Vibrant Yorton Sale Produces Records Across the Board

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The 2022 Yorton Sale was held last Thursday afternoon (8/9/22) with a large crowd in attendance & was headed by a Blue Bresil filly who was sold to Ben Pauling/Highflyer for £90,000.

View the EBN report below

PAULING’S KEY ROLE AS YORTON DELIVERS AGAIN Gloucestershire racehorse trainer Ben Pauling was in buying mode when Goffs UK held the fourth Yorton Sale of jumping stores in North Wales yesterday, writes Carl Evans. Pauling purchased six horses – most with a view to tackling next year’s BHA/TBA series of three-year-old hurdle races – including the top lot, a Blue Bresil filly, who was sold for £90,000. In common with the other 41 members of the catalogue she was a two-year-old, as the sale departed from its previous format of mixing that age group and yearlings. The change did no harm, for turnover nudged ahead of last year when coming in at £1,147,000, while the average and median prices each made gains of 15 per cent at £31,861 and £30,000 respectively. Rathbarry Stud’s Blue Bresil, one of Jump racing’s most popular sires, was responsible for 13 lots who proved a draw for buyers, and the car park and number of people around the ring seemed busier than ever. Six horses sold for £50,000 or more, and it was soon clear that a number of horses sold out of the catalogue will be crossing the Channel to begin their careers in France, where races for three-year-olds are well established. David Futter, the head of Yorton Stud and whose brainchild this sale is, said: “It’s been a huge effort by the whole team. We go through the stud season, have a two-week break and then we prep all these horses. “We are extremely grateful to everyone who comes here each year. This is a fantastic industry and I’m proud to be a part of it. ”Every horse had a connection to Yorton, having either been bred at the stud or bought as foals or yearlings by Futter, his family and partners. Futter said: “We’ve made some money and I hope the people who have bought horses today will make money too. That is the basis for this event.” Tim Kent, Goffs UK’s Managing Director, said: “This has been another big year for this sale which continues to make positive strides. The quality of horse being offered took a step up once again and for a sale that’s only offered four catalogues it has created a superb following and some outstanding results. “On behalf of the Goffs team I pass on our congratulations to David and the Yorton team, they are a pleasure to work with and we are delighted to be involved.”

PAULING EYES JUVENILE PRIZES Naunton trainer Ben Pauling, acting with the Highflyer Bloodstock agency team, proved hard to beat when chasing down some choice horses. His six purchases added £266,000 to the day’s turnover. The pick on price proved to be a £90,000 Blue Bresil filly (Lot 29) out of the Geordieland mare Bit Of A Geordie, a half-sister to Harry Fry’s very classy hurdler Bitofapuzzle (Tamure) and to the useful Golden Gael (Generous). Jonjo O’Neill, who trains near Pauling, had to accept the underbidder’s role. While Tessa Greatrex was busy filling in the buyers’ sheet, her Highflyer colleague David Minton said of the top lot: “I came here on Friday afternoon to view the horses and she was my stand-out filly. I gave Tessa and Anthony [Bromley] my short-list and when they saw they agreed.” Pauling said he was acting for racehorse owner Andrew Megson, and added: “I’m thrilled. She’s from a very good family, by a top sire, and I’m delighted to get her.” Pauling was also representing Megson when he and Greatrex reeled in a £55,000 son of Melbourne Cup winner Protectionist (Lot 11), who stands at Gestüt Röttgen and whose oldest progeny are now four-year-olds. First dam Koffi Cherie (Soldier Hollow) was unraced, but her siblings have put black type on the page. Pauling said of the gelding, who had been bought by Yorton for €26,000 at Baden-Baden in October: “He’s got a great German staying pedigree and he’s a real class individual who hopefully we can get going for the early three-year-old races next year. If he needs a bit more time we will give it to him. “He’s for Andrew Megson, who likes the idea of getting on with horses earlier and is keen to support the new juvenile hurdle races.” Other horses destined to join Pauling’s string included a son of The Grey Gatsby (Lot 27) who was bought for €17,000 at Osarus in September and who made £50,000 yesterday. “He’s a lovely big horse and hopefully he has a big future,” said Greatrex, who also brought down the hammer for a Linda’s Lad filly (Lot 24) who rose in value from £17,000 as a Goffs UK August yearling to £38,000 just over a year later. On this occasion Greatrex was acting for Northamptonshirebased racehorse owners John and Rachel Brodie. They had no interest in racing until in 2017 Rachel’s father, Paul Bush, died and asked in his will for a horse he had in training with Pauling to be looked after. The Brodies visited the yard, kept the horse, got the bug, and yesterday bought their first filly. In common with several buyers of fillies, Greatrex said the GBB bonus was a big part of the appeal. Pauling will also handle a Masterstroke gelding (Lot 16), who was bred by James and Jean Potter, who own the historic premises on which the sale took place. The Potters secured the dam, Santa Diana (Saint Des Saints) for €52,000 at Osarus in 2019, and are on their way to recovering her purchase price with this first foal, who was sold for £38,000.

