$2.4M Sale-Topper Primed for New Career Over Hurdles
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Photo: Keeneland Photo
St. James's Square in the ring at the 2018 Keeneland September Yearling Sale
St. James's Square, the topper at the 2018 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, is set to pay a second visit to Naas Jan. 31 under circumstances very different to his first.
The son of War Front cost Coolmore $2.4 million and made one appearance when finishing 13th in a seven-furlong maiden at Naas as a 2-year-old when trained by Aidan O'Brien.
He did not race for the stable last season and has changed hands to John Halley, a senior vet for Coolmore and Ballydoyle who also trains a few head. The horse is to carry the colors of Halley's sons, Jack and Josh, in the Naas maiden hurdle over a shade short of two miles. The course faces inspection at 7:30 a.m. on raceday, having survived a Saturday afternoon check.
"He's a very nice horse; I was very lucky to be able to buy him out of Ballydoyle," said John Halley. "My son saw him and bought him immediately off me. They own him now and they're going to see how he gets on. … We just bought him at the backend of the year, he was in training at Ballydoyle up to the autumn."
St. James's Square is out of the grade 1-winning Smart Strike mare Streaming, whose dam was a half sister to Belmont Stakes (G1) winners Jazil and Rags to Riches.