Value Buy: Magic Millions Day 4

Written by Bren O'Brien

Each day of the Sale, TDN AusNZ will find a 'value buy', where an opportunity has been spotted - even in this hot sale market.

Champagne tastes on a Beer budget

Three days ago, Albury-based trainer Mitch Beer was not planning on coming to the Gold Coast but a compelling argument by Magic Millions Bloodstock Manager Dane Robinson and plenty of assistance from Stephanie Grentell from Heywood Bloodstock saw him purchase a Capitalist colt for $115,000 on Friday.

The colt, Lot 643, from the draft of Newgate, was purchased at around half the price of an average yearling by Capitalist at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale this week and for some $265,000 less than what his sister fetched when offered through the Inglis Classic Sale last year.

Beer had chanced his hand with a filly from the first crop of Capitalist a couple of years ago but with the Newgate-based stallion having made a brilliant start to his career, finishing second on the First Season Sires' Table last year and leading the Second Season Sires' race this year, he thought his days of buying the progeny of the G1 Golden Slipper winner were over.

"I purchased a Capitalist out of the Magic Millions 2YOs in Training Sale in 2020, so she's a 3-year-old filly now. I paid $37,500 for her out of an I Am Invincible mare. She is named Penny Stocks and has had two starts and has been a tragedy beaten both times, she's run second twice," Beer told TDN AusNZ.

"Capitalist has started to do his thing. I thought I'd never be able to buy a Capitalist again, lo and behold, we have been able to get this one in the stable."

Beer paid tribute to Grentell for opening his eyes on the opportunity available with the colt from Newgate.

"Steph Grentell from Heywood Bloodstock has been up here looking for horses for me. Personally, I wouldn't have looked at the Capitalist because they wouldn't have been affordable for me, but he's a colt that being out of an American mare, he's quite scopey and he looks like he is going to keep on maturing," he said.

"He looked like a real Written Tycoon I thought as well. He had good bone, he was a really sensible colt and what better farm to buy him from. You put Capitalist and Newgate together and you have got to be stiff not to get a good result."

The colt is out of City Zip (USA) mare Tricky Zippy (USA), who features a Listed race at Saratoga among her six race racetrack successes. Tricky Zippy, who was a US$135,000 (AU$186,000) Keeneland November Sale purchase by SF Bloodstock in 2017, is a half-sister Eye Luv Lulu (USA) (Pollard's Vision {USA}), who was a multiple stakes winner.

Her first foal, a now 2-year-old Capitalist filly named Twiggy Lady, cost $380,000 last year and is in work with Jean Dubois, running third in a couple of recent trials.

"We are seeing these good farms buying American mares, when even five years ago, it was uncommon to see our colonial stallions crossing with these mares," Beer said.

"This colt's dam was a six-time winner, and it’s only her second foal, so she is getting every opportunity at the farm she is at. I thought he was terrific value."

Beer could only attribute that value to the fact that Lot 643 was a colt with scope, who was probably late maturing than the typical Capitalist.

He is the only purchase for the week for the combination of Beer and Heywood Bloodstock, but at one stage, it looked certain that the trainer would not be on the Gold Coast at all.

"Dane Robinson twisted my arm to come up. I thought I would be up here wasting my time. Three days ago, I was not coming up here, and this afternoon I've bought a Capitalist," he said.

"He gave me a call and sent me a spreadsheet of 80 horses that he thought would be in my bracket, Steph and I worked through them. It's fantastic to see the effort these guys go to for people that aren't up here to spend $1 million."