Cover image courtesy of Inglis
At A Glance
Inglis' 2023 Ready2Race Sale catalogued 226 2-year-olds, of which 92 (51.2 per cent) were sold at the time of writing 10pm AEDT. The figure is below the 2022 figure of 162 (73 per cent) selling.
This year the sale grossed $10,477,500 a figure considerably below the 2022 gross figure of $16,720,000.
At the conclusion of the 2023 sale, the average sat at $113,886 and a median of $92,500. The figures were an improvement on the average of $103,210 and median of $75,000 in 2022.
The 2023 Inglis Ready2Race Sale top-lot spot went to Lot 97, a colt by Capitalist who sold for $400,000 to Magus Equine when offered by Blake Ryan Racing. The top lot in 2022 sold for $750,000.
The sale's leading vendor was Blake Ryan Racing, selling 14 of his 18 offered lots for a total of $1,960,500, including the top lot.
Henry Field topped the list as buyer, picking up two colts for a total of $650,000.
The most represented buyer region was New South Wales, purchasing 37 lots, while 27 lots were knocked down to Hong Kong buyers.
Clearance rate presents a challenge
Following the first 2-year-old sale of the 2023 season, Sebastian Hutch, Inglis CEO-Bloodstock Sales, admitted he would have liked to see the clearance rate higher and more domestic participation. However, he continues to be proud of how far the sale format has come.
“Your expectations around what the clearance rate would be is different to what it would be at a yearling sale. You make allowances to the fact that vetting is a particular focus of the sale,” Hutch told TTR AusNZ.
“You’ve got to vet well and obviously a certain per cent of your horses won’t vet well. Then you have the fact that the expectations of some vendors, given their investment in the horses, will be higher than what buyers are prepared to meet.
“You just accept that as being part and parcel of the sale format. Because it’s not a select sale, there’ll just be certain horses that don’t meet the expectations of buyers, whether that be physique, pedigree or breeze-up time.
“Because it’s not a select sale, there’ll just be certain horses that don’t meet the expectations of buyers, whether that be physique, pedigree or breeze-up time.” - Sebastian Hutch
“There’s still plenty of opportunities there for people to buy horses, and even as we speak, there are people selling horses and the clearance rate is going up.
“But we’ll take a day to reflect on the sale, debrief on it and take some learnings and we will look forward to planning the 2024 Inglis Ready2Race Sale. We are proud that it’s a sale format that is growing confident amongst buyers and undoubtedly is going to deliver results on the track over the next 12 months.”
Subedued start
Tuesday’s 2023 edition of the Inglis Ready2Race Sale started on the right note with Lot 1, a colt by Newgate Farm’s Capitalist offered by DSB Thoroughbreds, leaving the ring sold for $200,000 to Arlington Park.
However, with five subsequent lots passed in, it wouldn’t be until Lot 10, a colt by the second-season sire Grunt (NZ) on account of JSC Thoroughbreds, left the Riverside ring sold.
Lot 1 - Capitalist x Unblemished (colt) | Image courtesy of Inglis
The colt, from the family of the star mare Imperatriz (I Am Invincible), made $95,000 to the bid of Sidecreek Racing.
Inglis’ Jonathan D’Arcy, general manager of bloodstock operations, remained optimistic, speaking to the InglisTV commentary, describing the Inglis Ready2Race Sale as a boxing match with vendors and buyers sorting each other out. Despite a subdued start, he was confident the sale would pick up.
D’Arcy was not far off the mark, with solid results coming shortly after the comments.
Classy colts fit bill for Hong Kong
Hong Kong buyers were active on Tuesday at the Inglis Riverside complex.
Magus Equine shelled out $400,000 to secure Lot 97, the overall top lot, a chestnut colt by Capitalist, who has tasted success in the jurisdiction, siring seven winners from only 10 runners.
Willie Leung, founder of Magus Equine | Image courtesy of Inglis
He is the second foal from the Smart Missile mare Ghalia’s Dream. She is a half-sister to the G2 Skyline S. victor Santos and is closely related to the Group 3 winner Sebonack (Capitalist).
