A whopping 800 yearlings, 98 vendors and a whole lot of excitement marked the first sale at the brand new Inglis Riverside Stables in Warwick Farm.
The Inglis Classic Sale continued the strong Thoroughbred market in Australia this year with Book One making a gross amount of $38,875,500. The sweetener being all yearlings offered at an Inglis Yearling Sale are eligible for entry into the lucrative $6m Inglis Race Series as well as a $100,000 bonus to the vendor/supplier of the session’s first stakes winner.
This year the Classic sale boasted the most horses sold in its history. It has, in recent times, provided some of Australia’s best early-running 2YOs including Golden Slipper-winner, She Will Reign, Blue Diamond-victor Extreme Choice and Inglis Sires-champion, Yankee Rose. As an incentive for prospective purchasers, Inglis will pay the Golden Slipper nomination fee for all yearlings sold in the Gold Riband session.
Morgan + English managed to pull Scott McAlpine, Dean Hawkins and Ryan Arnel away from the action to see what the verdict is on the new complex.
Scott McAlpine
Eureka Stud (Queensland)
1. Were you excited to be coming to the new Riverside complex?
Ecstatic, it’s a wonderful complex. They said it was going to be hot out here but it’s just beautiful. A perfect complex for the vendors to be able to parade and show off their yearlings. The variation of ground is great too; grass, sand and bitumen give the purchasers a great opportunity to look at these horses, so they can walk out properly and be shown off.
2. How does Riverside compare with any other complex you have seen around the world?
They’ve had the opportunity to be able to design a complex that is the equivalent to any in the world. Back in the 80s when they did the new complex at Adelaide, we thought that was amazing; boxes that were easy, economically built but safe, with plenty of parade area. This complex is far more advanced in design. The way it’s constructed with the alley-way down the middle, and horses to be paraded outside the barn offers safety for the horse, leader and the people that are looking, which makes it a great operation.
3. What is the best horse you’ve sold out of the Inglis Classic Sale?
Air Apparent would probably be the best we’ve sold. David Hayes purchased and trained her.
With the success Spirit of Boom runners have been having, we think Scott’s answer to question three will nearly be due for a change!
Dean Hawkins
Wentwood Grange (New Zealand)
1. How many years has Wentwood Grange been flying horses to Inglis sales?
This is our third time to Inglis, and yes, we will be back again. We try and do it every year. The first time we came we sold group 1 winner, I Am A Star (owned by Matthew Sandblom of Newgate + Kingstar Stud) and trained by Shane Nichols who won the Myer Classic.
2. How does Riverside compare to the Karaka sales complex?
There is lots of space here, they have done a great job and it all seems to be working really well!
3. Tell us about your favourite yearling in the Wentwood draft?
Probably the Super Easy x Toomanycandles yearling. That’s because she was born on the farm, and the mare I bought from a dogger truck and made sure she got a good home. Best part of it all she gave us a cracker first foal! After I bought her, her half-sister Valley Girl won a group 1 in NZ and came second in the Vinery Stakes in Australia.
The Toomanycandles colt sold to Blake Ryan Racing for $70,000. Well done Dean, Sean and the Wentwood Grange team. We look forward to seeing its success.
Ryan Arnel
Stonehouse Thoroughbreds (Melbourne)
1. Tell me about the horses in your draft.
We have four yearlings up here: a Manhattan Rain filly, Your Song filly, Star Witness colt and a Zoffany colt. They are all nice horses that I can see hitting the race track.
2. What do you do in your spare time?
What spare time?
3. What will you miss about the Inglis sale at Randwick?
I’ll miss the history of it. I’m a big history buff, especially the pedigree history….. and I like pasta and Randwick was full of that!
Stonehouse has an appealing 11 horse draft at the Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale by stallions such as Foxwedge, Kuroshio, Zoustar, Hinchinbrook, Brazen Beau, Redwood, Sacred Falls, Star Witness, Rest, Dissident and Pierro. We are sure they will be a hit.
Today marks the final day of the Inglis Classic Sale for 2018, we hope the success for the Vendors and Buyers continue throughout the sales season, what a year 2018 has been already!
We look forward to seeing you at the next one.
