A Giant's Causeway filly, the second foal out of 2005 Boylesports Irish One Thousand Guineas (Ire-) winner Saoire, was the star of Goffs Orby yearling sale’s opening session in Ireland Sept. 29. She commanded the highest price of 475,000 euros ($695,124 in U.S funds) from bloodstock agent Hugo Merry, who was acting on behalf of Dr. Jim Hay.
Merry had to fight off BBA Ireland and Coolmore Stud’s John Magnier for the filly, whose dam is a 7-year-old daughter of Pivotal. Cahermorris Stables consigned the chestnut yearling, which will be trained by Tom Tate.
A Montjeu colt brought the session’s second-highest price of 420,000 euros ($614,636). Magnier purchased the bay yearling, which was consigned by Kilcarn Stud.
The colt is out of the 23-year-old Ela-Mana-Mou mare Welsh Love, who won one of her 11 career races and finished second in the 1989 John T. L. Jones E.B.F. Diamond Stakes in Ireland. He is a half-brother to Second Empire (by Fairy King), who scored in the 1997 Grand Criterium (Fr-I) and was a champion in Ireland.
Welsh Love’s other offspring include stakes winners Ihtiram (by Royal Academy), Ajhiba (by Barathea), Hemingway (by Spectrum), and Balestrini (by Danehill). Balestrini was a group III winner in Ireland.
The first session’s results included a gross of 11,151,000 euros ($16,317,133) for the 157 yearlings that sold. The average price was 71,025 euros ($103,939), and the median price was 50,000 euros ($73,171). Thirty-five of the 192 horses offered failed to find new homes.
