Written by Jessica Owers
Cover image courtesy of Godolphin
The Magic Millions March Online Sale closed on Thursday afternoon with the Godolphin gelding Ziegfeld (GB) (New Approach {Ire}) topping proceedings at $116,000. The 5-year-old chestnut gelding, a winner of three races in Europe before his importation to Australia in late 2020, was bought by the Cranbourne trainer Gavin Bedggood.
Ziegfeld is a half-brother to the Rip Van Winkle (Ire) stakes winner The Happy Prince (Ire), who was a Group 3 winner at The Curragh and multiple times Group-placed.
Ziegfeld (GB) | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
In September 2020, Ziegfeld was a Listed winner in France off the back of two wins, one at Clairefontaine as a juvenile and the other at Deauville as a 3-year-old. He was then second in a Group 2 at Longchamp before leaving French trainer Andre Fabre for Godolphin Australia.
The gelding’s best performances in this part of the world were a pair of runner-up finishes at Listed level, and he heads to Bedggood as a lightly raced 5-year-old with 15 starts.
“I’d heard a radio interview a couple of months ago that the horse was going to be on an auction site at some stage in the next couple of months,” Bedggood said, speaking to TDN AusNZ. “That made me prick my ears because I’d always followed the horse. He’d come second in a Listed race behind one of our stable horses.”
Gavin Bedggood
That result was the Listed Heatherlie H. at Caulfield last August, when Bedggood’s No Effort (Reward For Effort) led home Ziegfeld and Tralee Rose (NZ) (Tavistock {NZ}) in a tight finish.
“When I knew he was coming up for auction in this Sale, I approached a few owners that might have been interested and we went from there,” the trainer said.
Hometown Cup horse
Bedggood said the experience of buying Ziegfeld online was hassle-free, a combination of both the digital anonymity and the clear disclosures from Godolphin, especially in the tried-horse market.
“Godolphin makes it really easy,” he said. “They disclose everything about the horse, like if it’s ever bled before or had any injuries. It gives you a bit of peace of mind because a lot of times you buy tried horses through sales and there are underlying issues with the horse, or a niggle somewhere.”
“Godolphin makes it really easy. They disclose everything about the horse... It gives you a bit of peace of mind because a lot of times you buy tried-horses through sales and there are underlying issues.” - Gavin Beddgood
Bedggood will welcome Ziegfeld into his yard on Friday, with the horse coming off a 10-day spell.
“We’ll have a good look at him first,” the trainer said. “Maybe the Bendigo Golden Mile for him in a few weeks’ time, but long-term we’ll have to see how he measures up.
“Maybe a race like the Cranbourne Cup, which is our hometown Cup, might suit him. It’s worth $500,000 now and it’s a race that I’d like to win. I’ve been looking for a horse like him that might be competitive in that sort of race.”
Godolphin draft
Ziegfeld topped a 10-horse draft for Godolphin in the March Online Sale.
All 10 of the horses sold across the catalogue, with the next best in price being the 3-year-old gelding Transformation (Exceed And Excel), who went to Blade Racing for $98,500. This tidy horse from the stakes-producing broodmare Transfers (Street Cry {Ire}) is a full brother to the Listed Canberra Guineas winner Promotions.
Thereafter, the 3-year-old gelding Dark Energy (Exosphere) was sold for $83,500 to Jason Tam, followed by the fellow 3-year-old gelding Retrieval (Medaglia D’Oro {USA}) who went to Australian Bloodstock for $81,000.
Gallery: Some of the Godolphin horses that sold through the Magic Millions March Online Sale, images courtesy of Magic Millions
Across the rest of the Godolphin catalogue, trainer Richard Litt went in for a total of three horses as the 10-horse draft netted Godolphin $492,000 and an average of close to $50,000.
Bedggood said the quality of the Godolphin catalogue wasn't surprising.
“My bloke’s a gelding, so pedigree didn’t matter too much for me, but these Godolphin horses are often out of Group or stakes-winning mares,” Bedggood said. “You know they’ve been well-looked after and getting a full history on the horse does give you great peace of mind. It was a good result for us.”
Broodmares whip in the six figures
Across the rest of the Magic Millions March Online Sale, 157 horses were catalogued, with three fetching six figures.
Alongside Ziegfeld, Lot 125 was Jolie’s Choice, a Choisir mare in foal to Coolmore shuttler Churchill (Ire), and she sold to Arlington Park Racing for $105,000. She was consigned by the Singapore-based estate of Dato Dr Kai Chah Tan.
Gallery: Some of the top lots sold through the Magic Millions March Online Sale, images courtesy of Magic Millions
From the same consignment, Lot 154, the Shamardal (USA) mare Typhoon Julie, was sold to Glastonbury Farms with a Yes Yes Yes colt at foot. She made $101,000.
All up, the March Online Sale had 50 broodmares on offer alongside 40 racehorses, 20 race fillies, 23 yearlings and 19 unbroken prospects. Entries for the Magic Millions Online Sale (5-8 April) are open now.
