Drawing Board, a winning Pastoral Pursuits colt, topped the second session of the Tattersalls July mixed sale, bringing 115,000 guineas ($183,183 in U.S. funds) July 7 in England. Bahrain-based Ramzi Hassan and Jalil Al Mallah purchased the bay 2-year-old from trainer Kevin Ryan’s Hambleton Lodge Stables.
Drawing Board’s buyers said they were acting on behalf of Qatari businessman Mubarak Al Noimi. The colt will remain in training in England with Ryan for the time being and possibly will be sent to the Middle East later in the year.
Prior to being sold, Drawing Board won twice and finished third once in three outings this year while racing for J.C. Fretwell and being conditioned by Ryan. Peter Webb bred the colt in Great Britain.
Drawing Board is the first foal out of the Danzero mare Grand Design, who failed to win in 11 career races but is a half-sister to Jalousie (by Barathea), who captured the 2002 Convergent Telecom Middleton Stakes in England.
Drawing Board had been sold twice previously at public auction. In 2008, he was offered as a weanling by Whitwell Bloodstock, agent, at Tattersalls and brought $16,701 from Yeomanstown Stud. At Doncaster in 2008, when Drawing Board was a yearling, Yeomanstown, as agent, sold him to Fretwell for $34,352.
The second session results included a gross of 1,665,400 guineas ($2,526,480) for the 149 horses that sold. The average price was 11,177 guineas ($17,804), and the median price was 6,000 guineas ($9,557). Compared to 2009, the gross fell only 2%, but the average declined 10.6%. The median dropped 20%.
The clearance rate was 83.7%, down from 91.3% in 2009, when 136 horses were sold.
