Coolmore’s multimillion-dollar investment in high-class sprinter Champagne Cuddles almost five years ago has again reaped sales ring success, with her latest foal selling for $1.05 million early on day two of the Magic Millions.
The fifth seven-figure yearling sold so far, the filly by Coolmore first-season sire Home Affairs was bought by renowned two-year-old trainers Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott.
Prolific buyers across the first day and a half of Magic Millions, acquiring 16 yearlings, Waterhouse, Bott and Kestrel Thoroughbreds’ Bruce Slade continued bidding on horses on their extensive “shortlist” early on Wednesday, combining with Kia Ora Stud to buy the brother to Group 2-winning sprinter Best Of Bordeaux five lots after landing the expensive daughter of Home Affairs.
The stable has operated the Valerie fillies syndicate in recent years, an exercise that yielded Group 3-winning Zoustar filly Platinum Jubilee who reaped connections a $3.5 million return at last year’s Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale.
The Home Affairs filly won’t fit into that syndicate, her seven-figure price tag precluding her from the partnership’s budget.
“She’s a very striking filly, a very athletic type and you see a lot of similar characteristics in her mother, who was obviously a top-class racehorse in her own right,” Bott said.
“We work hard to try and secure these fillies, we’ve been fortunate enough to be able to get some support to be strong on her and no doubt she was the filly we wanted to do that."
SOLD!
— Magic Millions (@mmsnippets) January 8, 2025
$1.05 million for the Home Affairs filly from Champagne Cuddles. Offered by @CoolmoreAus she goes to @GaiWaterhouse1, Adrian Bott & @bruceaslade. #MMGC2025 #MoreMagic pic.twitter.com/4aQLbmNCcd
The filly will join her two-year-old half-sister Bottles Of Shells, an $800,000 Coolmore-bred daughter of Wootton Bassett who is raced by John Singleton, at Tulloch Lodge.
She is the third foal out of Group 2-winning and four-time Group 1-placed mare Champagne Cuddles, who was trained by Bjorn Baker until she was sold by her owner Stuart Ramsey for $2 million to Coolmore’s Tom Magnier in 2020.
Wednesday’s first $1 million lot is a product of Coolmore’s enormous investment in quality mares and stallions, having bought the filly’s sire as a yearling and racing him to win a Group 1 Coolmore Stud Stakes and Black Caviar Lightning.
“Over the last few years they’ve obviously made a conscious effort to go out and source some of the best bloodstock in the world and source some the best racehorses off the track in both regards, in their stallions and their mares, and she (Champagne Cuddles) was top-class,” Bott said.
“We’ve got the first foal in the stable as well and she’s been quite precocious as well and given us some good indications early and that’s always a good push in itself.”
👀 Watch the bidding action for Lot 256 HOME AFFAIRS x CHAMPAGNE CUDDLES 🌸🥂 Purchased for $1.05M from @CoolmoreAus 🐎 Gai & Adrian were not leaving the complex without this striking individual and she will thrive in the TULLOCH LODGE system 🦴💪🏻 #oursaleoursuccess pic.twitter.com/Yd2DVeUjxX
— Gai Waterhouse AO (@GaiWaterhouse1) January 8, 2025
Home Affairs is averaging $379,667 with 15 of his first-crop yearlings sold on the Gold Coast so far.
Waterhouse and Bott’s partnership with Kia Ora is significant because it continues the prominent Hunter Valley’s stud’s investment in the industry despite the death in November of its owner, Malaysian billionaire Ananda Krishnan.
The $650,000 Snitzel colt was the third yearling Kia Ora and Tulloch Lodge had bought together on the Gold Coast this week.
He is the brother to the Roman Consul Stakes winner and Golden Slipper-placed Best Of Bordeaux, who stands at Coolmore.
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“He’s a lovely horse by Snitzel, obviously a champion stallion, we love getting his progeny into the stable. We’ve had great success with them, the cross is proven in the family through Best Of Bordeaux, who was a brilliant juvenile himself,” Bott said.
“This horse looks to be in that same mould, which are the types that we’re trying to identify and source out of the sale.”
Kia Ora has also combined with Newgate Farm and China Horse Club, Te Akau Racing and David Ellis as well as Annabel Neasham and Rob Archibald and Anthony Freedman Racing.
The clearance rate had picked up slightly by lunchtime on Wednesday to 78 per cent but as a consequence the average fell from an overnight figure of $278,549 to $265,261.
