The European breeze-up season concluded in Newmarket on Wednesday with the delayed Tattersalls Guineas Sale, which was topped by a son of Excelebration bought by Highflyer Bloodstock on behalf of Alan King for 140,000gns.

Offered by Meadowview Stables, who had pinhooked him for €18,000 out of the Tattersalls Ireland September Yearling Sale, the colt is out of the Mark Of Esteem mare Open Book and is from the family of the Listed performers Sweetness Herself, Jagger and Unrivalled.

There was only one other two-year-old to break the six-figure barrier and that was Dolmen Bloodstock’s Make Believe filly, which went the way of Richard Brown of Blandford Bloodstock for 105,000gns.

Having paid just €10,000 for her at the Tattersalls Ireland September Yearling Sale, Justin Timmons and Danny O’Brien of Dolmen Bloodstock had one of two lots on offer by the Ballylinch Stud resident, who supplied his first Classic winner in the shape of Prix du Jockey Club hero Mishriff.

Timmons said: “She has an engine; we were very happy with the breeze. She has been very busy, but it is always had to gauge. We had the right people on her.”

Brown was underbidder on the only lot on offer by Gestut Graditz stallion Lucky Lion after Jake Warren secured the colt with a bid of 95,000gns. The sire’s sole offering was consigned by Tally-Ho Stud.

Lucky Lion was trained by Andreas Lowe to win the German 2,000 Guineas and the Group 1 Grosser Dallmayr-Preis in 2014, where he beat Noble Mission, as well as finishing second behind that year’s runaway German Derby winner Sea The Moon.

The son of High Chaparral entered stud at Gestut Graditz in 2017 and his oldest crop are two-year-olds.

Warren said: “It is unique for a horse like this to be at a breeze-up sale – he has the credentials to become a Derby prospect.

“He should make up into a lovely horse, middle-distance type, and the bulk of his career will come next year. We have not decided on a trainer yet, but he will stay in the UK.”

A total of 94 lots sold for receipts of 2,680,000gns, down 23% on the aggregate of 3,489,500gns last year. However, the average only dropped one per cent from 28,839gns in 2019 to 28,511gns this year. The median for this year was 17,250gns.

After the conclusion of the sale, Tattersalls Chairman Edmond Mahony said: “In the current climate we are all looking to accentuate the positives and I think we can reflect on ‘solid if unspectacular’ trade at this year’s renewal of the Tattersalls Guineas Breeze-Up.

“This is, however, a year where ‘solid if unspectacular’ is a positive outcome and we would like to thank all those who have participated at today’s sale for their contribution. The buyers have worked incredibly hard and the breeze-up consignors have had to endure uniquely difficult conditions in the run up to the 2020 breeze-up season, but ultimately everyone can look back on sales which have largely exceeded expectations.

“It has been challenging staging events of this nature with the prevailing Covid-related regulations still in place but, despite continued travel restrictions, today’s Guineas breeze-up has seen demand from throughout the world including Australia, Bahrain, Dubai, France, Hong Kong, Italy, Kuwait, Qatar and Spain.”