Cover image courtesy of The Hong Kong Jockey Club
Patch Of Theta’s (Zoustar) classy 2.3l win in the Class 2 Chevalier Cup over a mile at Hong Kong on Sunday was yet another reminder of the quality available at the Hong Kong International Sale.
And with 27 horses between both hemispheres going into the bidding phase for the next sale on March 7 next year, Hong Kong Jockey Club Executive Manager International Sales and Owners’ Advisory Services, Danny Rolston, believes similar success is about to follow.
Patch Of Theta was bought for HK$8,600,000 (AU$1,703,169) by Yeung Kit Ming Angela, HK from Hong Kong Jockey Club at the 2023 Hong Kong International Sale, living up to the hype with the dominance of his last-start victory for champion trainer, Francis Lui.
The gelding now has five wins and eight placings from 13 starts, with overall prizemoney earnings of HK$8.84 million (AU$1.74 million).
Indeed, the now 5-year-old has gone on to become a dream advertisement for the Hong Kong International Sale.
“He (Patch Of Theta) topped our sale two years ago, so those are the horses people love to critique if they don’t turn out well,” Rolston told The Thoroughbred Report. “He’s been a dream result for us, and he’s been well handled by Francis Lui.
“He (Patch Of Theta) topped our sale (Hong Kong International Sale) two years ago, so those are the horses people love to critique if they don’t turn out well.” - Danny Rolston
“He’s stepped up through the grades really well, and obviously very good owners in the Yeung family who have just been getting bigger and bigger with their racehorse ownership in Hong Kong.
“From my time up there (in Hong Kong) horses that get up to Class 2 and are competitive are genuine Group horses anywhere in the world.
“So I’m sure if he was in Australia he’d be a Carnival horse. Hopefully he might find himself in a nice stakes race in Hong Kong.”
And indeed, it cannot be forgotten what Hong Kong Group 1 superstar and last year’s Cox Plate winner Romantic Warrior (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}) has done for the Hong Kong International Sale, the elite gelding now with an incredible $29,325,857 in career prizemoney.
Romantic Warrior (Ire) | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
The now 7-year-old was a HK$4,800,000 (AU$951,532) purchase by Lau Pak Fai Peter at the 2021 Hong Kong International Sale.
“Of course, Romantic Warrior has done a massive job promoting the sale over the past three seasons,” Rolston said.
“Of course, Romantic Warrior has done a massive job promoting the (Hong Kong International) sale over the past three seasons.” - Danny Rolston
Earlier sale the recipe for success
The Hong Kong International Sale was held earlier this year in the non-traditional month of March, and Rolston has been rapt with the ensuing results.
And it is why the sale will be held on March 7 next year.
“We took a bit of a bold move this year and moved the sale to March, which was quite a few months earlier,” he said. “The plan behind that was to get the young horses into the system and into the trainers’ stables that little bit earlier.
Danny Rolston | Image courtesy of Hong Kong Jockey Club
“It’s looking like it’s paying off already. We had a nice horse called Perfect General (Zoustar) – he won early.
“There’s another horse called Markwin who won recently, and a really nice Dundeel horse called Corleone.
“So we’ve got some really nice young horses who will be going into their 4-year-old seasons with a bit more conditioning and early exposure to the Hong Kong training and racing scene.
Gallery: Some of the horses for the Hong Kong International Sale, images courtesy of Inglis
“It feels like we’ve got our bases loaded with some nice young stock at the moment.”
With the Hong Kong International Sales restricted to Hong Kong Jockey Club members who hold permits to own racehorses, Rolston said he goes into yearling sales – when he purchases horses specifically for this sale – with a different idea to most of the breeding farms.
“We’re buying nearly everything at the yearling sales. So we’re trying to buy a little bit different to I guess the stallion buyers in Australia,” he said.
“It feels like we’ve got our bases loaded with some nice young stock at the moment.” - Danny Rolston
“We’re looking to buy horses that are looking like they’ll continually improve.
“So we’re not necessarily getting tied up in some of those bidding wars for those precocious colts.
“We’re looking for a bit more of a progressive pedigree where they consistently perform better at three and then again at four than what they do with their early stock.
“We’re trying to buy a progressive type of horse, and then we’ve got a development program that’s tailored for that.”
Sustained speed, calmness the keys to victory in Hong Kong
Rolston, who flew back to Hong Kong on Tuesday, spent some time Down Under analysing the strengths of the horses who will go under the auctioneer’s hammer at the Hong Kong International Sale on March 7.
