Coolmore is somewhat of a global champion when it comes to these bidding wars and regularly duke it out with Godolphin and other major players across the sales rings of the world, and so often come out the victor.
But the Irish behemoth were undone by Team Hawkes, who landed the killer final blow at $1.8 million for the son of dual Group 1 winning mare Platelet (Strategic).
Located out the back of the sales ring, Wayne Hawkes and Coolmore's Tom Magnier and James Bester were separated by about 15 metres as they exchanged bids as the colt sailed through the million mark.
Watch: Lot 640 - Exceed And Excel x Platelet (colt) sell for $1.8 million
Auctioneer Steve Davis played them off against each other, allowing plenty of time for the bids to be made, and while Coolmore was keen to slow things down, Hawkes, bidding on behalf of a bunch of unidentified Melbourne-based clients, kept the pace up.
At $1.75 million, it looked like Coolmore had landed its target and with John Hawkes shaking his head, the dual look set for its end, Wayne was talking to his client on the phone and instant before Davis was about to bring down the gavel, gave a strong nod to the bid spotter.
Magnier and his team quickly conversed, assumingly about whether to land another punch. But with a shake of the head, they walked away and the Exceed And Excel colt was headed to Team Hawkes.
Tom Magnier shakes Wayne Hawkes' hand after a battle for Lot 640
"When Coolmore walked in about Lot 635 I said to everybody here we go. It wasn’t easy and they’re a tough crowd to get past. To their credit, Tom Magnier walked up to us and said congratulations,” Wayne Hawkes said.
“Steve Davis is the best auctioneer for vendors. He is terrible for clients and he just gave everyone so, so long and that’s fair enough.
“He gave the horse the time and you don’t buy them very often out of dual Group 1 winning sprinting mares. If he can run a little bit he’s worth a lot of money as a stallion.”
A stallion prospect worth fighting for
Of course, making stallions is what the Hawkes have made a name for and you would think this colt would get every chance.
"The end result, that was the easy part, the harder part is going home and make him run fast. But his attitude was outstanding, his pedigree is outstanding and John and Michael go okay, so I'm halfway there," Hawkes said.
The key aspect for Hawkes was the way the colt, offered by Cressfield, handled himself at the sale.
"The sale is pressure on them. When they start playing up, we look at that very seriously. You can forgive and forget a little bit when they are cheap, but when they are this sort of price, they have to tick every box," he said.
While the colt had kept cool through the long, drawn-out battle, Hawkes admitted he was slightly less composed, breaking out in his own 'muck lather' as the price rose.
But his father John and brother Michael are a little calmer than the more garrulous Wayne and made sure things stayed on track.
Magnier, having shown his good grace with a shake of Wayne’s hand after the sale, is rarely beaten and the Coolmore team had to be content with the Exceed and Excel colt it bought for $1.1 million on Day 1 of the sale for now.
Magic theatre
Magic Millions Managing Director Barry Bowditch said the bidding duel made for great theatre.
"It was the best theatre I've seen here this week. You could hear a pin drop in the ring. It was slow, it felt really good from our perspective, it was some tussle," he said.
"It was the best theatre I've seen here this week. You could hear a pin drop in the ring." - Barry Bowditch
"That's what it is all about, engaging with the public and with our buyers and making it feel really special for our vendors that are giving us these horses to sell.
"There is nothing better than a little round of applause when one walks out of the ring, especially at lunchtime on Friday when the place is heaving."
Wayne Hawkes, John Hawkes and Michael Hawkes (left to right)
"Team Hawkes have come here with a plan, they are leading buyer at the moment, which is not generally expected by them at this sale. Well done to the team for getting what they thought was the colt of the sale. He is a very precocious 2-year-old type and we look forward to see him running in those big races as 2-year-old.
After three days, Hawkes Racing have secured 15 new acquisitions for a total spend of $6.765 million, while several other high price lots including a Deep Field colt purchased on Day 3 for $800,000 and a Capitalist colt bought for $600,000, are also heading their way.
It’s a massive show of faith in the quality of the sale, when you consider last year Hawkes Racing purchased just six horses in total spending $1.49m in total.
