Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale
Snitzel show continues at Magic Millions with $1.6 million session-topper
James Thomas
ANZ News
Four more seven-figure lots and another session of spirited bidding, particularly for the progeny of the late, great Snitzel (Redoute’s Choice), ensured a third buoyant day in succession at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale.
Auctioneer Grant Burns introduced the daughter of Snitzel out of Madame Andree (War Emblem) by saying “One of the star fillies of 2026, in my humble opinion.”
What's On
Plainly plenty among the packed auditorium were in agreement, as the bidding reached a hefty $1,600,000 by the time the gavel came down. The Arrowfield-consigned youngster went the way of Eugene Chuang’s Hermitage Thoroughbreds.
The well-related filly is now a sibling to six winners and five black-type performers, with her three-year-old sister Caffe Florian shedding her maiden since the catalogue was released, and then going on to claim a Gosford Listed contest.
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The filly is also a sister to the Group 3-placed Satin Love and is closely related to the Group 3 scorers Ostraka (Pariah) and Anders (Not A Single Doubt), who stands at Widden Stud.
“We’ve had a lot of luck with a Snitzel filly recently and that’s probably guided us on this filly today
The various names involved in this trade have combined to good effect before. The Hermitage Syndicate races another daughter of Snitzel in three-time Group 1 heroine Lady Shenandoah, while the outfit also campaigned The Autumn Sun (Redoute’s Choice), who is now making waves from the Arrowfield roster.
Moreover, Arrowfield and Hermitage jointly own The Autumn Sun’s highest earner, the unbeaten Epsom Handicap (Gr 1, 1600m) winner Autumn Glow.
“There was a lot of competition but she was our top pick for the sale,” said Hermitage manager Shannon Clarke. “We’ve had a lot of luck with a Snitzel filly recently and that’s probably guided us on this filly today. That was our limit, my heart was pounding hoping that we were going to secure her. We’ve had a lot of luck with Arrowfield. It’s a great partnership that we have and long may it continue.”
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She added: “There’s over 100 on the [Hermitage] books at the moment, and 50 of those would be racehorses. We’re slowly building up. We’ve always had a small team but in the past few years we’ve really built the stable up.”
On Autumn Glow, who trialled at Randwick earlier in the day, Clarke said: “She’s an exceptional mare and we’re just happy to be along for the ride.”
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By the close of trade, gross sales had reached $146,142,500, a marginal one per cent increase despite around 30 fewer lots having been offered than at the corresponding stage 12 months ago. The average price was $281,045 (up one per cent year-on-year) and the median remained the same at A$200,000. The clearance rate was a notably solid 85.39 per cent as 520 yearlings had found a new home.
Sale statistics after three sessions
2026 |
2025 |
|
|---|---|---|
Catalogued |
690 |
720 |
Offered |
609 |
654 |
Sold |
520 (85%) |
521 (80%) |
Aggregate |
$146,142,500 (+1%) |
$144,500,000 |
Average |
$281,043 (+1%) |
$277,351 |
Median |
$200,000 |
$200,000 |
Top Lot |
$2,000,000 |
$2,800,000 |
Sponsored by IRT
“I thought it was consistently strong and genuine across the board,” said Magic Millions managing director Barry Bowditch. “I had a quick debrief with the auctioneers at the end of the day and they felt as if, even through that 80 [thousand] to 150 bracket, there were plenty of bids coming. It was a good market to be auctioneering in, which is fantastic.
“The average is holding and has been consistent over the week. The median just hasn’t moved at $200,000, and the clearance rate continues to thrive at above 85 per cent now. These are numbers that are very much in-line with our expectations.”
Bowditch also predicted a strong finale to Book 1, adding: “I think the Howden Super Session will be buzzy. There’ll be a lot of people in town for the races so there’s a lot to look forward to. All in all, I see [Friday] being very, very busy. It just continues to build on itself day by day.”
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Harron and TFI run hot
The 12th seven-figure lot of this year’s Gold Coast Yearling Sale arrived late in the session when James Harron, acting with Tony Fung, bid $1.2m for the Snitzel colt out of the New Zealand-bred Showcasing (Oasis Dream) mare Play That Song.
The Newgate Farm-consigned colt is the first foal out of the Eclipse Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m) scorer, who in turn is a half-sister to fellow Group 2 winner and Group 1 placegetter Wild Night (Vanbrugh).
Snitzel, who accounted for the top two lots on Thursday, has been the highest-grossing stallion across the three sessions, with 21 sold lots generating receipts worth $15.97m. His average price of $760,475 is second only to Extreme Choice (Not A Single Doubt).
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“They’re not making any more by the stallion,” said Harron. “This is a really good, strong, purposeful colt. He’s a lovely medium size and his mother was a sharp two-year-old, so he profiles up really nicely. He comes off a fantastic farm in Newgate, they’ve got a great record in producing really good horses. That’s a big part of our thought process, that gives us confidence investing in these horses.”
The signing moved the Harron-Fung colts partnership to the head of the buyers’ chart, with seven purchases made for a combined $5.475m. The group have cost an average of $782,145 and includes three sons of Snitzel.
