Are we looking at a challenging month or so to come as the rest of the British and Irish yearling sales season gets into gear? Or was the first round of British sales simply case of offering too much of a good thing?
Within the space of eight days, 886 yearlings went through the ring at the Goffs Premier Sale in Doncaster and Tattersalls Somerville Sale in Newmarket. Such a volume of horses this early in the calendar is a relatively new development. For years, the Premier Sale – otherwise remembered as the St Leger Sale for those of a certain vintage – was the sole late summer domain of the sharp, early type. Then the Ascot Yearling Sale, then still a relatively young auction moved to Newmarket during Covid where it produced an uptick in returns strong enough to prompt its permanent transfer to Tattersalls’ headquarters. Rebranded as the Somerville Sale and with fast two-year-olds such as Bradsell and Arabian Dusk flying its flag, it has been gathering momentum in the years since, with growing support from both vendors and buyers coming its way.
With a record 2023 renewal in the books, the Somerville Sale was extended this year to 465 yearlings to cover two days. That translates to a 48 per cent expansion in the catalogue and as it turned out, was a step too far. Of the horses to go through the ring, xx changed hands for an average of 28,252gns, down from 31,904gns the year before. The top of the market was thin, with three horses selling for 100,000gns or more compared to seven in 2023.
There had been mumblings of a shallow market at the previous week’s Premier Sale, where figures also took a downward turn. However, there was vibrancy at the top end, with a £350,000 Tasleet half-brother to Gimcrack Stakes winner Cool Hoof Luke leading the way among 27 six-figure lots.
For the record, between them the sales produced a turnover of approximately £24,400,000 for 697 yearlings sold for an average of approximately £35,000. As ever, there were plenty of celebratory stories, none more so than 15-year-old Ruairi Kilmartin, whose €7,000 pinhook, a Dark Angel filly, resold for 70,000gns to Paul Corrigan at the Somerville Sale. But against that, barely half the pinhooks presented across both sales returned a profit (when rough expenses are taken into account). It’s also a safe bet that plenty of breeders were under pressure as well. Quite simply, supply outstripped demand.
It was the kind of opening to the British season that begged more questions than answers, especially as it covers the type of sales that traditionally operate in a manner conducive to high clearance rates. Trainers, for example, often stock up at these sales but on spec; for many, there’s only so many yearlings that can be collected without an owner. So in that respect, could it be that having two similar sales so close together on the calendar is actually detrimental?
The number of yearlings to pass through the sales has also steadily increased over the years. In 2014, the Goffs Premier, Tattersalls Ireland, Goffs Orby, Tattersalls October and Tattersalls December Sales catalogued around 4,200 yearlings. This year, the same group (plus the Somerville) already comprise a total close to 4,700 with the Tattersalls December Yearling Sale still to come. Several sales, such as the Goffs Premier and Tattersalls October Books 1 and 2, have remained relatively tight on numbers. In fact, at 448 lots this year’s Book 1 contains 84 fewer horses than 2023 and is the smallest catalogue since 2014. Book 3 is also 17 per cent down from last year, having been cut back from 649 lots to 571. Tattersalls Chairman Edmond Mahony alluded to the Somerville having played its role in the company being able to ‘reduce overall numbers in the two weeks of the forthcoming Tattersalls October Yearling Sale’. Easing the pressure out of those two weeks is welcome but on this occasion it came at the expense of the health of another sale.
The true barometers of the market, the Tattersalls October and Goffs Orby Sales, were still to come at the time of writing. There will undoubtedly be an array of seven-figure lots and a competitive top end to the market. But if recent events are anything to go by, it is going to be selective as well. It has already been a muted start for plenty involved. Lets hope its not a sign of things to come.
Farewell Tracy
Anyone who followed Tracy Vigors on social media couldn’t have failed to appreciate her passion and regard for horses.
Tracy, who died aged 49 last month, ran Hillwood Stud in Berkshire with her husband Charlie. Together, the pair developed it into a popular boarding and consigning operation, well respected for their success and professionalism at the sales and also well known as the summer base for a range of Nicky Henderson-trained stars including Constitution Hill and Altior. Tracy’s ‘X’ account was invariably filled with shots of various inmates of the time, all of which demonstrated her love for the animal.
We send our condolences to Charlie and her sons Harry and Oliver.
