Wootton Bassett’s popularity continues at Karaka
After making a strong start on the first day at Karaka, Coolmore’s star shuttler Wootton Bassett (Iffraaj) continued to garner strong competition and his headline horse during the second session was a colt who was bought by Paul Chow of Tartan Meadow Bloodstock for $600,000.
Chow admitted he didn’t expect the colt to make the money he did, but given the strong start the stallion has made with his first crop of southern hemisphere-bred yearlings, he said there was a fair bit of momentum surrounding the sire.
“I personally think it’s a bit overpriced and it’s got a lot to do with the recent success of Wootton Bassetts. You know how it is in this industry, you’ve got a few horses of an up-and-coming sire and suddenly he does very well, and with a sale it has a major impact on the pricing.”
You know how it is in this industry, you’ve got a few horses of an up-and-coming sire and suddenly he does very well, and with a sale it has a major impact on the pricing
Wootton Bassett has made a blistering start with his first runners in the southern hemisphere siring three winners from eight starters, including the talented stakes-placed Gallo Nero and Wodeton, who broke his maiden at Rosehill on January 18 and is now favourite for the Golden Slipper (Gr 1, 1200m) in March.
However, those numbers only tell half the stallion’s story. His first southern hemisphere-bred runners come hot on the heels of an incredible year with his juveniles in the north, the first crop conceived at Coolmore Stud.
The stallion was crowned the Champion European Two-Year-Old Sire in 2024, having recorded an impressive 42 winners, with 13 of those winning at stakes level, headed by Group 1 scorers Twain, Henri Matisse, Camille Pissarro and Tennessee Stud.
Chow said the colt would stay in New Zealand and could possibly end up in Hong Kong in the future.
“He’s going to stay in New Zealand for now, do the pre-training, trialling and all that and if he makes a grade, he’ll go to Hong Kong.”
Chow said the competition for the top end yearlings at the sale had been very strong.
“The sale is pretty much like recent sales in recent years, the top end is very competitive. I think the middle, lower end is probably a little bit weaker than last year.
“I may be wrong, it’s just my feeling, I haven’t looked at the numbers yet. But the top end is certainly very competitive. I lost out on a couple of bids.”
Offered by Blandford Lodge, the colt is the first foal out of Aspen Colorado (Proisir), who finished third in the New Zealand Oaks (Gr 1, 2400m).
At the close of day two, Wootton Bassett is the leading sire by average having sold seven yearlings for an average of $433,571.
Sales statistics after day two
At the close of trade on the second session of Book 1, New Zealand Bloodstock reported the aggregate was $56,830,000, down 3.5 per cent at the same stage 12 months earlier, while the clearance rate was the same at 77 per cent.
The average fell 2.9 per cent to sit at $171, 692, while the median was recorded at $120,000, a 14.3 per cent drop on last year’s figure after the second day of selling.
“It was just a magical day. To achieve a result like that, $2.4 million just for amazing people and breeders in Barneswood Farm and great supporters of New Zealand bloodstock, Haunui Farm. It was really exciting and the emotion during and immediately afterwards was pretty special and pretty overwhelming as well,” said NZB’s bloodstock sales manager, Kane Jones.
“It’s always really hard to value these high priced horses, because the number of people that can bid at that level is pretty limited, but they’re always strong when they do like a horse.
“We were thinking she could get past a million, but to get to $2.4 million took everybody by surprise. It’s the highest priced filly to ever walk through the ring here at Karaka and the second–highest priced yearling ever sold – it was just a magical moment.
“The clearance rate yesterday [Sunday] was about 73 per cent and we’re up to just over 76 per cent now for the two days. That’s probably a reflection of vendors just finding out where their level is in the sale. Everyone is working hard behind the scenes on both sides of the ledger, so we’re pleased with that.”
The final day of Book 1 begins at 10am (NZT) on Tuesday.