Group One pedigree to fore on opening day

Mark Chittick had the daughter of Savabeel and the multiple Group One winner Daffodil at the top of his pre-sale Karaka list and the filly didn’t disappoint the WS principal. She provided the Matamata nursery with their star turn on the opening day of the Premier Sale this afternoon.

The youngster was keenly sought after before she was knocked down to the China Horse Club’s New Zealand-based bloodstock and racing manager Michael Wallace for $600,000. “She was definitely the pick and I wasn’t going to sell her for any less,” Chittick said.

Daffodil, by No Excuse Needed, was the champion three-year-old in the 2008-09 season following Group One wins in the NZ 1000 Guineas and the Australian Oaks. She trained on to further top-flight success in the Windsor Park Plate.

“You know when you see a quality individual like this filly, with a pedigree to match, that it’s not going to be a cheap exercise to buy them,” Wallace said. “We expected there to be plenty of good judges on her and you can see by the action that took place that she was well sought after. We had valued her around the mark she reached, but after seeing the Banchee filly (lot 58) make $750,000 we felt we might have to go a little higher than we did.”

Queensland bloodstock agent John Foote went to $360,000 earlier in the session to secure the filly out of Virginia. The dam is a sister to the multiple Group One winner and producer Alamosa.

Yet another significant Savabeel sale of note was the filly out of Ambriosia who sold for $300,000 to Woppitt Bloodstock, of New South Wales. By Pins, Ambrosia is a sister to the Gr 2 Thousand Guineas Prelude winner Legless Veuve and to the Gr 3 Mannerism Stakes winner Mannerism.

Meanwhile, the brother to the farm’s multiple Group One winner Sacred Falls realised $300,000 when knocked down to the Hong King Jockey Club. The son of O’Reilly and the Redoute’s Choice mare Iguazu’s Girl was bought by the Hong Kong Jockey Club.