The colt, offered by Blake Ryan Racing at the Ready2Race Sale, had gone through the Riverside ring as part of Middlebrook Valley Lodge's draft at the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale earlier in the year, where Richardson Racing paid $70,000.
Gallery: Blake Ryan Racing's top-selling lots, images courtesy of Inglis
It was a strong run of results for Blake Ryan Racing, who earlier sold Lot 35 for $370,000.
“It’s been terrific. Both horses (Lot 35 and Lot 97) made double their reserve of $200,000.
“The Justify was a $110,000 yearling, and the Capitalist was $70,000 as a yearling; to make $400,000 and $370,000 each respectively it’s fantastic.
Blake Ryan | Image courtesy of Inglis
“I felt there wasn’t much between the Justify colt and the Capitalist colt. They both did everything right and what you needed to see for them to be competitive at this sale.
“The Capitalist had a lovely frame and a great mind. He’s well-related, and that helps as you must marry up the pedigree and type alongside the vetting. So, it’s not that easy, and sometimes you get it right and sometimes wrong.”
“The Justify (Lot 35) was a $110,000 yearling, and the Capitalist (Lot 97) was $70,000 as a yearling; to make $400,000 and $370,000 each respectively it’s fantastic.” - Blake Ryan
Also attracting attention from Hong Kong was Lot 32, a son of Australia’s reigning Champion Sire I Am Invincible, offered on account of the Cambridge-based Cheltenham Stables.
Competition was fierce for the well-built son of Vinnie, eventually knocked down to Hong Kong-based trainer Michael Chang for $350,000.
He is from the dual-winning More Than Ready (USA) mare Bit Of Cheek and a full brother to the Listed Takeover Target S. winner and Group 2-placed Blondeau. The colt breezed up in 10.68s at Cambridge on the synthetic.
Lot 32 - I Am Invincible x Bit Of Cheek (colt) | Image courtesy of Inglis
John Malcom of Cheltenham Stables told Inglis, “Very happy with the result. He’s (Lot 32) has been such a nice horse to work with.
“He’s got a fantastic attitude and handled everything so well, including a lovely breeze.”
Harry and Justify remain popular
Given the great start enjoyed by the progeny of Coolmore Stud’s Justify (USA) and Darely’s Harry Angel (Ire), seeing their progeny well-received at Tuesday’s sale came as little surprise.
The North American Triple Crown winner, Justify, was crowned Australia’s Champion First Season Sire and has sired four individual Group 1 winners worldwide, including two recently - Just F Y I (USA) and Opera Singer (USA).
Justify (USA) | Standing at Coolmore
The first Justify to hit the ring was Lot 35, a colt offered by Blake Ryan Racing.
The second foal from the well-related Smart Missile mare Boudicea Belle, a half-sister to the dam of the G2 Coolmore Classic victress Peeping (Redoute’s Choice) and a half-sister to the G2 Stan Fox S. winner Eurozone, the colt recorded a breeze-up time of 10.70s at Hawkesbury on a Good 3 track.
Annabel Neasham Racing and Pato Leung purchased him for $370,000. He was a $110,000 yearling purchase by Magus Equine from the draft of Highgrove Stud at the 2023 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale.
Annabel Neasham | Image courtesy of Inglis
Neasham has enjoyed fantastic success with the progeny of Justify, with her star juvenile Learning To Fly a leading light from his first Southern Hemisphere crop.
“I know Blake Ryan well, and he came and spoke to me at the Warwick Farm trials the other morning and was adamant I look at (Lot 35),” Neasham said.
“I watched his breeze, and he had a beautiful big action. We’re a huge fan of Justify, and we had an order from a client (Pato Leung) who is also a fan of the sire.
“I watched his (Lot 35) breeze, and he had a beautiful big action. We’re a huge fan of Justify, and we had an order from a client (Pato Leung) who is also a fan of the sire.” - Annabel Neasham
“It all matched. I’ll chat to the team, but I think he’ll have a short let-up. However, he’s a big, strong colt with plenty of bone, and I’d say we will look at getting him racing early.”