“I thought it was an incredible line-up of Snitzels in the catalogue, I was really pleasantly surprised there’s so many nice ones,” said Harron. “We’ve been able to pick up three now so we’re really happy. Every weekend he’s in the headlines and it’s a great loss to the industry that he’s not with us anymore, but it’s brilliant we still have the opportunity to pick up these beautiful colts.”
“He’s a lovely medium size and his mother was a sharp two-year-old, so he profiles up really nicely
Reflecting on his week so far, Harron said: “It’s been great. Once we got through our inspections and went through the shortlist, we were pleasantly surprised by how many were still on the list and with how deep the catalogue was. Horses have vetted out well and handled the sale super, so that’s given us the confidence to go in and invest alongside our partners and, of course, TFI [Tony Fung Investments].”
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Frankel fever
International sire on fire Frankel (Galileo) supplied his second seven-figure yearling of the sale when Harron, once again bidding alongside Fung, went to $1.1m for the colt out of Miss Alacrity (Munnings) from the Newgate Farm consignment.
The dam is a stakes-winning daughter of Munnings (Speightstown) from the same family as Kentucky Derby (Gr 1, 10f) hero Nyquist (Uncle Mo). She was purchased at the 2022 Fasig-Tipton November Sale, where Harron signed on behalf of Morningside at $350,000.
“We’ve been delighted with what we’ve been able to pick up so far and we’re delighted to get a Frankel into the portfolio,” said Harron. “He’s out of a very fast American mare, she won her maiden as a two-year-old by over ten lengths, which was very impressive. And he comes from the family of Nyquist, who’s one of the leading stallions in North America. We were really pleased to see the speed coming through the damside and then the class of Frankel. It’s going to be interesting to see what sort of horse he shapes into but he’s a beautiful athlete. He’s a colt we loved, he’s a colt TFI loved, so we felt like we had to have him.”
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He added: “It’s incredibly hard to breed that sort of animal and you have to go to a lot of effort. The mare’s come from America, stopped off in Europe to be covered, come down here, foaled down and has had a good specimen. Everyone respects and appreciates what these horses are worth, and if they’re successful on the track, that’s when the real fireworks happen.”
Earlier in the day a Frankel filly with another blue-chip international page made $825,000 to the bid of agent Sheamus Mills.
“I loved that stat they kept giving yesterday that Frankel has had 14 stakes horses from something like 70 runners,” said Mills. “I thought to myself that’s close to 20 per cent, even I’m smart enough to do the maths on that. Our system at the moment is running at 30 per cent stakes performers to purchases. Now, I don’t know how to do the maths on that, but if he’s 20 per cent and we’re 30 per cent, we must have some chance of getting a black-type horse. If you got a black-type horse by Frankel from that family, she could potentially be worth a lot of money.”
The Three Bridges Thoroughbreds-consigned filly is the first foal out of Lolloping, a winning daughter of War Front (Danzig) and New Zealand champion Bounding (Lonhro), who gained her Group 1 laurels in the Railway Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m).
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In turn, Bounding is out of Believe'N'Succeed (Exceed And Excel), who is best known for breeding star-crossed Derby (Gr 1, 1m 4f) hero Anthony Van Dyck (Galileo).
“A lot of the Frankels that come out here come in utero from European or American families,” said Mills. “It was definitely an extra little dig that if she puts black type up in the first dam, the rest of the page is very recognisable, and not only here but recognisable almost worldwide. If we can jag a little bit of black type, she elevates herself to a pretty rare commodity as a broodmare prospect.”
“Everyone respects and appreciates what these horses are worth, and if they’re successful on the track, that’s when the real fireworks happen
Expanding on the filly’s physical traits, Mills said: “I think she’s a little bit sharper than most by the sire, which is another thing that drew me to her. I said to the boys, if she’s going to be a good horse I think she’ll be a 1,000 Guineas type. I don’t think she’ll be straight out speed, I don’t think she’ll be winning a Blue Diamond, but I do think she looks sharp enough that sprinter-miler will be her go.”
Waterhouse and Bott get to work
Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott were quick out of the traps, bidding $1m for just the fifth lot into the ring.
The Segenhoe Stud-consigned filly is by I Am Invincible (Invincible Spirit) and is the second foal out of Lankan Star, a two-time winner by Nicconi (Bianconi) who possessed enough talent to finish runner-up in the Blue Diamond Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) in 2019.
“She’s a beauty,” said Bott, who signed the docket alongside Bruce Slade’s Kestrel Thoroughbreds. “That’s a lovely way to start the day and should give us a bit of pep in our step. Delighted we were able to secure her, that was probably around where we wanted to land. We probably didn’t have too much more after that.
“She’s a real quality filly and a great one to get excited for. The way she presented, the way she handled the sale, it all profiles up really well with her breeding. She’s by a champion sire and out of a very fast and precocious mare. Hopefully her daughter is every bit the same.”
He added: “The farm did an immaculate job in presenting her and she handled the sale really well, she looks an ultimate professional type. Hopefully that’s the way she remains throughout her racing career.”
