3 minute read
Second highest priced horse ever sold at auction in Europe
In a packed auditorium at Park Paddocks in Newmarket on Tuesday evening, multiple Group 1 winning filly Alcohol Free (No Nay Never) became the second highest priced horse to sell at public auction when she was knocked down to Michael Donohoe of BBA Ireland for 5.4 million guineas.
Sitting beside Yuesheng Zhang, Donohoe outbid MV Magnier and afterwards said that the four-time Group 1 winner have been bought to race in Australia.
"She is for partnership to race in Australia. She vetted extremely well and clean for a filly with some miles on the clock. My vet was super happy with her," he said.
"She is for a partnership who have horses in training and breed as well. There is a lot of money to win in Australia - I think 87 races this year are worth a million plus so we hope to recoup a lot of what we paid for her, and add a bit more too.
"She is a filly with speed for six furlongs but stayed a mile, so there will be a lot of options for her. Andrew Balding and the team did a great job, she looked very fresh. I went to see her last week at Kingsclere. She will make a lovely broodmare in time, she has the physique and the pedigree. It is a family I know well as I bought the dam for Yulong Investments last year, and she has a lovely Lope de Vega foal at foot and is in-foal to Lucky Vega."
He added: "She will probably race for a season and then be covered, and we will probably send her to Frankel. So we will decide whether we cover on northern or southern hemisphere time, but obviously Frankel is an exceptional sire and is doing it in both hemispheres."
David Bowe, stud manager of Jeff Smith's Littleton Stud, bought Alcohol Free for €40,000 on behalf of Smith at the 2018 Goffs November Foal Sale from the draft of her breeder Churchtown House Stud.
Sent into training with Andrew Balding, the daughter of No Nay Never (Scat Daddy) raced 15 times for six wins and four placings with her Group 1 victories coming in the Cheveley Park Stakes (6f) at two, the Coronation Stakes (1m) and Sussex Stakes (1m) last year at three before she added the July Cup (6f) earlier this year.
"We are delighted, it is the end of a wonderful, wonderful journey we have been on, a wonderful dream," said Bowe.
"To end up here at Tattersalls, it is magnificent. Ollie Fowlston did a brilliant job from the rostrum and we could not have been better treated, and everyone was here to look at her.
"She walked in and looked beautiful. If it had been five years earlier with Jeff we might not have brought her to the sale ring, but she will make a beautiful mare in time. We have enough broodmares, she was not bred by us, but it is really to do with the timescale. It is time for someone else.
"We have had so much luck... everyone involved with her, the team at home on the farm, the Caffneys whom we bought from, all her jockeys. I can't thank everyone enough, and for everyone who put their hands up in the ring - it was lovely. Everyone has had a massive part, I am just the one who happens to be here talking to you.
"It has been emotional, I can't believe, it just shows that whatever sales ground you are at, we are all trying to do the same thing and it has happened to the likes of us! It is extraordinary. it just goes to show if you keep plugging away it can happen.
"Jeff was not here tonight, but it is all down to him. He let us buy her, let us all get involved in the whole dream. I am absolutely delighted, it is a beautiful end to our chapter, and we wish the new connections all the luck. We don't buy an awful lot of horses, but we have been lucky with the ones we have, and I hope you are here talking to me again some time!"
By No Nay Never, Alcohol Free is out of the winning Hard Spun (Danzig) mare Plying who is also the dam of Listed winner Alexander James (Camelot). Her second dam, stakes placed mare Nasaieb (Fairy King) produced nine winners from ten runners, the best of these being stakes placed filly Kissing Lights (Machiavellian).
Alcohol Free sells for 5,400,000gns.
— Tattersalls (@Tattersalls1766) November 29, 2022
A titanic bidding war sees @BBAIreland come out on top for Jeff Smith and @AndrewBalding2's four-time Group 1 winner at the #TattsDecember Mares Sale.
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