Harry Angel, whose daughter Stretan Angel claimed Saturday’s G2 Danehill S., was represented by Lot 42 on account of the Matamata-based Prima Park.
The chestnut colt is the second foal from the Haradasun mare Cambage. He sold for $220,000 to Hong Kong’s Equine Investments International Asia Limited.
Lot 42 - Harry Angel (Ire) x Cambage (colt) | Image courtesy of Inglis
Also dipping their toes into the Ready2Race market was Newgate Farm director Henry Field.
Under the Newgate Bloodstock banner, Field first signed for Lot 52, the second son of Justify, to enter the ring; a colt is from High Chaparral (Ire) mare Chillaxing.
Offered by the Cambridge-based Leanach Lodge, he is closely related to the Group 2 winner Peltzer, who now stands at Olly Tait's Twin Hills Stud. The colt breezed in a time of 10.91s at Cambridge on the synthetic.
Henry Field with Lot 67 - Showtime x Damselle (colt) | Image courtesy of Inglis
The second of the Newgate Bloodstock purchasers was Lot 67, a son of second-season sire Showtime, who stands at Arrowfield Stud. Offered by Nolen Racing, the colt recorded the fastest breeze of the sale, hitting the line in 10.14s on the synthetic track at Seymour.
Lot 67 is the third foal from the Domesday mare Damselle, who hails from the family of the Group 1-winning first-season sire Microphone.
Lot 67 - Showtime x Damselle (colt) | Image courtesy of Inglis
Field explained his foray into the Inglis Ready2Race Sale.
“I go to America every year and work closely with a team there who had great success at breeze-up sales. Bob Baffert has had a number of great horses from the sale format,” Field told Inglis.
“I try to learn as much as I can from these guys about what to look for at a breeze-up sale, and when I returned to Australia, I decided to put a lot of work into this catalogue (Inglis Ready2Race) to use as a learning experience.
“I had all the breeze-up videos assessed by a Biomechanics specialist, and coincidentally, around the same time, a client of the farm (Newgate) asked if I could find some nice horses in this sale.
“I think we have done that. I thought the two colts (Lot 52 and Lot 67) were the best in the sale,” he said.
“They both breezed beautifully and are well-educated, athletic with plenty of scope.
“I thought the two colts (Lot 52 and Lot 67) were the best in the sale. They both breezed beautifully and are well-educated, athletic with plenty of scope.” - Henry Field
“This concept works very well in Europe and America, and I genuinely believe we bought the best two horses; time will tell. But the plan is for them to go to the spelling farm, slow down, and we feel they’ll be better 3-year-olds than 2-year-olds, then it will be whatever the owner wants to do.
“I was happy to try something outside my comfort zone, though.”
Young guns in demand
Progeny of first-season sires found plenty of fans on Tuesday.
Yulong’s Pierata achieved two excellent results when Lot 31 and Lot 145 both achieved a price of $160,000.
Lot 31, on account of O’Gorman Racing, is the first foal from the Belfast Bella (Fr) (Manduro {Ger}) sold to Darby Racing, while Lot 145, consigned by Moffatt Breaking and Pre-Training, is the second foal from the Group 1-placed Testa Rossa mare Mica Lil. The Hong Kong-based Upper Bloodstock purchased the colt alongside Mick Price Racing.
Moffatt Breaking and Pre-Training pinhooked Lot 145 from the Inglis Premier Yearling Sale for $80,000.
Gallery: Pierata's top-selling 2-year-olds, images courtesy of Inglis
Moore International Bloodstock paid $200,000 for Lot 38, a colt by Widden Stud’s Zousain. Mitchell Williams Bloodstock offered the colt, and it was his third time around the Riverside sale ring.
Lot 38 was initially purchased by K Lindsay for $30,000 from the 2022 Inglis Sydney Weanling Sale before he was reoffered at the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale, where Mitchell Williams Bloodstock paid $75,000.
