Six hundred into 350 doesn’t fit, so Magic Millions Western Australia’s David Houston has had to be harsh with selecting the catalogue for next year’s Perth Yearling Sale.
But what he has come up with is a catalogue that contains the majority of the state’s best-credentialled yearlings born in 2023 who will go under the hammer at Magic Millions’ purpose-built Swan Valley complex in February next year.
The 350-lot sale, which has 14 horses extra horses catalogued than there are boxes available, features yearlings by 83 different sires, 11 of them being freshman.
As a result of the increasing broodmare population in Western Australia, borne through significant reinvestment spurred by increased demand for yearlings by the state’s owners and trainers, about 250 of the 2023-born crop missed out on a spot in the Perth sale.
In that time, the gross of the sale has increased from $14 million to this year’s record $21 million.
“We've really got the demand over here but we’ve only got 336 boxes, and that's our limit,” Houston told The Straight.
In the past, some eastern state breeders have sent yearlings to Western Australia to be sold at the Perth sale, but that trend has declined as the quality and quantity of the locally produced yearlings has grown.
“A lot of the horses that are by interstate stallions have been bred by the locals, so they’re Westspeed eligible,” he said.
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One perhaps surprising feature of next year’s catalogue is the fact that there are six fewer yearlings by Western Australia’s premier stallion Playing God on offer next year compared to 2024, with 37 lots by the son of Blackfriars making the cut.
The Darling View Thoroughbreds-based stallion, whose current yearling crop of 73 foals was conceived off a service fee of $27,500 (inc GST), has continued to rise in popularity and fee.
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This year he is standing at a state-record price of $49,500 and he sired three of the five most expensive yearlings sold in Perth in 2024.
“Some of them have said they can’t buy them, so the last couple of years they've bred to Playing God and are racing them,” Houston said.
First season sire Splintex, a son of Snitzel who won twice at Group 2 level and once in a Group 3 on the east coast for Sydney trainer Mark Newnham, is the second most represented sire at the Perth sale with 36 yearlings catalogued.
Popular WA sires A Lot, Rommel, Awesome Rock, Ducimus and Maschino are also well represented.
Houston believes WA’s owners and trainers have an appetite to continue to buy horses, giving him confidence of another strong sale in 2025.
“Although we didn't win any of the (Group 1) majors (at the Pinnacles carnival), they've been well supported,” he said.
“There’s been a lot of local people who have had runners and they've been winning races and we’re well positioned really to maintain this year’s figures hopefully.”
All yearlings offered at the Perth sale are eligible to be paid up for the $20 million Magic Millions Race Series incorporating 28 races across all six states of Australia for horses of all ages at distances from 1000 to 2200 metres.
Jesse Dart
