Scorching Magic Millions Perth sale ends with heated finish
Son of Dundeel sets Book 2 record with McKeever biding his time for $250,000 colt
Records tumbled in more ways than one at Western Australia’s major bloodstock sale of the season, with more than $20 million spent at the Magic Millions Perth Yearling Sale for the first time.
The rise and rise of the west coast’s racing industry has propelled the state’s major yearling sale of the season to new heights, the demand continuing in yesterday’s second and final day when 12 horses sold for $100,000 or more.
The Book 2 record-setter, a $250,000 Dundeel (High Chaparral) colt, was bought by bloodstock agent Johnny McKeever late in the second session.
Bred by Wyadup Valley Farms’ Trevor Delroy, the colt is the second foal out of the stakes-placed, four-time Victorian winner Naivasha (Starcraft), who was also placed at stakes level, and whose first foal Tankwa Karoo (Crowded House) was retained to race.
UK-based agent McKeever hopes his patience is rewarded on the racetrack with the October-born colt who is by the same sire as Group 1 winners Militarize, Super Seth and Castelvecchio.
“I have to say I sat through a long sale yesterday. I tried on three different horses and I was the underbidder on one. I have been amazed by the strength of the market and then our eyes on one horse today and that was a Dundeel,” McKeever said.
“He’ll go back to the east and go into training. I rate the stallion highly, so I am just going to put together a few investors and see how we get on.”
Another well-travelled industry figure, Seymour trainer David “Butch” Bourne, was the underbidder, demonstrating the increased presence of interstate buyers prepared to make the long trip to Perth for the sale.
The record-breaking Playing God (Blackfriars) filly, who made $625,000 on Thursday, is also bound for the eastern states after Melbourne agent Sheamus Mills bought the sister to Group 1 winner Bustler in a hit-and-run mission.
Demand for WA’s best stallion continued in Book 2 with four of the top seven highest-priced horses by the sire, the most expensive going to the bid of Perth trainer Jim Taylor.
Taylor hasn’t had much exposure to Playing God, but that is about to change with the addition of the second-highest priced horse sold yesterday.
In an emotion-charged offering, it was Taylor who was determined to have more Playing Gods in his stable.
After paying $75,000 for a Playing God filly on day one, Taylor stumped up $210,000 for the Yarradale Stud-consigned colt in Book 2, fending off the competition of premier trainers Grant and Alana Williams.
Magic Millions auctioneer Grant Burns, the son-in-law of the colt’s late breeder Allan Morton, had the honour of bringing down the gavel when the eventual session-topper went through the ring.
“The family would be stoked to see a horse that they bred go through the sale and make that sort of money. It’s just a shame that Allan wasn’t here to see it,” Burns said.
“He would have been oh so proud to have a horse wearing his brand that Yarradale have had for the last ten or 12 months do so well.
“The racing game’s full of excitement and it can be full of disappointments as well, but there’s a lot of emotion attached to [this result].”
The emotion surrounding the colt didn’t end there, either, with vendor Yarradale’s Davy and Susan Hanratty paying tribute to the stud’s late owner Ron Sayers who died in May 2022.
The long-time WA breeder’s wife Lyn has continued the legacy of Yarradale under the management of the Hanrattys.
“We just sold a lovely Playing God colt who was bred by the late Allan Morton who unfortunately passed away.
“He was a gorgeous looking colt and I fell in love with him. I had the opportunity to buy him privately and I was just grateful for all the support from all the Morton family,” Davy Hanratty said.
“It was a sad, emotional sale but a very good sale, too. He is a nice big, physical horse but what he could do was walk. He has a lovely big action to him, the stallion’s been going gangbusters and here in Western Australia you can’t just get enough of the stallion.”
Taylor’s son Lochie was delighted to have the scopey Playing God colt join the family run stable.
“The Playing Gods are interesting. They come in all different shapes and sizes, but this one certainly gets over plenty of ground and he looks like a horse who will furnish over a little bit further, so we’re really excited that he’s coming our way,” Lochie Taylor said.
“We’ve had a few Playing Gods come through and they’ve gone amiss, so we’ve been trying desperately to secure as many as possible.
“As I said, we bought one yesterday, we bred one ourselves and at this stage it looks like we’re going to have three Playing God yearlings coming through the system, which is great.”
While the Williams’ missed out on the top-priced colt, they were more than happy to wait for another colt by the sire, teaming up with Suman Hedge and part with $160,000 for the Gervase Park Stud-consigned yearling.
Armed with the insight of training the colt’s $100,000 Perth Winter Sale-sold brother, they were happy to dive into the family again, securing the eighth living foal out of Mazij (General Nediym) who has produced five winners, headed by Listed winner Amanaat (Per Incanto).
“We’ve actually got the full-brother at home and he’s a really nice horse, so we were pretty keen to get this horse,” Grant Williams said.