The first-season sires Cosmic Force (Newgate Farm) and Yes Yes Yes (Coolmore Stud) recorded pleasing results with their progeny. Cosmic Force was represented by Lot 45, offered by Nolen Racing. The colt made $160,000 selling to the Hong Kong-based J Ting.
Lot 45 - Cosmic Force x Capella Magna (colt) | Image courtesy of Inglis
Lot 83, a colt by The Everest winner Yes Yes Yes on account of Grenville Bloodstock, provided an excellent result after being purchased for $28,000 at the Inglis May Yearling Sale; the colt made $100,000 selling to the Yukimuia Family on Tuesday.
Pinhooks galore
The sale also showcased the opportunities for pinhooking the ‘right horse’.
Lot 46, a colt by Newgate Farm’s first-season sire Brutal (NZ), provided the Scottish-born Darrell Burnet of DSB Thoroughbreds a dream result for his first foray into the Inglis Ready2Race Sale.
Burnet purchased the bay colt from the Inglis May Yearling Sale for $25,000 and sold him as Lot 46 on Tuesday for $140,000 to Allam Racing.
Lot 46 - Brutal (NZ) x Catch A Wave (colt) | Image courtesy of Inglis
The colt is the fourth foal from Catch A Wave (Fastnet Rock), a half-sister to Fangirl (Sebring).
“Unreal! This is my first go at the Ready2Race market,” Burnet said.
“To turn $25,000 into $140,000. I believe he will join the Chris Waller stable, and it’s the same ownership of Democracy Manifest, who graduated from this sale.
“The colt (Lot 46) will get every chance. He’s a great looker with the right attitude and enjoyed being here (Riverside).”
“Unreal, this is my first go at the Ready2Race market. To turn $25,000 into $140,000. I believe he (Lot 46) will join the Chris Waller stable... The colt will get every chance.” - Darrell Burnet
Burnet also sold the Capitalist colt (Lot 1) for $200,000.
“I believe the Capitalist colt will join the Annabel Neasham stable. He’s a very natural horse that was originally purchased for Singapore.”
Moffatt Breaking and Pre-Training was active at the yearling sales earlier in the year and achieved good results with his pinhooks.
The colt was offered as Lot 43, a son of the late Reward For Effort, sold to J Ting for $140,000. He was a $25,000 purchase by Moffatt from the Inglis Premier Yearling Sale.
Lot 43 - Reward For Effort x Cannubi (NZ) (colt) | Image courtesy of Inglis
Moffatt purchased Lot 151, a colt by Smart Missile, for $105,000 from the Inglis Premier Yearling Sale and resold the colt for $210,000 on Tuesday to the Hong Kong-based Ringo Yu.
Fans of Yarraman Park’s Hellbent were well rewarded, with the stallion’s progeny providing excellent results. Lot 136, offered by JCS Thoroughbreds, was the third foal from the Magic Albert mare Magic Of Dreams. She is a half-sister to the Group 3 winner, Fine Bubbles (Casino Prince).
The colt was a $24,000 pinhook from the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale and sold for $210,000 to Ricky Yiu.
Lot 136 - Hellbent x Magic Of Dreams (colt) | Image courtesy of Inglis
“Hellbent is a newer horse to the scene,” Yiu said.
“But I liked him as a racehorse, and I hope this colt will be competitive in the Griffin races in Hong Kong and will hopefully fit into the sprinter-miler bracket.”
Lot 154, on account of Glenn Haven Racing, was knocked down to Scone Bloodstock Services for $210,000 after being a $52,000 pinhook by Matt Vella Breezeup at the Inglis May Yearling Sale. The colt is the third foal from the Collate mare Mumford. She hails from the family of the G1 The Galaxy winner Jetball.
Positives to be taken
Hutch explained the challenges with the clearance rate and remained optimistic for the sale format in the future.
“I believe the average clearance rate for a 2-year-old sale around the world is something like 65 per cent, and we’ve (Inglis) been blessed to be able to have these sales with good clearance rates over the last few years,” Hutch said.
