Galileo’s daughter out of Shastye provided the fireworks on the final day of Book 1 at the Tattersalls October Sale on Thursday, selling to MV Magnier for 3,400,000gns to become the highest priced yearling sold in Europe or North America this year.

It was one of only two seven-figure purchases that Coolmore made in Newmarket during the sale, the filly set to go into training with Aidan O’Brien for a partnership that includes Georg Von Opel’s Westerberg.

Coolmore has enjoyed tremendous luck over the years with this family, having campaigned dual Group 1 winner Japan and his younger brother Mogul to land the Group 1 Grand Prix de Paris last month. This is also the family of stakes performers Secret Gesture, Sir Isaac Newton and Maurus.

Magnier, standing with Von Opel, had to fend off early advances from Oliver St Lawrence before David Redvers entered the fray at 2.5 million guineas. Despite pushing Magnier all the way, Redvers had to walk away when the Coolmore team made a final bid of 3.4 million guineas.

“Firstly, we’re delighted for Andreas Jacob and his family,” said Magnier. “They have been great supporters of Coolmore and it’s a great result for them. It’s been a very lucky family for us with Japan and Mogul, and let’s hope this filly is as good.

“She’s very nice, a great mover like Japan and Mogul. The mare produces great lookers.

“It’s too early to say whether Japan will stay in training or not. Obviously both of them were meant to run at the weekend [at Longchamp]. But we still have the Breeders’ Cup and Hong Kong to come – they’re options for both of them.”

Julian Dollar, General Manager of Newsells Park Stud, said: “It’s all down to the team at home. Mark Grace, my Yearling Manager, loves this filly, he adores her, and he’s done a wonderful job.”

Coolmore’s other seven-figure purchase on Thursday was a homebred Galileo filly from David and Diane Nagle’s Barronstown Stud who is the first foal out of the Grade 2-wining Showcasing mare Prize Exhibit, herself a sister to Sussex Stakes hero Mohaather and a half-sister to Roodle, the dam of Queen Anne Stakes winner Accidental Agent.

With bidding opening at 500,000gns, it wasn’t long before the seven-figure mark had been broken until at 1.8 million guineas, David Redvers fielded a bid of two million guineas. But Magnier was undeterred in his pursuit of the daughter of Coolmore’s perennial champion sire.

Ultimately he had the final say at 2.8 million guineas and said: “David Nagle has been saying for some time what a lovely filly she is. Aidan came over and really liked her, as did all the lads.

“It’s a great page, a very active family with Sheikh Hamdan’s good horse [Mohaather] also on there. These kinds of fillies are collectors item, especially with what Galileo is doing as a broodmare sire.”

Coolmore also invested 600,000gns to secure an Invincible Spirit brother to talented sprinter Invincible Army, consigned by Mimi Wadham and Violet Hesketh’s WH Bloodstock, who bought the colt for 375,000gns as a foal.

The sale represented the biggest result for the pair, who have only been selling for three years, and Hesketh said: “He has been very popular all the way along, he has not put a foot wrong, we are delighted he is going to Ballydoyle, he is a really, really special horse and we are thrilled. It is our best pinhooking result so far.

Wadham added: “We own a part of him with clients, it is the best result we have had, we are thrilled. He is a very powerful, strong horse and he is going to the right stable. Let’s hope he is as good as his full brother. He is a standout and has not put a foot wrong and has come out and shown well every time.”

Lynn Lodge flying high thanks to Kingman filly

Eddie O’Leary’s Lynn Lodge Stud secured its best ever result at Book 1 when a Kingman filly out of the Dream Ahead mare Sante, from the family of Godolphin’s exciting youngster La Barrosa, sold to Sheikh Mohammed’s operation for 1.45 million guineas.

A product of Michael O’Leary’s Gigginstown Stud, there was early interest in the filly from Tammy O’Brien, sitting with Demi O’Byrne, Hubie de Burgh and Amo Racing. Approaching seven figures it was Stroud and Coolmore who joined in, but it was the former who had the final say.

It represented a fine return on the 310,000gns O’Leary had paid for the Listed-winning Sante at the Tattersalls December Yearling Sale in 2018, when she was offered in foal to Juddmonte’s Kingman.

“She was an absolute queen and she made a queen’s price,” said Eddie O’Leary. “She’s a gorgeous filly and has been since day one. I hope she’s very luck for Sheikh Mohammed.

“Sante was a very good physical. It’s a very good page, she was a good racemare and in foal to Kingman – it was a very good package. The mare has a colt foal by Kodiac and is in foal to Invincible Spirit.”

