Cambridge Stud’s Sword Of State colt makes $1.1 million as Karaka delivers record-breaking Book 1
Cambridge Stud’s burgeoning young sire Sword Of State (Snitzel) delivered the defining moment at the 100th New Zealand Bloodstock (NZB) National Yearling Sale, taking centre stage at Book 1 when his colt out of Las Brisas (Shamardal) realised $1.1 million on Monday.
NZB’s decision to offer a more refined Book 1 offering over two days was richly rewarded on Monday as the premier sessions delivered record numbers.
Over the two days of trade, the auction house reported 422 yearlings sold at a clearance rate of 81 per cent. Book 1 reached a record average of $187,257, a 14 per cent rise, while the median of $140,000 also set a new benchmark and was up 27 per cent on 12 months ago. The aggregate finished at $79,022,500, a five per cent increase on last year’s figure.
NZB’s managing director Andrew Seabrook said he was delighted with the results.
“I am really thrilled. The turnover has gone up $3 million with 94 less horses catalogued. The sale has gone from three days to two days so to exceed the turnover by $3 million is huge.
“The support we’ve had from Australian [buyers] in the last couple of days and a lot of people returning that haven’t been for a while to support the 100th sale was fantastic. It’s just gone so well from the race meeting on Saturday night with that wonderful atmosphere.
“The crowd yesterday for the opening day on Sunday was amazing and it’s just continued today and to have a clearance rate of 80 per cent on sale day, that’ll continue to go up, but we haven’t done that for a number of years. The average being well up around $185,000, it’s all gone really well.
Regarding the change in format, Seabrook said: “We were very conscious of wanting to make sure that the Australians stayed here for Book 1 and 2, and we couldn’t do that under the old format. They haven’t got the time to spend away from Australia, especially with the Magic Millions sale being so close this year. So it’s worked really well. We’ve sold more horses each day, but Book 2 horses have been all available there for everyone to see, and I think that’s been a huge help for the sale, and the response and the feedback we’ve got from Australians in particular is that they love the new format.”
Despite the healthy results, one figure that might be cause of some alarm was the dramatic drop in spend from New Zealand buyers. Twelve months ago, the home team bought 224 yearlings for an aggregate of $32,407,500, while this year they bought 166 lots for total receipts of $26,377,500.
On the other side of the coin, spend from the Australian contingent rose by around $3 million to over $41 million.
Seabrook said that he expected New Zealanders to be active during the one-day Book 2 sale on Tuesday and during the inaugural Summer Sale on Thursday.
He said: “The domestic spend was down $6 million in Book 1. I haven’t analysed those results in full, so that’s a little bit surprising. I would expect them to kick in tomorrow and Thursday. There’ll be plenty of Australians here, still bidding tomorrow, they’ve had the opportunity to see the horses on the ground, so if they’re not here in person themselves tomorrow, they’ll be still bidding. I think Book 2 will be a pretty strong sale tomorrow.”
Half to Group 1 star shines at Karaka
The $1.1 million Sword Of State sale-topper is a half-brother to four-time Group 1 winner Ceolwulf (Tavistock) and will join Ciaron Maher’s powerful stable after the operation’s head of bloodstock, Will Bourne, landed the winning bid following a spirited duel that had the auditorium at capacity.
Auctioneer Steve Davis opened proceedings at $200,000 before bidding surged in $100,000 increments. Te Akau’s David Ellis, seated in his customary ringside position, was the underbidder, but Bourne, standing alongside Yulong’s Jun Zhang, held firm to secure the Cambridge Stud-consigned colt.
“[David Ellis] is a hard guy to beat, especially here on his home deck,” Bourne said. “When you’re wearing the white shorts with David Ellis, it’s never a good sign.”
The majority of the youngster will be raced by Chinese owner Mr Sanxiong Gao, who was active at Karaka’s 2025 Ready To Run Sale when purchasing two colts for a combined $1,425,000.
“He is a lovely horse and we had great support from Mr Gao, it’s the first one we have had,” explained Bourne. “I’m thrilled to have him on board. I sent Ciaron the videos of the horse when we did a short list five days ago and he was one of Ciaron’s picks. He’s delighted, I’ve just got off the phone with him and he wants me to sell the last share, so I’m getting on to that now.”
While being a half-brother to Joe Pride’s Ceolwulf was undoubtedly a main selling point, the strong-bodied colt’s pedigree also boasts elite-level international winners including Cerulean Sky (Darshaan), Moonstone (Dalakhani), Full Count Felicia (War Front) and Wellington (All Too Hard).
“This colt had a lot of strength. He was very much a yearling sales horse. When we looked at him from behind the saddle, there was a lot of power there,” said Bourne.
“There’s a few similarities [to Ceolwulf], but I feel like he’s a different horse. He was very imposing. He was a proper colt, so hopefully didn’t get him home and turn him into something.”
Bourne confirmed Maher’s stable were keen to continue backing Sword Of State, having purchased a filly by the stallion at Karaka last year. Now named Temple Of Venus, she has yet to make her racing debut, but has shown encouraging signs at home.
Sword Of State has made a good start with his first runners this season. The son of Snitzel (Redoute’s Choice) has sired three winners, headed by the exciting Warwoven and Debutant Stakes (Listed, 1000m) scorer Torture, who finished third in the Karaka Millions 2YO (RL, 1200m) and is being considered for Group 1 targets this season.
“We bought a filly last year who’s shown really good ability at home and we obviously saw Bjorn Baker’s colt [Warwoven],” Bourne continued.
