On the day it was confirmed that Kingman will cover outstanding mare Enable in 2021, Juddmonte’s young sire sensation was responsible for the top lot in Monday’s opening session of Book 2 of the October Yearling Sale.

With the likes of Palace Pier and Persian King advertising their sire’s ability this year, Kingman came into this week’s auction having been the third-best sire by average at Book 1 last week.

It was easy to see why Monday’s session-topper caught the eye of the likes of Joseph O’Brien and many others in the ring before agent Anthony Stroud, acting on behalf of Godolphin, had the final say on the colt at 400,000gns.

Stroud said: “He’ll be trained by Andre Fabre. We’ve had a lot of luck with Kingman through Palace Pier and Persian King and he comes from a very good nursery in Norelands. He’s a lovely colt, well balanced and a good mover.”

The result capped off a memorable few days for consignor Norelands Stud, which had last week sold a Frankel half-sister to Golden Horn to Godolphin for 2,000,000gns at Book 1, before seeing St Mark’s Basilica land the Group 1 Dewhurst Stakes.

St Mark’s Basilica, who was bred by Bob Scarborough, was raised at Harry McCalmont’s operation and was sold by the nursery at last year’s Book 1 sale, when MV Magnier went to 1.3 million guineas to secure him.

McCalmont added: “It’s been an outstanding couple of weeks. This was a very nice horse – they’re the easy ones to sell!

“We raised him for John Camilleri, the breeder of Winx, and the mare actually is due to go down to Australia now – she’s in foal on a southern hemisphere cover to Lope De Vega. I’m pleased he’s gone to such a good home.”

The colt boasts a classy pedigree as his dam, the winning Rip Van Winkle mare Allez Y, is closely related to Group 3 winner Master Of Reality and the Listed-winning Chamonix. The further family includes Irish Oaks heroine Moonstone.

Stroud also went to 350,000gns to capture a daughter of first-crop sire Churchill that was offered by Newsells Park Stud out of the Listed-placed Date With Destiny, who was sired by the late George Washington.

Date With Destiny joined Newsells in 2011 when purchased through John Warren and has already produced the Group 3 winner Beautiful Morning.

Julian Dollar, General Manager of the Hertfordshire operation, said: “When we bought Date With Destiny, some people asked us if it was because of that rarity value, but it really wasn’t. We’d had some luck with the family before, so when the opportunity came to buy a bit more of it, we came in with her.

“We mated her to Galileo and she produced a lovely filly in Beautiful Morning, so we went to the son. It’s going back to something familiar but to put in a bit more speed and precocity as the mare herself was quite precocious.”

Redvers snaps up Yeomanstown homebred

Qatar Racing made sure it was on the mark at Park Paddocks on Monday when going to 390,000gns to secure a Dark Angel filly offered by Yeomanstown Stud.

A homebred, she is out of the Exceed And Excel mare Extricate and is a sister to the Listed-winning Dark Liberty and a half-sister to Queen Of Love, who recently landed the Listed Prix Coronation Stakes.

Redvers said: “I thought she was lovely. She joins Qatar Racing and is one for the long term for our breeding plans. She looked all speed; she is a little cracker.”

David O’Callaghan of Yeomanstown Stud added: “She is a beautiful filly, very fast looking. She is a full sister to the Listed winner Dark Liberty and a half-sister to a very promising filly in Queen Of Love.

“The best thing though – Guy [O’Callaghan] bought Extricate back from Sweden and entered her to sell and Gay [O’Callaghan] bought her. Guy says that he didn’t charge him half enough!”

There was another good result for Yeomanstown’s leading sire Dark Angel when Highclere Stud’s filly out of the unraced Redoute’s Choice mare Delevigne was bought by SackvilleDonald for 350,000gns.

The first foal out of the mare, Delevigne is a half-sister to Haydock Sprint Cup and Prix Maurice de Gheest winner Regal Parade, while further back on the page is three-time Group 1 scorer Zafonic.

Alistair Donald who signed the docket said: “I loved her; she is my favourite filly in the sale. We stretched a bit to get her, everyone was on her. She walks for fun; it is a lovely family to be involved with and there is probably more happening in it as well. She is for King Power Racing.”

By the end of Monday’s opening session of Book 2 a total of 216 lots sold from 255 offered, generating turnover of 15,236,500gns – down five per cent on 2019’s opening day aggregate of 16,064,500gns.

The average fell ten per cent from 78,363gns to 70,539gns while the median dropped five per cent from 55,000gns to 52,000gns.