Despite the coronavirus enforced lockdown situation, the auctioneers rightly hailed the 2020 Inglis Australian yearling sale as an unqualified success.
With no purchasers allowed on site, the sale was held behind closed doors and with auctioneers Jonathan D’Arcy and Chris Russell selling to a virtually empty auditorium but with a local and world audience watching and bidding online.
The top lot sold early on the second morning with Tom Magnier coming out on top at $1.8 million for a Snitzel colt (pictured) out of Group 1 winner First Seal, consigned by Sledmere Stud.
Magnier said the colt was one he and the group valued highly.
“We know the family very well, she was (sic) a Fastnet Rock mare and the pedigree is very good. To be fair to Sledmere they had the horse looking fantastic,” Magnier said.
“We went there a couple of times during the week and everyone at Coolmore really loved the colt. We hope he turns into a champion for us.
“To be fair to Inglis, they made the week possible so that all the top buyers could access the sale, and they did.
“When you got to a horse like this, you knew all the top buyers were on him because Inglis had created the platform to allow that to be possible. The horse was no doubt one of the top colts in the sale.”
Magnier also signed for the most expensive filly at the sale, a daughter of I Am Invincible out of Captivating Claire at $1.1 million.
“She’s a lovely filly. Segenhoe did a wonderful job,” Magnier said. “Peter O’Brien said to me many times that he thought she was one of the best fillies that he’s ever bred at his time at Segenhoe. When Peter O’Brien says something like that, we all take it very seriously.
“Again the team liked her a lot, she’s a lovely physical, she’s got the page and I think she’ll hopefully be a wonderful racehorse and quality broodmare.
At sale end Coolmore was leading buyer and vendor.
“Our family is passionate about Australian racing,” Magnier said. “We’ve got some wonderful people who invest with us working with the yearlings and the stallions.
“The economy is obviously going through a tough time at the moment but if there’s a place that we believe in, it’s Australia. We think the future is in Australia and we’re delighted to be a part of it. There have been some wonderful horse put through the sale this week.
“It’s a credit to all the farms, not just ours, that everyone stuck together. Everyone did a great job getting their horses right, everybody got behind Inglis, everyone believed in it and made it work. When you put those formulas together you get success.
“To our staff at Coolmore, they’ve worked harder than ever, weekends, hours they’ve never worked before to help us sell these horses.
“We owe them an enormous amount of credit. Normally they get to go to the sales and lead the horses around the ring but this time they didn’t but we’re very proud of them, as all the farms would be of their staff.