Reflecting on the first half of the sale, Bott said: “Happy with where we’re at and there’s still a bit more to go. We’ve missed on plenty of lots that other people have been strong on, but you’ve just got to pick your mark and back yourself and do what you need to to secure the ones you really want. You need to be strong on those.”
Maher moves for Vinnie filly
Leading trainer Ciaron Maher continued to hoover up well-credentialed prospects on Thursday, including the I Am Invincible filly out of Mumbai Rock (Fastnet Rock). The youngster was offered by Coolmore on behalf of Morning Rise Stud and brought the hammer down at $950,000.
The dam, a daughter of leading broodmare sire Fastnet Rock (Danehill), has bred six winners from as many runners, including her Listed-winning sister Jazz Etude and Red Roses Stakes (Gr 3, 1100m) scorer Mumbai Muse (Zoustar).
“She’s out of a proven mare, by a proven sire, so I’m hoping it’s a proven purchase
“An imposing type, a big, strong Vinnie filly,” was how the stable’s head of bloodstock Will Bourne summed up their latest recruit. “Ciaron’s had a lot of luck with similar types, horses like Loving Gaby. She’s a horse with plenty of residual so it’s not like we’re completely gambling, per se. Hopefully she can justify the price tag, but at the end of the day she’s still worth a fair bit of money if she’s unraced. There’s a bit of protection there.”
He added: “She’s out of a proven mare, by a proven sire, so I’m hoping it’s a proven purchase. It’s a bit of a motley Brisbane crew involved, truth be told, so hopefully we can get her up here at some stage.”
Panther-like movement sees Wootton Bassett colt bring $900,000
Catheryne Bruggeman and Paul Moroney made their biggest purchase of the week when bidding $900,000 for Coolmore’s Wootton Bassett (Iffraaj) colt. The youngster is the third foal out of Miss Que (Fastnet Rock), a Group 3-placed sister to Theo Marks Stakes (Gr 2, 1300m) scorer Cluster.
“We’re delighted to have bought him,” said Moroney. “We’re working with one of the stallion syndicates. They came and asked us to pinpoint what we thought were the top ten yearlings to be potential racehorses and then stallions later on in life, and he fell into the category. He was right at the top of the list. We don’t think he’s going to make an early two-year-old type but with Wootton Bassett, you never know.
“He’s a big scopey horse and looks like an autumn two-year-old, could be a Sires’ Produce and Guineas type. Catheryne and I loved the way he moved, he just floated over the ground; he moved like a panther. There was nothing you could fault him on. He had a bit more scope than the sireline can throw, but there’s speed in the family so I’m not saying he won’t get up and do it at two. But whatever he does at two, I think at three will be his proper season.”
Moroney said training plans would be decided in due course.
Another for Anamoe
A good sale for Darley’s first-crop sire Anamoe (Street Boss) got even better when Belmont Bloodstock agent Damon Gabbedy bid $850,000 for the half-brother to Rough Habit Plate (Gr 3, 2000m) scorer Tannhauser (Dundeel), who also finished third in the JJ Atkins (Gr 1, 1600m). The Milburn Creek-consigned colt was secured in conjunction with MyRacehorse, Michael Freedman Racing and Stallion Match.
“We thought he was the best Anamoe in the sale,” said Emma Freedman. “We actually thought he was the best colt in the sale, so we didn’t want to leave without him. The mare has done an amazing job with two stakes performers so he was great on pedigree, he’s great on type and we believe in the stallion. Very excited to get him. We know that our clients at MyRacehorse will dive into him. We’re looking forward to sending him to Michael Freedman racing.”
“We actually thought he was the best colt in the sale, so we didn’t want to leave without him
It promises to be a big few days for the My Racehorse syndicate, as not only have they picked up a host of new recruits at the sale, they also have the odds-on favourite for Saturday’s Magic Millions 3YO Guineas in Ninja.
“We’re flying,” said Freedman. “Damon Gabbedy, our bloodstock agent, and Ben Willis, our managing director, they’re doing a great job in choosing the right horses. [Group 1 winner] Apocalyptic trialled ultra-well and we’re excited about what the autumn holds for her, and then obviously Ninja is short-priced favourite for the Guineas on Saturday. It’s all about choosing the right trainers, plotting the right path for them, and hopefully this guy can be in a similar mould.”
She added: “That’s five bought and we’re not done yet. We still have a women’s syndicate to fill and we’re hoping to buy a nice filly, maybe tomorrow.”
Ellis extends spending spree
No individual buyer has been in more prolific form than during the first three sessions than David Ellis.
Thursday saw the Te Akau Racing principal move into double figures, with his 11-strong haul including the Snitzel colt out of the late dual Group 1 winner Loving Gaby (I Am Invincible).
The colt, who was offered by Vinery Stud, fetched $800,000 early in the day.
“I thought he was a Golden Slipper colt, I really liked him,” said Ellis. “I thought we’d have to pay a bit more for him so I’m thrilled to get him for $800,000. We’ve just had so much success with Snitzel colts in New Zealand, and in Australia. It’s a big thrill to get him. I think it's a very strong market generally; the good horses are making good money.”
Book 1 of the Gold Coast Yearling Sale concludes on Friday, with day four’s Super Session beginning at 10am local time.