“[For Sword Of State] to start like he has, it’s a credit to Cambridge Stud to get a stallion to kick like that already. We are happy to support them, they do such a good job. They’re so supportive of the industry here and the community.”
The $1.1 million result eclipsed the previous record for the current Cambridge Stud owners Brendan and Jo Lindsay and marked the first seven-figure yearling sold since they bought the historic farm from the previous owner, Sir Patrick Hogan, in 2017. It was a brilliant result given Sword Of State stood for just $15,000 (plus GST) in 2023 when the colt was conceived.
“He’s been a hype horse for us,” Cambridge Stud’s Scott Calder said. “We got on the ground and he’s a horse everyone has been talking about. He’s been a big part of our publicity, but you never know what’s going to happen at that level. To see Te Akau and Will go toe-to-toe, it was incredibly exciting.
“It was a first for us in the Lindsay era of Cambridge Stud. To have a million dollar yearling, and that was something synonymous with Patrick when he had Cambridge, those big million dollar lots were something he was a pro at, so to add our little bit to that sales record in the 100th year is a really great part of the story. I guess now we just hope he goes on to be a star on the track like Ceolwulf and we will follow him with great interest.”
Calder said Sword Of State’s early commercial success reflected the confidence breeders had shown in the stallion.
“Sword Of State was a massive money spinner last year,” he said. “The colt was so popular but you have to keep your feet on the ground because he was off a $15,000 service fee, admittedly out of a very nice mare.
“It’s hugely rewarding for us, there’s a lot of breeders around who have done well out of the stallion, and that makes my job much easier. As an industry, we need our young horses to put their hands up.
“We are a country of breed to sell breeders mainly and these young horses can really contribute to keeping people in the game and keeping their businesses going. It’s nice to be able to have some success, not just us but for everyone. What we have seen so far it’s easy to see why people are so excited about him.”
Cambridge Stud’s colt was the headline act of a brilliant Book 1 for Sword Of State, but far from his only strong result. The son of Snitzel (Redoute’s Choice) had 20 yearlings sell for total receipts of $5,205,000 and a final average of $260,250, over 17 times his covering fee.
Sword Of State’s momentum was evident earlier in the sale when Stephen Marsh Racing and Dylan Johnson Bloodstock went to $420,000 for Lot 325, a filly out of the Stravinsky (Nureyev) mare Botanic, another offering from Cambridge Stud.
“We are not surprised that she sold so well,” Calder told ANZ News. “There was a lot of interest as she was a standout all through her prep. She is also as nice a type as you could expect and sold accordingly.”
The filly will join the stable of Stephen Marsh, who is fresh from celebrating Well Written’s (Written Tycoon) emphatic victory in the Karaka Millions 3YO (RL, 1600m), with Marquee Bloodstock Agency and Bourbon Lane Stable involved in the ownership.
“Stephen and I were keen to get one by Sword of State and we have had her on our radar since the Cambridge Stud parade,” Dylan Johnson, who acts as a key agent and partner for Bourbon Lane’s New Zealand division, told ANZ News. “We believe she was the pick of them all.
“She moves beautifully, she is a good size and has a lovely head. You could say she is very elegant.”
Calder believes Sword Of State’s appeal is extending well beyond New Zealand.
Milan Park also contributed to the stallion’s strong Book 1 showing, selling two yearlings by Sword Of State on day one, including a colt out of Pussy O’Reilly (O’Reilly) for $360,000 and a filly out of Savvy Dreams (Savabeel) for $425,000.
“I’ll bet you Sword Of State will make it as a stallion,” Milan Park’s Tony Rider said. “I’m bullish about him. He just goes with so many New Zealand mares, and they’re such great types, I’ve got one over there, and again, I’m slightly a bit bullish here, but after listening to everybody, Bruce Slade, Henry Field, they’ve all seen him, and they just said, ‘wow, he’s a wow.’”
Cambridge Stud finished the sale as the leading vendor by aggregate, selling 50 yearlings for $10,640,000, recording an average of $212,800.
Brendan Linsday said the plaudits had to go to the team at home, who had worked hard in the run up to the sale.
“A lot of hard work goes in behind the scenes, and they are emotional. Jo and I believe in our country, everything we do is about New Zealand,” he said. “It’s the 100th anniversary of an iconic New Zealand event, and we’re a part of it.”
On the top seller, he added: “It tells the industry that you can turn a $15,000 service fee into a million-dollar profit, that’s really encouraging. We’re a great country, and we breed the best horses.
“It’s a moment the team are going to remember for the rest of their lives.”
The Lindsays took over the world-renowned Cambridge Stud in 2017, but wasn’t all smooth sailing for the farm under the new tutelage, losing three stallions early on. Seabrook said the leading vendor title was well-deserved.
“They did it tough there to start losing three stallions, but Sir Brennan, and Lady Jo, gave us the full support very early on in the piece,” he said. “They wanted to support the 100th yearling sale to the maximum, so to see them get $10 million in turnover, which hasn’t been done for some time, is fantastic. To see their stallion Sword Of State so popular, and getting that $1.1 million horse, I’m thrilled for them.”
Sale statistics – Book 1
2026 2025
Catalogued 567 661
Offered 520 588
Sold 422 (81%) 457 (78%)
Aggregate $79,022,500 (+5%) $75,332,500
Average $187,257 (+14%) $164,841
Median $140,000 (+27%) $110,000
Top Lot $1,100,000 $2,400,000