Blue-Blooded Filly Tops Guineas Horses in Training Sale

A regally bred daughter of Sea The Stars  making a swift return to the Tattersalls ring topped the horses-in-training section of the Guineas Sale May 4, when the unraced juvenile was knocked down to Oakgrove Stud manager David Hilton at 150,000gns (US$197,206, 1gns=US$1.3147). 

The filly, offered by Vicarage Farm, was among the horses sourced on behalf of Derby-winning owner Saleh Al Homaizi, who defaulted on payment for the 10,455,000gns worth of stock signed for by agent Richard Knight during Book 1 of the October Yearling Sale. 

This particular youngster, a 600,000gns signing by Knight, is out of Pinkster, an unraced Nathaniel  sibling to eight winners, including Fittocks Stud's Lancashire Oaks (G2) scorer Pongee  and the dual-listed victor Lion Sands . 

Another sibling is Platonic, foundation mare of the famed French nursery Ecurie des Monceaux, meaning all manner of high achievers such as Pacifique , English King , Prudenzia , Magic Wand , Chicquita , and Emily Dickinson  appear beneath the filly's second dam. Oakgrove could receive an almost immediate update too as the filly's 3-year-old half sister Paz is due to contest the listed Prix des Lilas at Chantilly on Thursday evening.

John Deer's Chepstow-based operation already has an involvement with the family, as Hilton explained, saying: "Mr. Deer is very fond of the pedigree as we've got Poplin, who's under the second dam and is doing well for us. Whether we race this filly or not is up for debate, but we'll look forward to her joining the broodmare band eventually." 

Hilton continued: "I spoke to Megan (Evans, Vicarage Farm) about the filly and she was very honest and said they haven't done a great deal with her because she's had a couple of niggles. She's very elegant though, she's big but elegant and has a lovely head. She's very like Sea The Stars and I think Nathaniel's starting to do well as a broodmare sire too. 

"Pinkster is a Newsells Park mare and they're as good as you get, so they'll look after her very well and we'll be looking on with interest. It's the start of another chapter each time you buy a new mare and hopefully she'll be with us for a long time." 

The Guineas Horses-in-Training Sale generated turnover of 1,525,500gns ($1,601,775), up 40% year on year, an average price of 17,947gns ($23,595), up 17%, and a median of 12,000gns ($15,776), a 33% increase on the comparable figure of 9,000gns in 2022. The clearance rate was 86% as 85 of 99 offered lots found a buyer.