Half-sister to Arapaho among catalogue stars at Arqana Vente d'Élevage

Kit Gow

Saturday heralds the start of Arqana’s Vente d'Élevage, four days of selling at Deauville offering one last opportunity to secure quality breeding stock ahead of the Northern Hemisphere breeding season.

Among 1002 lots are 462 mares, 219 fillies, 301 foals, and five stallions, and Arqana will yet again welcome an international buying bench with a catalogue sure to appeal to everyone. The first lot enters the ring at 10AM (GMT+1) on Saturday, December 6, with the sale spanning four days to finish on Tuesday, December 9.

“These European broodmare sales give Australian breeders the opportunity to tap into some really famous bloodlines,” said Damon Gabbedy, director of Belmont Bloodstock and the Australian and New Zealand representative at Arqana.

“There are horses here bred by the Aga Khan family, the Wertheimers, and a large consignment from France’s leading breeders, (Ecurie des) Monceaux.

“It’s an opportunity for Australian breeders to add quality European bloodlines to their broodmare band, and we can never go wrong with adding some diversity to our population. It's been proven over the years that it works through French, English, and American pedigrees.”

A sale for success

The Vente d'Élevage has long been a sale associated with international success, and is a trusted source for both present and future stars.

G1 Prix de l'Opéra winner Place Du Carrousel (Ire) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) was acquired from this sale in 2023 and added valuable Australian black-type at her first start in the country, splitting high quality gallopers Via Sistina (Ire) (Fastnet Rock) and Buckaroo (GB) (Fastnet Rock) in the G1 Ranvet Stakes, before visiting Yulong Stud’s Alabama Express on Northern Hemisphere time this year.

A juvenile winner at the time of her sale, Osmose (Fr) (Zoffany {Ire}) was a savvy purchase for her Australian connections in the sale’s 2022 edition; she has since added six stakes placings and victory in the G3 Epona Stakes to her record before heading to stud.

“Osmose is a good example of what the sale can offer,” Gabbedy said. “First Light Racing have been very clever, she wasn’t a stakes performer in Europe and now she has really added value to herself by becoming a Group winner in Australia.

“It's a real opportunity to buy some race fillies and bring them down to Australia and get some valuable black type. And there is also the opportunity for a mare like Osmose to be sold back to Europe at the end of her career because she's got such a strong international pedigree.”

The fillies in training portion of the sale has been particularly fruitful in recent years; from last year’s sale, €1.6 million (AU$2.82 million) purchase Excellent Truth (Ire) (Cotai Glory {GB}) subsequently placed twice at Grade I level before taking home the GI Diana Handicap ahead of her sale at Fasig-Tipton this year, where she returned an AU$1.34 million profit to her owners when selling to Katsumi Yoshida.

From the same cohort came Mgheera (GB) (Zoustar), who in her first two starts this year won the G3 Prix de Saint Georges and the G2 Temple Stakes in succession, and Magical Hope (GB) (Frankel {GB}), who added a fourth career victory in the G3 Munster Oaks Stakes. At least 11 more individual subsequent stakes performers could have been sourced from last year’s sale.

From the foal portion of the sale, buyers could previously have selected the likes of triple Group 1-winning entire Al Riffa (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) and multiple Group winner Sioux Life (Ity) (Sioux Nation {USA}).

Catalogue highlights

The array of offerings in this year’s edition are not less spectacular. Gabbedy highlights two fillies in training from the catalogue that might be of interest to the Australian buying bench.

Lot 11, Ashikidah (Fr) (Belardo {Ire}) has twice won at metropolitan level out to 1600 metres and was beaten just a head in the Listed Prix de Saint-Cyr at her most recent start in October.

Bred by Aga Khan Studs, this is an opportunity to buy well-performed French blood with elements already familiar to Australian breeders, given her first two damsires are More Than Ready (USA) and Rock Of Gibraltar (Ire).

“You're tapping into one of the Aga Khan's great pedigrees,” said Gabbedy. “Since the catalogue was printed, she's become stakes-placed. She’s a 1400 to 1600-metre winner by Belardo out of a More Than Ready mare, so it’s all sirelines that work in Australia and she's an ideal opportunity to be raced down here before she retires to stud.”

Lot 184, Rooba (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) is a dual winner from a strong black-type family, counting two stakes winners among her siblings, including France’s Champion 3YO Stayer in 2023 Double Major (Ire) (Daiwa Major {Jpn}), who won both the G1 Prix Royal Oak and the G2 Prix Kergorlay twice.

Rooba's dam is also a half-sister to four stakes winners, including blue hen Balladeuse (Fr) (Singspiel {GB}).

“She’s bred by the Wertheimers, who are some of the best breeders in Europe,” said Gabbedy. “This is one of their best pedigrees. Here’s an opportunity to buy a Dubawi mare, out of a Dansili mare, out of a Rainbow Quest. They're like absolutely outstanding bloodlines. We're not going to get too many more opportunities to buy Dubawi mares, so she would be an ideal one for Australia.”

Gabbedy also highlights Lot 160, Aqua Mirabilis (Ire) (Churchill {Ire}), a rising 4-year-old half-sister to Australia dual Group 1 winner Arapaho (Fr) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) and Group 3-winning, Group 1-performed Athabascan (Fr) (Almanzor {Fr}). A lightly tried filly with four stakes-performed half-siblings, her family suggests she will suit racing down under.

“Arapaho’s trainer Bjorn Baker and Jim Clarke came back in August and bought her yearling half-brother by New Bay, so he's going to come out to Australia as well,” Gabbedy said.

Another interesting feature of the catalogue is three mares in foal to leading first season sire Starman (GB) on Southern Hemisphere time; Lot 170, winning Zoustar mare Agoria (GB), Lot 180, Group-placed Starspangledbanner mare You Send Me (Ire), and Lot 185, Decipher (Ire) (Noble Mission {GB}), a half-sister to triple Group 1 winner Minnie Hauk (Ire) (Frankel {GB}).

Starman stands at Tally-Ho Stud, where his fee has rocketed to €40,000 after a sensational first season with runners.

“Starman’s oldest progeny are only 2-year-olds and they’ve really started well,” said Gabbedy. “He’s had a Group 1 winner in his first crop, five stakes winners and 39 individual winners, and he’s batting at almost 6% stakes winners to runners. He’s really a stallion on the up.

“Those three pedigrees, particularly the Zoustar and Starspangledbanner mares, would be ideal for Australia.”

The full catalogue is available on Arqana.com and on the Equineline app, and Arqana have prepared an Australian-style pedigree brochure for easy perusal.