“It wasn’t anywhere near as a strong as we would have liked it to be today (Tuesday) in terms of clearance rate.”
Sebastian Hutch | Image courtesy of Inglis
“There were some excellent results on particular horses and for certain vendors. There was good competition on certain horses at various levels and we saw significant participation from Hong Kong, and other international interest.
“There was a good number of lots purchased to go to Malaysia.
“However, our expectation and hope prior to the sale was that the domestic market would play a substantive role. And while we had a number of good domestic participants, the domestic participation probably wasn’t enough to get the clearance rate to a level that we would have liked or our vendors would have liked.
“... while we had a number of good domestic participants, the domestic participation probably wasn’t enough to get the clearance rate to a level that we would have liked or our vendors would have liked.” - Sebastian Hutch
“We’ll see what we need to do to make some improvements ahead of next year.
“We had Henry Field active this year, he worked hard on the complex on Sunday and Monday and my understanding is he had a lot of preparatory work for the sale in terms of assessing videos and breezes, pedigrees.
“He (Henry) saw some opportunity based on the success of previous graduates and I know he was pleased to find a number of horses that he liked physically during his inspections.
“It was great to find him in a position to support the sale. He’s operating in fairly rarefield air domestically and internationally as a judge of horseflesh. So, it’s a great compliment to vendors when they can sell him a horse and great for Inglis to be able to sell him some horses.
“It’s one of these things where there’s plenty to be positive about and there’s some learning to take out of the day.
“It’s one of these things where there’s plenty to be positive about and there’s some learning to take out of the day.” - Sebastian Hutch
“And vendors can be confident that we’re working hard to try and sell more.
“This is a sale format that has come an awfully long way in a relatively short space of time, and I think it’s inconceivable that 10 years ago people would have expected the sale format to be where it’s at. It’s something we’re determined to continue to build on in the future.”
Top lots
| 97 | C | Capitalist | Ghalia's Dream | Blake Ryan Racing | Magus Equine, Hong Kong | $400,000 |
| 32 | C | I Am Invincible | Bit Of Cheek | Cheltenham Stables | K Ng, Hong Kong | $370,000 |
| 35 | C | Justify | Boudicea Belle | Blake Ryan Racing | Annabel Neasham Racing/P Leung, NSW | $370,000 |
| 67 | C | Showtime | Damselle | Nolen Racing | Newgate Bloodstock, NSW | $350,000 |
| 205 | C | Zoustar | Starta Lady | Prima Park | Sam Wright Bloodstock/ D Whyte, Hong Kong | $350,000 |
| 52 | C | Justify | Chillaxing | Leanach Lodge | Newgate Bloodstock, NSW | $300,000 |
| 42 | C | Harry Angel | Cambage | Prima Park | Equine Investments International Asia Limited, Hong Kong | $220,000 |
| 222 | F | Justify | Tingu | Valiant Stud | Byerley Bloodstock, WA | $220,000 |
| 136 | C | Hellbent | Magic Of Dreams | JCS Thoroughbreds | R Yiu, Hong Kong | $210,000 |
