Magnier chatted with TDN AusNZ’s Paul Vettise about Coolmore’s sale expectations, the global powerhouse’s draft which features a strong mix of proven and first-season sires and the high points of the season to date.
Paul Vettise: Obviously, this is a unique sale, what are your thoughts and expectations on the outcome?
Tom Magnier: “While the market will no doubt be affected, there still remains a great appetite for quality horses and we feel that there will be some great value on offer for investors taking a long term approach.
"We remain optimistic with our expectations of the sale knowing that this is the cream of the crop. The G1 Blue Diamond S., the G1 VRC Oaks and the G1 Coolmore Stud S. will still be run in 2021 if the circumstances permit, people won’t want to miss out on the opportunity to acquire the next Catchy or Pinot or Exceedance.”
Tom believes that 'there still remains a great appetite for quality horses'
PV: Under the current circumstances, I imagine you are happy and relieved to have the opportunity to sell your draft?
TM: “In what are unprecedented times we must thank Inglis for the work that they have put in to make the sale possible. The Inglis digital platform is tried and tested and we are blessed that it has given us an opportunity that otherwise might not have been afforded to us."
"Our yearling staff have worked incredibly hard to present this draft of yearlings in impeccable order and we want to give all of our client’s equal opportunity to acquire through the Inglis digital platform.”
"The Inglis digital platform is tried and tested and we are blessed that it has given us an opportunity that otherwise might not have been afforded to us." - Tom Magnier
PV: Tell us about the feedback from your parades, and how do you rate the line-up in terms of quality to past Easter consignments?
TM: “A significant number of trainers and agents have inspected our exceptional draft of 35 yearlings and we encourage anyone to get in touch with them to get their feedback. We could not be happier with the quality of our draft, they are a genuinely outstanding line up of yearlings.
"In recent years at Easter we have offered the likes of Catchy, Pinot, Tuscan Queen, Pretty Brazen, Dragon Leap, Quick Thinker, Southbank, Californiadeepshot, Sense Of Honour and Chianti. However, the depth of class in this year’s draft of yearlings is the best we have ever presented.”
Coolmore will present 11 American Pharoah (USA) yearlings at Easter | Standing at Coolmore
PV: You must be delighted with the market response to first-season sire American Pharoah?
TM: “American Pharoah is like no other horse we have shuttled to Australia and Australian breeders reacted accordingly by supporting him with an incredible book of mares in his first season.
"As it has transpired, his first crop of yearlings has been met with a similar sense of enthusiasm by trainers, agents and syndicators this year, which is greatly encouraging. With six stakes winners and 15 stakes horses to his name already, he is an incredibly exciting sire and we have no doubt that he will be a success in Australia. He has already produced four stakes-winning 2-year-olds on turf, so the future looks bright for American Pharoah.”
PV: Any particular favourites among this Easter yearlings?
TM: “We offer 11 impeccably-bred American Pharoah yearlings in our draft including the progeny of or siblings to Lake Geneva, Irish Lights, Pittsburgh Flyer, Believe Yourself and Diamond Earth.
"The Jolie’s Pearl (Lot 510) and Lake Geneva (Lot 15) fillies are absolute standouts, however they are a very even bunch of high quality yearlings. A trademark of American Pharoah is that he typically throws a very consistent type. In general, they are athletic horses with great size and scope and very good actions.”
Gallery: Tom's picks by American Pharoah
PV: Tell us about a few of your leading yearling highlights in the consignment by the proven sires?
TM: “Our draft has a healthy representation from a wide range of proven sires, including our own trio of Fastnet Rock, Pierro and So You Think, who are three of the leading sires in the country at present.
"Their record of producing elite performers is incredible, which is highlighted by the rate at which they convert stakes winners to Group 1 winners. This is a true reflection of a great sire and Pierro does it at a rate of 33 per cent, Fastnet Rock at 25 per cent and So You Think at 20 per cent, which compares very favourably to other proven sires throughout the country.
"In recent years we have sold the likes of Catchy (Fastnet Rock), Pinot (Pierro) and Quick Thinker (So You Think {NZ}) for not a lot of money at Easter and they have gone on to richly reward their purchasers. We hope that the class of 2020 can go on to do the same.”
Tom is looking forward to purchasing yearlings also
PV: Will you be actively buying yearlings?
TM: “It is no secret that we have been active buyers at the yearling sales in 2020 and we will be once again at Easter. We have been around to most of the farms to inspect their drafts and have been very impressed by the quality on offer.
"There are some lovely horses in the catalogue so we encourage people to get out there and inspect as many as they can. We certainly look forward to adding some to our racing team and hopefully we can have a bit of luck in the future.”
"We have been around to most of the farms to inspect their drafts and have been very impressed by the quality on offer. We certainly look forward to adding some to our racing team.” - Tom Magnier
PV: What have been the highlights so far of the 2019/20 racing season for Coolmore?
TM: “There have been a number of highlights in the 2019/20 racing season for Coolmore and obviously the win of Yes Yes Yes (Rubick) in The Everest is right up there.
"More generally, it has been great to see how well our young stallions such as Pierro, So You Think, Rubick, Pride Of Dubai, Vancouver and even Adelaide has been performing. We are so thankful to our clients and friends who have been instrumental in launching the stud careers of these stallions and we are incredibly excited for what the future holds at Coolmore Australia. We have so much to look forward to.”
Yes Yes Yes' win in The Everest is one of Tom's highlights from the 2019/20 racing season