Ben Pauling, the Gloucestershire trainer who purchased six horses.

BLUE BRESIL FACTOR COUNTS Tom Malone, no stranger to the ring at Yorton, secured the day’s second top lot when posting a bid of £68,000 for a son of Blue Bresil (Lot 19) from the family of outstanding chaser and Gr.1 Gold Cup winner Denman. An April foal bred by James and Jean Potter, he was a first produce of the mare Potters Den, whose dam Miss Denman was a full-sister to Denman. Malone was not working for one of his many trainer clients, but for Fran Woods’s Abbeylands pinhooking operation. Woods is no stranger to the stallion, for he is married to Niamh Cashman, whose family stand Blue Bresil at their Rathbarry Stud in Ireland. Woods said: “He’s been bought for resale, and could go to the Land Rover or Derby Sales, or to Doncaster next spring. He’s just a nice horse with a good way about him and he’s by a great sire. Constitution Hill is doing great things for him on the track and his progeny are now proving hard to get. Trainers love them.” Malone also invested £55,000 in a daughter of Blue Bresil (Lot 28), his eye having been drawn to a well-known name in the pedigree. This was Madison Du Berlais, who appeared under the second dam and was a high-class chaser who Malone used to ride when he worked for Martin Pipe. Having signed the sheet he quipped: “When you see ones you’ve ridden in the pedigree you know you’re in trouble,” before adding: “I bought Native River [the subsequent Gr.1 Gold Cup winner for Colin Tizzard’s stable] because he was by Indian River, the sire of Madison Du Berlais.” First dam Houston Du Berlais won twice and was Listedplaced over hurdles, and has foaled two winners. Malone said of the filly: “She’s for sale from the moment she gets home. We might put her in a sale next year, but one way or another we’ll find a buyer.”

Abbeylands struck the winning bid of £68,000 for Lot 19, a two-year-old gelding by Blue Bresil.

LOGAN AND HARTE’S FRENCH PLAN Pinhookers Joey Logan and Alan Harte proved to be another force when it came to buying lots yesterday. The two men have enjoyed some memorable results with pointto-pointers they have bought as stores and then raced in Ireland before reoffering them for sale, but yesterday they were eyeing opportunities across the Channel. Logan said: “The French have a good racing programme for these young horses. We can race them there next year and then take a view about selling them on.” He and Harte were open-minded about yards which could take their purchases, although they teamed up with trainer Gabriel Leenders for the pick on price, a £52,000 son of Blue Bresil (Lot 44) out of Uppermost (Montjeu), an unraced mare whose best foal to date, Midnight Tour (Midnight Legend), won five races including at Listed level. She was also placed in Cheltenham’s Gr.1 Mares’ Hurdle. Midnight Tour’s second foal by Blue Bresil (Lot 35) was also offered yesterday when knocked down to John Bleahen for £30,000. Other Logan buys included a £42,000 Blue Bresil filly (Lot 46), who was a first foal of the unraced mare Quiet Diva (So You Think), a half-sister to two black-type winners in France and Germany.

SON HANDS OVER TO FATHER Former Goffs UK employee George Stanners returned to the podium yesterday to share auctioneering duties with Henry Beeby. Stanners joined Yorton Stud earlier this year, but he showed no signs of rust after picking up the gavel and was soon selling in his own inimitable way. At past renditions of this sale he has stepped into the bidding area to buy horses for his step-mother, fomer trainer Sue Bramall, but on this occasion he left those duties to his father, Michael, who was paying a visit to Britain. Stanners Snr, a one-time top auctioneer in his own right, lowered the hammer on four occasions, buying three horses for £30,000 and a Choeur Du Nord gelding (Lot 12) for £34,000. He said: “Sue’s at home near Tours in the middle of France looking after things back there, but this sale has been good to us in the past. All these horses have been brought to go back to France, to be broken in and then go into training, possibly with Gaby Leenders or Francois Nicolle. “We tend to do preparation and reparation now, rather than training. Sue sends them to trainers to do the training, we do the prep and rep.”

Full Sale Results can be found here