PERSONIFY (Galileo [Ire]),
in foal to Redoute’s Choice, attracted a final bid of A$2 million to top
Sunday’s
opening session of the Inglis Australian Easter Broodmare Sale in Newmarket. The
stakes-winning four-year-old mare was consigned by Kulani Park as part of the
unreserved reduction
of Paulyn Investments and was knocked down to Kieran Moore.
Personify, who sold
for
A$650,000 as an Easter Yearling in 2005, was purchased last year by Paul Makin
for
A$1,025,000. She is out of the Group 3-winning mare Procrastinate (Jade
Hunter) and is a
half-sister to South African champion Laisserfaire (Danehill) and to stakes
victor and Group 1-placed
Foreplay (Danehill).
Personify was one of four mares to reach seven figures during Sunday’s session
of the three-day auction, with the Swettenham Stud Unreserved Dispersal Sale providing many
of the
day’s fireworks. The dispersal saw 52 mares sell for a total of A$11,232,500 and
an average
A$216,000.
Darley purchased Group 3 winner LIVING SPIRIT (Hennessy) from
Swettenham for A$1.5 million. The seven-year-old mare is in foal to Nadeem.
Also
selling from the dispersal, LARROCHA (Danehill) fetched a final bid of
A$1,375,000 from
Tom Magnier. The regally bred Group 1 winner is out of Kensington Gardens (Grosvenor)
and is a full sister to Group 1 winner Blackfriars, Group 2 winner Manton
(Aus) and stakes scorer and Group
1-placed Lions Gate. Larrocha is in foal to Encosta de Lago.
“We
couldn’t have
been happier,” Swettenham’s Adam Sangster said. “The great thing is that we were
supported
by the people who have supported us over the years and it is a gratifying result
to see them
going to such great homes. This is something which I think Dad would have been
proud of –
certainly the family is very proud. It’s a little bittersweet, but this is a
rebirth for us at
Swettenham Victoria as we concentrate on the stallions from now on.”
Blue Sky
Thoroughbreds went to A$1.4 million to bring home Flight S. (Aus-G1) winner
CHEEKY CHOICE (Redoute’s Choice), also in foal to Encosta de Lago. The
four-year-old is out of Christchurch (Caerleon), an unraced half sister to
stakes heroine and Group 1-placed Danasia
(Danehill).
Inglis sold 206 broodmares Sunday for a total of A$32,763,750 and
an average
of A$159,047. The median was A$85,000. At the close of business,
William Inglis
Managing Director Mark Webster proclaimed the first session a success.
“We’ve
had four
mares break the A$1 million dollar mark and achieved a new record broodmare
average of
A$159,000 with a strong clearance of 83.1 percent,” Webster said. “We’ve worked
hard to
secure high-quality broodmares for this sale and vendors have been rewarded.”
The sale continues Monday.