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Gold Standard Sale for Adrian O'Brien at Tattersalls

Quick Q & A with Newmarket-based consignor ahead of the sale.

Hazelwood Bloodstock's Adrian O'Brien at Tattersalls

Hazelwood Bloodstock's Adrian O'Brien at Tattersalls

www.tattersalls.com

Hazelwood Bloodstock brings a draft of 20 carefully selected and precociously bred yearlings to be offered during Books 1 thru 3 of the Tattersall's October Yearling Sale, beginning Oct. 4 at the Park Paddocks in Newmarket. No less than half of that draft was selected for Book 1, the upper crust of the European sale, which continues until Oct. 6. General Manager of Hazelwood Bloodstock, Adrian O'Brien, gave BloodHorse a quick Q & A ahead of what is to be another banner year for the consignment.

BloodHorse: The annual Tattersalls October Yearling Sale is the premier sale in Newmarket; why does Hazelwood consign here each year, and what does it mean to your program?

Adrian O'Brien: This sale, and in particular Book 1, means everything from the point of view of our sales arm as it were. Not for any other reason than we feel we are learning from the best and have the best marketplace at our doorstep. We don't usually consign elsewhere; we tend to bring our sales stock to Tattersall's in Books 1, 2, and 3. We've enjoyed some fantastic success over the last few years. To top Book 1 in 2019 and topping Book 2 twice, we do not need to change the formula, as it were. We brought our biggest group consignment to Book 1 this year, 50% of our total sales horses this year, and we're very proud of that fact. We hope it goes well. It's the gold standard sale, and I think it's fair to say we are pleased to be competing at a high end.

BH: Has it been busy in the barns leading up to Tuesday's first day of selling?

AO: Footfall has been as expected. It was a bit difficult Sunday, being Arc day in Paris and a lot of people having commitments in Paris. A lot of agents that have owners and trainers over there. There are quite a lot of Americans on the grounds, and it seems our great friend Mike Ryan is here.

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BH: Tell our readers a little bit about the strength of your draft for Book 1.

AO: The fact that we have ten yearlings cataloged for the Book 1 sale, four of which are by Dubawi, indicates our draft's strength. We've got we've also got a Frankel  colt (Lot 199) out of Shadow Hunter who is a full brother to a very good 2-year-old in Ireland right now, Hans Andersen. He will be one of the favorites for obvious reasons other than being further emphasized by his daughters, who ran at the Arc Sunday.

BH: Your team helps keep the operation moving seamlessly here at Tattersall's and home at Red House Stud; that must give you peace of mind.

AO: Our horses are exceptionally, in my opinion, well prepared each year. That is largely thanks to our incredible stud groom, Tom Hughes. He leads things at home and drives the consignment here on the ground, which certainly makes my life a little easier. We employ some very experienced sales staff and have an absolutely super team. I couldn't be more proud of how the horses are represented.