Redoute’s Choice continued to be the clear choice of bidders
with a record-smashing A$3 million son of the hot sire leading
the way at Wednesday’s second session of the Inglis Easter
Yearling Sale.
South African trainer Charles Laird made the
historic final bid on the colt out of Deja Slew (Slew o’ Gold),
passing the previous Australian record price set by another son
of Redoute’s Choice at this sale last year. Redoute’s Choice’s
hot streak continued a little
under an hour later when Tim
Stakemire, bidding on behalf of Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al
Maktoum, made a winning bid of A$2.3 million for a yearling out
of Exact (Marauding). Both seven-figure yearlings were
consigned by Yarraman Park.
After the two sales, an ecstatic
Arthur Mitchell of Yarraman said, “It’s been a great sale. I had
no idea it would make that much. This just might be the best 24
hours of my life.”
Laird, who warmed up for his record-breaking
purchase with a A$1-million
Giant’s Causeway colt on Tuesday, was
prepared to go even higher today.
“We really wanted this one, we
knew this was the one,” Laird said. “We have the best colt at the
sales; he’s an attractive woman on the street you know, he talks
to you.”
The sale topper will head to South Africa for Laird’s
big owner Marcus Jooste. Through two days of selling, Redoute’s
Choice’s progeny are averaging A$881,750; they included five of the top 10 lots
during Wednesday’s session.
Inglis sold 73 yearlings Wednesday for a total of A$25,380,000
and an average of A$347,671. The median was A$220,000. Through
two days, a total of 240 yearlings have brought A$68,710,000, for
an average of A$286,292 and a median of A$180,000. The cumulative
average is up 36.4 percent over a year ago, when 262
yearlings sold for
A$54,998,000 and an average of A$209,916.
“I didn’t think the $2.5-million record would be broken,” Inglis Managing Director Reg Inglis
admitted. “Although we were very
confident going into this sale, it has way surpassed our wildest
expectations. This is the greatest sale we’ve ever seen.”
The
sale’s final session gets underway Thursday morning. The Easter
Weanling sale begins Sunday.