The best horses from this sale are the ones who can stay calm in their pre-training programs under the expert eye of Limitless Lodge owner/director Tim Boland at Wyong Creek, just outside of Wyong on the New South Wales Central Coast.
Calmness and sustained speed are valued highly by Hong Kong buyers due to the constant pressure of the high stakes racing in that jurisdiction.
Tim Boland | Image courtesy of Limitless Lodge
“Definitely temperament and soundness are keys for Hong Kong. We don’t have the luxury of some of the variety that horses in training can get in some other parts of the world,” he said.
“Temperament and soundness are absolutely vital for what we’re doing. The ability to adapt quickly and get into the system and be up in barrier trials and racing quickly.
“And turn of foot. These horses are able to travel at good speeds early. To be sitting up on the speed early and hitting hard on the straight, we’re seeing that from these horses early in their careers against seasoned horses.
“Temperament and soundness are absolutely vital for what we’re doing. The ability to adapt quickly and get into the system and be up in barrier trials and racing quickly.” - Danny Rolston
“I think we’ve got a bit to look forward to.”
Rolston was impressed with the workouts he observed at Newcastle Racecourse on Monday, before having a look at his 2-year-olds on Tuesday.
“We’ve utilised the course proper at Newcastle. We had four professional jockeys booked, and we gave the horses a nice workout on the turf,” he said.
“It was about educating them about their futures in Hong Kong, but also to get feedback from those professional riders, and know exactly what we’ve got before we’re confident to put them on a plane and take them up for our sales next year.
“The 3-year-olds we galloped at Newcastle, and the 2-year-olds (on Tuesday) morning we just watched canter at Tim’s property at Limitless Lodge.”
Rolston said the work of his 3-year-olds on Monday was “as good as a barrier trial” for them.
“While we’re not necessarily barrier trialling, we’re trying to put these horses through a similar regime to what they might be going through by the time they’re running in classic races at three in New Zealand and Australia,” he said.
“... we’re trying to put these horses through a similar regime to what they might be going through by the time they’re running in classic races at three in New Zealand and Australia.” - Danny Rolston
“We want to condition them accordingly without putting too much into them early with a nice development program.
“(Monday) at Newcastle was a key milestone in what we’re doing, and it was an opportunity to get them on the grass with proper riders on them.
“It was as good as a barrier trial.”
No shortage of quality on March 7
The main reason why Rolston flew to Australia was so he would see first-hand the physical and mental qualities of the horses that will be on sale in Hong Kong on March 7 next year.
And potential buyers can be confident there could well be another Patch Of Theta - or even a Romantic Warrior-type horse - up for grabs.
“We still have some decisions to make on if there’s anything that doesn’t pass muster from a veterinary point of view, but once we finish the analysis of our gallops and talk to our trainers we’ll have a better idea,” he said.
“We only want to bring horses that we’re confident about, not only in their soundness and temperament, but also in their ability.
“We only want to bring horses that we’re confident about, not only in their soundness and temperament, but also in their ability.” - Danny Rolston
“So part of (Monday at Newcastle) was that feedback from the jockeys and our trainers. We want to know that what we’re selling to our members is not a profit-driving exercise. We’re wanting to know that we’re bringing horses that will give our owners a good racing experience.”
Rolston also paid credit to the work of Managing Director of Boomer Bloodstock (FBAA), Craig Rounsefell.
“He is integral in our selection process. It’s vital we are procuring the right stock as a start point, and in this phase the work of Craig in the selection process is crucial,” Rolston said.
Craig Rounsefell | Image courtesy of Inglis
“Starting with sound athletes with good minds sets up the end user with the best chance of success, and it is a priority for us.”
Meanwhile, Rolston has been delighted with the progress of Mehzebeen (NZ) (Almanzor {Fr}), who won the G3 New Zealand Cup over 3200 metres at Riccarton Park on November 16.
He is a part-owner of the 5-year-old mare.
“She’s been a great mare that we purchased in partnership with some local breeders in New Zealand, with the long-term view of keeping her and eventually breeding from her,” he said.
“So we’ve got some great partners in her, and she’s always looked like she’d stay a trip and looked like she was stakes class.
“This year she’s really grown a leg, so we’re having a lot of fun with her.
“Now she’s proven over two miles that the dream is alive, right?”