“We thought we might have to pay a little bit more than that. He is a little bit of a smaller type than the one we bought at the Winter Sale, but we really like him.
“He looks like he’ll go a touch earlier than the one we’ve got at home.”
Hollington strolls in for his pick of the sale
Earlier, John Hollington spends his time investing on the share market and that allows him to indulge in racing a few horses with his Boyanup-based trainer Kirryn Scallan.
The Perth-based retiree didn’t attend the Book 1 session, having decided that a second session Gervase Park Stud-consigned I’m All The Talk (Stratum) filly was the one for him.
After receiving the tick of approval from Scallan and his veterinarian, Hollington made the trip to the Swan Valley complex yesterday, paying $140,000 for the second foal out of Angel Of War (Declaration Of War).
A winner over 1200 metres, Angel Of War is a half-sister to Group 2-winning, Group 1-placed Vangelic (Vancouver) and her first foal, a filly by Headwater (Exceed And Excel), was bought by Grant and Alana Williams and agent Suman Hedge at last year’s Western Australia auction for $65,000.
“I have got three others, two Blackfriars and a Long Leaf that I bought last year and now I’ve got this one,” owner Hollington said.
“I came out on Monday morning and there were no other horses to look at once I’d seen her and then the vet confirmed she was OK.
“I knew we’d have to pay [a decent amount] as everyone had the same idea.”
Two lots earlier, another south west trainer Michael Lane added to the depth of his stable, buying a colt by Street Boss (Street Cry), the sire of Australian Horse of the Year Anamoe, Hanseatic as well as a string of talented horses in his own Boyanup operation.
Sold by Peter Walsh’s Amelia Park Racing and Breeding, the Street Boss colt fetched $130,000 being the third foal out of juvenile winner Amelia’s La Bout (Hinchinbrook) who has already produced the Simon Miller-trained winner China Spirit (Shalaa).
With a positive Street Boss experience behind him – Gee Boss won six races and three-year-old The Boss Lady has won three of her five starts – Lane took a shine to the September-born colt.
“I thought he was a strapping colt, he’s a great walking horse. We just liked him in general and the fact he’s by Street Boss really appealed to us,” Lane told ANZ Bloodstock News.
“We’ve trained a couple in the stable who go really well, so he suits us and I think he’ll fit in very nicely in our set-up.
“He’s a very mature horse at the moment, but as you know they train on to be good later horses as well. There’s plenty of scope with a Street Boss.”
On the market, Lane believes the colt was well bought.
“It was obviously strong [on Thursday], but it’s been a little bit quieter starting today, so I thought he was great value for a Street Boss and the type that he is.”
There were 275 horses sold over the two days for a total spend of $20,442,500 while the average was $74,336, up marginally on 2023, while the median fell to $55,000 from $60,000 with the larger catalogue helping the overall level of buyer activity. The clearance rate was last night at 84 per cent.
Darling View’s Brent Atwell, who sells alongside Westbury Park’s Phil Ibbotson and Einoncliff Park’s Wayne Beynon, the Western Breeders Alliance banner was crowned leading vendor, selling 36 yearlings for $2.913 million.
Atwell also acknowledged Playing God’s role in not only the Western Breeders Alliance results, but also the sale.
“It is something that we’ve always hoped for. He had a massive summer carnival here in Perth and he’s obviously got the focus of people locally, as you’d expect, but also from the east coast with Sheamus buying the top lot,” Atwell said.
“It’s humbling that our stallion can reach those heights.”
Magic Millions WA manager David Houston described the sale results as “sensational”, improving on what was Australasia’s only sale in 2023 to increase year-on-year.
“It’s been a record week. Record heat, a record sale and a record high price. It couldn’t be better. It’s a fantastic result all up to get a big result on Thursday and then again today,” said Houston, adding it wasn’t just the local buyers underpinning the market.
“We’re really relevant over here now, people want to come here and invest. People want to race horses here, they want to take them away and compete elsewhere. Generally, there’s a lot of interest in WA racing and breeding now.”
Magic Millions will host the Tasmanian Yearling Sale on Monday while the Inglis Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale will take place from Sunday, March 3.
Sale results – Book 2
2024 2023
Catalogued 160 150
Offered 147 136
Sold 124 (84%) 118 (87%)
Aggregate $5,838,000 (-1.9%) $5,949,000
Average $47,081 (-6%) $50,415
Median $35,000 (-22%) $45,000
Top Lot $250,000 $170,000
Sale results – Books 1 & 2
2024 2023
Catalogued 352 327
Offered 327 297
Sold 275 (84%) 265 (89%)
Aggregate $20,442,500 (+5%) $19,484,000
Average $74,336 (+1.3%) $73,525
Median $55,000 (-8.3%) $60,000
Top Lot $625,000 $350,000