Ryan makes his presence felt

American agent Mike Ryan struck late on Thursday’s session for a Galileo half-sister to this year’s Haydock Sprint Cup hero Dream Of Dreams that was offered by Ibrahim and Pinar Arachi’s Old Mill Stud.

Ryan is no stranger to sourcing top-level talent from this auction having bought multiple Grade 1 winner Newspaperofrecord at Park Paddocks in 2017.

He said: “I thought she was an exceptional filly, she is by an exceptional sire, from a terrific family – there is nothing more to add, she was absolutely gorgeous and looks like a runner.

“I knew she was going to be expensive, you know what it takes to buy Galileos and she is a sister to a Group 1 winner. I am delighted we got her because I waited all day for. How many more years are we going to be seeing Galileos?

“He is the greatest sire in my lifetime, probably in anybody’s lifetime for that matter! She’ll go back to the States. She’ll get a bit of turnout, we’ll break her in a month or so – hopefully you’ll see her in Saratoga in the summer.”

Redvers lands Lope De Vega colt

There had been a few near misses for David Redvers on Thursday but he did strike for Lord Halifax’s Lope De Vega colt out of the winning Sea The Stars mare Starlet, offered by Highclere Stud, with a bid of 825,000gns.

The colt is a half-brother to the Group 3 winner Love Locket and the Listed scorer Raakib Alhawa while the further family includes High Chaparral.

Redvers said: “We have been underbidder on pretty much everything, it has been a very frustrating day on the better lots, but credit to Tattersalls for putting on the show and the market being as resilient as it is at the top end.

“This is a horse we loved from the moment we saw him – he has a stallion’s pedigree, his mare is 100 per cent stakes horses, he is just the sort we are looking to add to the team.

“We have a lot of homebreds going into training this year and we have been selectively buying, trying to acquire horses at the top end to slot into where we might have a bit of weakness. A Classic-bred colt like him by a stallion doing as well as Lope De Vega with a stallion’s pedigree is exactly what we want.

“We have been trying to add to the broodmare band with the best fillies and we have been spectacularly unsuccessful! We have been giving it a good go so it is nice to get a nice colt.”

Godolphin invest heavily

As Tattersalls’ flagship sale concluded on Thursday evening, figures showed Godolphin had secured a total of 22 lots during the three days of trade for 16,430,000gns and an average of 746,818gns, which accounted for around 20 per cent of the trade in Newmarket.

Overall, figures were down in all key areas compared with 2019’s edition – not unexpected given the current climate.

With 369 lots sold from 466 offered, turnover closed at 82,385,000gns – down 20 per cent on last year’s mark of 102,429,000gns. The average fell 13 per cent from 258,008gns to 223,266gns while the median suffered the same percentage drop from 150,000gns to 130,000gns.

In his end of sale statement, Tattersalls Chairman Edmond Mahony said: “First and foremost we would like to express our sincere thanks to everyone who has participated at Book 1 of this year’s Tattersalls October Yearling Sale, in whatever capacity.

“Since the early part of this year every walk of life has been thrown into turmoil and the global bloodstock industry is no exception. The scale of disruption which everyone has faced is best illustrated by the fact that this week’s sale has been the first 2020 British, Irish or French yearling sale to have taken place at both its originally intended location and date.

“Nevertheless, since the outbreak of the COVID pandemic we have worked collaboratively alongside Goffs and Arqana to explore every possible means by which to stage sales and to ensure that trade continues to take place as normally as possible.

“Everyone must take enormous credit for the way they have reacted to the difficult circumstances and responded to all the rules and regulations under which we have had to operate in order to provide the safest possible working environment for all concerned.

“In terms of the market, none of us can pretend that all is plain sailing and a slightly lower clearance rate reflects prevailing commercial realities from which none of us are immune, but we can also reflect on a resilience and sustained demand for quality yearlings in spite of the wider challenges.

“Book 1 of the 2020 Tattersalls October Yearling Sale has yet again produced the highest price for a yearling sold in Europe and North America, as well as the highest-priced yearling filly in the world and three of the ten highest prices ever at this fixture.

“Inevitably the market is down, in broad terms to around the levels of 2015 after a sustained period of growth, but the global appetite for our sport remains intact and buyers from throughout the world, albeit in reduced numbers, have made a huge contribution to Book 1 of the October Yearling Sale, as have the British and Irish buyers who continue to recognise this particular yearling sale as the key fixture in the European yearling sales calendar.”