Big things were expected at Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale, and big things duly arrived just two lots into the opening session Oct. 4. With Sheikh Mohammed in attendance, Godolphin began its pursuit of the cream of Dubawi's yearling crop by giving 1,300,000 guineas (US$1,532,376) for the filly (Lot 3) out of Jazzi Top from Meon Valley Stud.
Two more seven-figure purchases followed, including the 1,500,000 guineas ($1,768,127) top lot, as the operation spent a combined 6,025,000 guineas ($7,101,975) on eight new recruits. The session-topping colt is out of Ring The Belland was offered on behalf of John Camilleri's Fairway Thoroughbreds by Hazelwood Bloodstock.
The colt is the third living foal out of Ring The Bell, a daughter of Galileo and the blue hen Beauty Is Truth, meaning the dam is a full sister to three group 1 winners in Hermosa, Hydrangea, and The United States. Her first racecourse representative is the listed-placed Voice of Angels.
Moreover, the seven-figure colt (Lot 167) is bred on the Dubawi-Galileo cross that has been responsible for 18 black-type performers, headed by the group 1 winners Ghaiyyath and Night of Thunder.
"He's by Dubawi and comes from an excellent farm," said Godolphin talent scout Anthony Stroud. "It's a cross that works and it's a wonderful family. The boss is here and he's choosing these horses. He's just a wonderful specimen of a Thoroughbred, really."
Dubawi looks on course to claim a maiden British and Irish champion sires' title, having supplied Classic-winning talents Coroebus and Eldar Eldarov. When asked whether he saw the colt out of Ring The Bell as a Classic prospect or something more precocious, Stroud said: "I'll leave that to Charlie Appleby, he's so good at training these Dubawis."
🗣️ "It'll be interesting to see which is the best!"
— Tattersalls (@Tattersalls1766) October 4, 2022
With @godolphin buying the top three lots on day one at #TattsOctober Book 1 for 1.5m gns, 1.3m gns and 1m gns, Anthony Stroud runs through his thoughts on each of the Dubawi yearlings. pic.twitter.com/aPBpJgdP0Y
Earlier in the session, Stroud outbid Moyglare Stud's Fiona Craig to secure the filly out of Jazzi Top, a daughter of Danehill Dancer whose three career victories were capped by success in the Prix de la Nonette (G2) for trainer John Gosden and Frankie Dettori. Her third dam is Colorspin, meaning champions Opera House and Kayf Tara, both of whom were raced by Sheikh Mohammed, appear back on the page.
"It's a good way to start the sale, isn't it?" said Stroud after signing the docket for Lot 3.
"She's an attractive filly from a very good farm. Dubawi is a fantastic stallion and the boss picked this filly out. He's had a lot of success with this family before with Kayf Tara and Opera House."
This family has been a source of much success for Meon Valley. Jazzi Top is out of Zee Zee Top, who brought the curtain down on her racing career by winning the 2003 Prix de l'Opera Casino Barriere d'Enghien Les Bains (G1).
She has bred six winners since retiring to the Meon Valley paddocks, with Jazzi Top joined by dual group 1 winner Izzi Top, who claimed the Barclays Bank Ireland Pretty Polly Stakes (G1) and Darley Prix Jean Romanet (G1) both in 2012, and the seven-figure filly's close relation Emaraaty, who cost Shadwell 2,600,000 guineas ($3,480,477) in 2016 and later won a grade 3 in the United States for Chad Brown.
The family is no stranger to seven-figure successes in the Tattersalls ring as Izzi Top has been responsible for Dreamfield, a 1,100,000 guineas ($1,758,834) purchase by Godolphin in 2015; Prince Eiji, a 2,600,000 guineas ($3,624,621) buy by Roger Varian in 2017; and Willie John, who set a February Sale record when knocked down to Varian at 1,900,000 guineas ($2,845,070) in 2018.
An emotional Mark Weinfeld described watching the bidding unfold as "heart-stopping," before adding: "She's related to Reprocolor, one of the foundation mares at Meon Valley, and it's been a very good family. She's been very popular, but you never quite know when you get up here how many people are going to be there for the horse.
"There'd been quite a few vets and people down to see the horse, but sometimes people go through all those movements and then don't turn up on the day for whatever reason. We thought she'd be popular, but we didn't think she'd go quite that far. We're delighted."
He added: "It stuttered at around 600,000 guineas and you think perhaps that's as far as it's going to go, but then all of a sudden it goes on and on. We didn't actually want to sell her, but we've had so many fillies this year, so something had to go.
"We've kept a full sister to Anapurna and her first yearling, who's a filly (by Lope de Vega), we've got an Invincible Spirit out of Izzi Top and a Frankel out of Shirocco Star. We've had 15 fillies and seven colts, and nearly all the best mares had fillies, so we felt we had to sell one or two of them to balance the books and pay for the ones in training."
Godolphin secured the second seven-figure lot of the session when Stroud consigned Alex Elliott to the role of underbidder when the Dubawi colt (Lot 127) out of Persuasive brought a round 1,000,000 guineas ($1,178,751).
Bred and offered by Cheveley Park Stud, the colt is the third foal out of the 2017 QIPCO Queen Elizabeth II Stakes (G1) winner, meaning the youngster is closely related to Creative Force, the Dubawi half brother to Persuasive, who won the QIPCO British Champions Sprint Stakes (G1) in the Godolphin silks last season.
"Cheveley Park Stud do a fantastic job," said Stroud. "Obviously, he's out of a very good mare and by Dubawi. We thought he was a very, very nice colt and he'll go to Moulton Paddocks. He's about twice the size of Creative Force, but if his heart is as big, then we'll be very happy."
Persuasive was bred by John Tuthill of Owenstown Stud and joined the Cheveley Park Stud fold at €180,000 ($228,348) at the Goffs Orby Sale in 2014, prompting the Newmarket operation's managing director, Chris Richardson, to quip: "She was probably the best €180,000 we could have spent!"
He continued: "I'm delighted for Mrs. Thompson and all the team and it's nice to come to a top-class sale and have a horse of that sort of quality. He was a gem from the moment he was born and I'm delighted he's gone down so well.
"It's a family that keeps evolving, and I'm very grateful to Sheikh Mohammed for buying. He knows the family well with Creative Force, who won the Champion Sprint Stakes.
"Persuasive has a Dubawi filly weanling and she's in foal to Kingman . We're not sure what we're going to do with her next year, but we're hopeful John Gosden will be able to work some magic with the Frankel 2-year-old who we sold (to Voute Sales and Nawara Stud for 325,000 guineas) last year."
The session grossed 31,993,000 guineas ($37,711,781), a 27% increase on the corresponding day 12 months ago. The average value rose by 10% year-on-year to 230,165 guineas ($271,307), while the median was up 5% at 160,000 ($188,600). The clearance rate was 86%, up from 78% in 2021, as 139 of 162 offered lots found a buyer.
Book 1 of the October Yearling Sale continues Oct. 5, beginning at 11:00 a.m. local time.
