Sunday's Shorts comes to you live from the Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale, where a pair of $1 million colts captured headlines, while Cambridge Stud has purchased into Pivotal Ten.
Million-dollar double
Colts by Toronado and Frankel sold for $1 million each during Sunday’s opening session of the Inglis Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale, the first time in two years that a seven-figure horse has been sold at the Victorian auction.
In the history of Victoria’s Melbourne Premier Sale, there had been three previous million-dollar yearlings sold at Oaklands Junction, in 2017, 2021 and 2023, until the ten minutes of pandemonium on Sunday.
Agents Andrew Williams and Anthony Fan were first to act, hitting the milestone figure for Lot 197, a Hong Kong-bound colt by Toronado, before Resolute Racing’s John Stewart bought the Frankel colt out of Canadian Grade 3 winner Heavenly Curlin four lots later.
Stewart was on a plane when the horse went through the ring, so he instructed Inglis managing director Mark Webster, who is currently in America, to bid on his behalf for the colt.
Webster bid via the phone to Inglis’ Victorian bloodstock manager James Price.
Big-spending American Stewart teamed up with Ballarat trainers Tony and Calvin McEvoy and their bloodstock agent Damon Gabbedy to buy the Rosemont Stud-bred and sold colt by Frankel, the sire of 10 southern hemisphere-bred stakes winners from 65 horses to race.
Calvin McEvoy was delighted to have Stewart and the Guineas-style colt in the stable.
“Obviously, Frankels are blue chip items and he's done everything. He was an amazing racehorse and he’s an amazing stallion,” McEvoy said.
“We thought this colt was the best colt on the complex and one of the best colts of the year, so I've got to thank John (for his support).
“We nearly pulled a big one off up in the Gold Coast (at the Magic Millions) and it's nice to make amends as he’s the first horse we're racing for Resolute Racing.”
Rosemont Stud bought Heavenly Curlin privately in the northern hemisphere via bloodstock agent Will Johnson in 2021 before sending her to Juddmonte’s champion sire Frankel, with the mating producing the star colt, the second million dollar yearling Mithen and his brother-in-law Nigel Austin have sold.
“It’s unbelievable. I am proud of the horse, proud of the farm, all the staff. I know what they'll be doing down in our row right now (at barn D). They'll be going mental,” Mithen said.
“(To achieve a result like this) everything has to go right. I knew he was popular, and we were very nervous this morning.”
Inglis’ Price also had a strong hand in recommending the Rick Jamieson-bred Toronado colt to Williams and Fan.
“We've sort of been waiting for this horse. We purposely didn't buy at Magic Millions and we purposely didn't buy him in New Zealand,” Williams said.
“We have been waiting for this horse. James Price has been telling us to wait. Then we saw him, so it's worth it.”
The colt, who is out of the stakes-placed All Too Hard mare Hardly Surprising, will be gelded and sent to New Zealand to be educated for a career in Asia.
Jamieson also sold a $1.4 million I Am Invincible-Soorena colt at the 2017 Premier sale.
Wild start at Melbourne Premier
A Wild Ruler filly was early top lot after Rising Sun Syndicate parted with $350,000 for her.
Lot 92 was offered by The Chase and is a three-quarter sister to Group 1 winner Communist.
That was surpassed when Lot 115, a Zoustar colt sold for $500,000 to Yulong. Offered by Rosemont, he is out of Group 3 winner Crack The Code.
Earlier a Stay Inside filly, Lot 55, purchased by Gai Waterhouse/Adrian Bott for $340,000.
Other early highlights were Lot 25, a Written Tycoon colt sells to Bruce Perry for $320,000, and the same price for Lot 43, a filly by The Autumn Sun purchased by Sheamus Mills.
Cambridge’s Pivotal Ten investment
Cambridge Stud has bought into brilliant New Zealand South Island filly Pivotal Ten, the three-year-old daughter of Ten Sovereigns who faces her biggest test to date in Saturday’s The NZB Kiwi.
A winner of her past five starts for trainer-jockey Samantha Wynne, Pivotal Ten has taken out the Gore Guineas and Southland Guineas by a combined 14.75 lengths, putting her in contention for the inaugural $3.5 million NZB Kiwi at Ellerslie.
Cambridge Stud principals Brendan and Jo Lindsay have acquired a 50 per cent share in the filly after striking a deal with her owner Colin Wighman.
“In discussion with Brendan, I was convinced that the partnership was good for the filly’s future as both a racehorse and broodmare given the international pedigree she has,” Wightman said.
“I am pleased to be associated with owners who are as passionate about racing as I am. All we need now is the luck of the Irish.”
Pivotal Ten, who will run in the Selangor Turf Club’s Kiwi slot, joins fellow Lindsay runner First Dance in the showpiece event on Barfoot & Thompson Champions Day.
“The inaugural running of the NZB Kiwi is going to be part of a historic day for New Zealand racing and we are incredibly excited to have two runners representing us in the Kiwi,” Brendan Lindsay said.