| 151 | C | Smart Missile | Monopole | Moffatt Breaking & Pre Training | R Yu, Hong Kong | $210,000 |
Top buyers
| Newgate Bloodstock | 2 | $650,000 | $325,000 | $350,000 |
| Magus Equine Ltd | 2 | $600,000 | $300,000 | $400,000 |
| R Yiu | 3 | $500,000 | $166,667 | $210,000 |
| Moore International Bloodstock | 2 | $380,000 | $190,000 | $200,000 |
| Annabel Neasham Racing / P Leung | 1 | $370,000 | $370,000 | $370,000 |
| K Ng | 1 | $370,000 | $370,000 | $370,000 |
| Sam Wright Bloodstock / D Whyte | 1 | $350,000 | $350,000 | $350,000 |
| Darby Racing | 2 | $340,000 | $170,000 | $180,000 |
| Amanda Turner Racing | 3 | $320,000 | $106,667 | $150,000 |
| Byerley Bloodstock | 2 | $320,000 | $160,000 | $220,000 |
Vendors by average (3 or more sold)
| Prima Park, Matamata, NZ | 3 | $690,000 | $230,000 | $350,000 |
| Leanach Lodge, Cambridge, NZ | 3 | $510,000 | $170,000 | $300,000 |
| DSB Thoroughbreds, Wagga Wagga | 3 | $440,000 | $146,667 | $200,000 |
| Blake Ryan Racing, Sydney | 14 | $1,960,500 | $140,036 | $400,000 |
| Valiant Stud, Aberdeen | 3 | $410,000 | $136,667 | $220,000 |
| Nolen Racing, Benalla, Vic | 9 | $1,210,000 | $134,444 | $350,000 |
| Moffatt Breaking & Pre Training, Milawa, Vic | 6 | $795,000 | $132,500 | $210,000 |
| JCS Thoroughbreds, Benalla, Vic | 5 | $595,000 | $119,000 | $210,000 |
| Kiltannon Stables, Cambridge, NZ | 3 | $220,000 | $73,333 | $150,000 |
| Pendergast Thoroughbreds, Narrandera | 3 | $175,000 | $58,333 | $110,000 |
Vendors by aggregate
| Blake Ryan Racing, Sydney | 14 | $1,960,500 | $140,036 | $400,000 |
| Nolen Racing, Benalla, Vic | 9 | $1,210,000 | $134,444 | $350,000 |
| Moffatt Breaking & Pre Training, Milawa, Vic | 6 | $795,000 | $132,500 | $210,000 |
| Prima Park, Matamata, NZ | 3 | $690,000 | $230,000 | $350,000 |
| JCS Thoroughbreds, Benalla, Vic | 5 | $595,000 | $119,000 | $210,000 |
| Cheltenham Stables, Cambridge, NZ | 2 | $570,000 | $285,000 | $370,000 |
| Leanach Lodge, Cambridge, NZ | 3 | $510,000 | $170,000 | $300,000 |
| DSB Thoroughbreds, Wagga Wagga | 3 | $440,000 | $146,667 | $200,000 |
| Valiant Stud, Aberdeen | 3 | $410,000 | $136,667 | $220,000 |
| Hannover Lodge, Wilberforce | 2 | $300,000 | $150,000 | $200,000 |
Sires by average (2 or more sold)
| Capitalist | 2 | $600,000 | $300,000 | $400,000 |
| Justify | 3 | $890,000 | $296,667 | $370,000 |
| Hellbent | 2 | $420,000 | $210,000 | $210,000 |
| Shalaa | 2 | $360,000 | $180,000 | $180,000 |
| Harry Angel | 2 | $300,000 | $150,000 | $220,000 |
| Showtime | 3 | $445,000 | $148,333 | $350,000 |
| Blue Point | 2 | $290,000 | $145,000 | $200,000 |
| All Too Hard | 5 | $695,000 | $139,000 | $200,000 |
| Russian Revolution | 2 | $260,000 | $130,000 | $150,000 |
| Cosmic Force | 3 | $375,000 | $125,000 | $200,000 |
Sires by aggregate
| Justify | 3 | $890,000 | $296,667 | $370,000 |
| All Too Hard | 5 | $695,000 | $139,000 | $200,000 |
| Capitalist | 2 | $600,000 | $300,000 | $400,000 |
| Pierata | 5 | $473,000 | $94,600 | $160,000 |
| Showtime | 3 | $445,000 | $148,333 | $350,000 |
| Hellbent | 2 | $420,000 | $210,000 | $210,000 |
| Cosmic Force | 3 | $375,000 | $125,000 | $200,000 |
| I Am Invincible | 1 | $370,000 | $370,000 | $370,000 |
| Shalaa | 2 | $360,000 | $180,000 | $180,000 |
| Zoustar | 1 | $350,000 | $350,000 | $350,000 |
