With Arqana’s August Sale kicking off the main yearling sales season last
week, it is the turn of Doncaster Bloodstock Sales to receive the baton as they
host the first of two days of their flagship Premier Yearling Sale Wednesday.
Recent £50,000 graduate Canford Cliffs added further luster to an already
sparkling resume this term by winning the Lockinge S. (Eng-G1) and Queen Anne S.
(Eng-G1) before falling foul to injury when chasing home Frankel (Galileo [Ire])
in the Sussex S. (Eng-G1), further enhancing the venue that boasts value for
money.
Last Saturday, Dubawi Gold (Dubawi) made up for two seconds in the Two
Thousand Guineas (Eng-G1) at Newmarket and the Irish (Ire-G1) equivalent at The
Curragh by winning the Celebration Mile (Eng-G2) at Goodwood, proving he was
£85,000 well spent. That added to the achievement of another bargain buy in the
£20,000 purchase Excelebration (Exceed and Excel), who has garnered the Mehl
Mulhens Rennen (Ger-G2) and Hungerford S. (Eng-G2), and is now partly owned by
Coolmore Stud.
Others to fly the DBS flag over the past 12 months include the Phoenix S.
(Ire-G1) heroine La Collina (Strategic Prince), who fetched £42,000 in 2010; the
Railway S. (Ire-G2) scorer Lilbourne Lad (Acclamation), sold for £80,000 at the
same renewal; the Vintage S. (Eng-G2) winner Chandlery (Choisir), who was
snapped up for £88,000; and the Lennox S. (Eng-G2) and Jersey S. (Eng-G3) winner
Strong Suit (Rahy), who was a £40,000 buy two years ago. They add to an honor
roll that includes Group 1 winners Sole Power (Kyllachy) and Wootton Bassett (Iffraaj),
as well as promising young sires Dutch Art, Cockney Rebel, Excellent Art (GB)
and Dark Angel.
Among the representatives of the first-crop sires in this year’s 487-strong
catalog are Duke of Marmalade (Ire), Haatef, Mount Nelson (GB), New Approach,
Papal Bull, Sakhee’s Secret, Street Boss and Tamayuz.
The sale was moved this year to accommodate Arqana, and DBS Managing Director
Henry Beeby is confident that the ingredients are in place for another
successful edition of this ever-popular sale.
“Canford Cliffs has been a fine advert for this sale, and we are sure that
there are similar to be found in 2011,” Beeby commented. “Any horse that is
bought for just £50,000 before going on to win three races at Royal Ascot and
five Group 1 contests is going to make the headlines, and we are delighted that
he will continue to advertise the sale for a long time to come when he retires
to Coolmore Stud next year. Strong Suit was bought for £40,000 and has won twice
at Royal Ascot, and we understand connections believe he will win at Group 1
race before the end of the season, whilst Lilbourne Lad is one of the leading
2-year-olds of 2011. These graduates of the last three Premier Sales are typical
DBS yearlings, whilst the success of their predecessors Dark Angel, Dutch Art,
Excellent Art and Cockney Rebel in this season’s first-season sire list is
further testament to the continued influence of this sale on future generations
of racehorses — especially when you consider that Acclamation, the sire of Dark
Angel, was also a graduate of this sale.
“We are delighted with the standard of horses to have been offered to us for
sale this year — both physically and the pedigrees that they bring with them —
and the DBS team is confident that the success of the previous graduates, the
standard of horses on offer, the DBS Premier Yearling Stakes and the Racing
Post Yearling Bonus again encourage all of the major purchasers to buy at a
sale that sells champion racehorses year on year. The later date is not the only
new addition to this sale in 2011. The introduction of an additional
entertainment facility will provide purchasers with an added level of comfort
during their time in Doncaster and will be situated next to the parade ring to
ensure that the serious issue of buying horses can be conducted with ease and
comfort at the DBS Premier Sales.”
Full catalog and updates are available at
www.dbsauctions.com.