really jump fences, and a few schooling sessions at home with JASMIN DE VAUX will decide whether he goes over fences or remains over hurdles.

While BALLYBURN is still unexposed over hurdles, go back and read his novice hurdle form again. At Punchestown, he beat JETARA by three lengths, at Cheltenham he beat JIMMY DU SEUIL and ILE ATLANTIQUE by over 10, and the DRF form of beating SLADE STEEL and KING OF KINGSFIELD potentially doesn’t look that good anymore.

They’re all good horses in their own right, but are they honestly Group 1 horses? SLADE STEEL is probably the only potential one, but he did have a rough time over fences last season.

Plans are up in the air about SALVATOR MUNDI, but reading between the lines, he is probably starting to really show what all the Mullins camp have been talking about for the last couple of seasons. Champion Hurdle or the Arkle for him.

And finally, TOO BOSSY FOR US could be the big handicap blot. He’s had two hurdles runs now, and three more would get him qualified for a Cheltenham Festival handicap.
Those two efforts were actually very respectable in both the Triumph Hurdle and Champion Four Year Old Hurdle at PTown. He may even be “off” for something like the DRF, but he probably should have won a Flat race at some point this summer, and he is on the radar for after Christmas.

And that’s it for us talking about Willie Mullins. Well, at least for today, anyway.

BIG TEAM

Away from the sales, not much happened in racing yesterday, but Thoroughbred Daily News released an article that detailed the horses that Charlie Appleby could be taking to the Breeders’ Cup next month.

Of course, REBEL’S ROMANCE is on the team sheet, and a win at Del Mar could really cement his place as a modern-day legend. With a full list of his potential team, Appleby said: “Rebel's Romance and Notable Speech will be the two feature horses, but we'll have a few others as well.

“We know there are going to be younger legs than Rebel's Romance going round there but, at the Breeders' Cup and on those type of tracks, you can't beat experience – he has an abundance of it.

“He'll tell me when it's time to stop. People have asked me the question many times and I've always said the day he runs out of the first three is probably him saying he's raised his white flag. He owes us nothing but, while he's enjoying it, we'll allow him to keep doing it.

“Notable Speech has come out of Woodbine well and we'll keep an eye on El Cordobes as well, because he ran a solid race behind Rebel's Romance last time [when third in the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic]. As we all know, you just need luck round Del Mar.

“Two-year-olds-wise, we'll just see how the horses I ran at Woodbine are. Dance To The Music is probably going to run at Newmarket in the Fillies' Mile, but the colt [Wild Desert] will probably head to Del Mar. Hopefully, he has a bit of luck on his side after gaining the experience last time.

“I might look at the Filly & Mare Turf with Diamond Rain and Cinderella's Dream will also be in the mix for that, while we have Military Code for the [Juvenile Turf] Sprint. I think that race might just suit him.”

Of course, a lot will depend on the draws closer to the time, but a couple of horses are interesting from that list. NOTABLE SPEECH would have to be one. He is just the classic Godolphin miler who loves quick, American-style ground. We think there were a lot of scratching heads at last year’s Breeders’ Cup when he didn’t win the Mile, and he could take some whacking with a year’s extra experience under the belt.

Also, MILITARY CODE would have to be of interest in the Juvenile Turf Sprint. He looks like a proper speedster based on his York effort behind the equally quick REVIVAL POWER. We think he could just relish going around a bend where he can slingshot into contention.

RISK ON

No luck with the treble yesterday, or indeed the jumps single we posted on X (although that horse should have won), today we’re in jumps mode.

SERGEANT FURY is expected to go in again for Derham on the ground he loves but is short for the 14.35 so perhaps use him to lever another.

Elsewhere we like:

16.40 WHIZZ KID

Ground dependant horse who geta his much needed quick ground after a quiet spin over jumps lto. Based on his Ayr form he is top and with reasons to rule out the others. Money for him today and we think 7/4 is a good bet all things considered.

Small 4/1 double with the lev horse.

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