A €500,000 (US$540,550, €1=US$1.08) son of Kingman from Haras de Saint Pair's "Via" family led the way for most of the opening session of the Arqana October Yearling Sale Oct. 22, the first horse to break the half-million mark at this sale since 2020. The colt (Lot 13) is out of the Pivotal mare Via Pisa, a listed winner and group 1-placed for Saint Pair and trainer Freddy Head.
Via Pisa is out of the group 3-winning Via Medici, and thus is a half sister to Hong Kong Mile (G1) hero Admire Mars, who stands at Shadai Stallion Station in Japan.
Agent Jason Kelly and trainer Paddy Twomey won the right to take the colt back to Ireland. They probably figured they would have to dig deep for a horse whose siblings previously made €850,000 and €950,000 in this ring.
"He was a lovely horse, he was my pick of the sale and we're delighted to get him," said Twomey, who has plenty of history with Saint Pair and its principal, Andreas Putsch.
"He's an athletic colt with a very good pedigree and obviously Mr. Putsch is a very good breeder. I was lucky enough to train Pearls Galore and she was a champion in Ireland, so I know the farm rears good horses.
"He's for an existing owner and hopefully he's good enough to run in the nice races next year and the year after."
The sole yearling by Kingman in the catalog across five days and just the 13th lot, the colt set the tone for trade that ran well ahead of recent editions of this sale right from the off.
Twomey said: "There's a good bunch of horses here. In Arqana in October there's always nice horses. I particularly liked this one but across the board there's a good selection for everybody."
Night Of Thunder Colt Makes Joint-Top Price
Deep into the day's trade a second lot reached the magic €500,000 mark, on this occasion an imposing chestnut Night Of Thunder colt (Lot 153).
Deauville-based trainer Yann Barberot emerged victorious for the colt, bred and consigned by Haras de Mont dit Mont from the group 3-placed Siyouni mare Paramount, and hailing from the Gestut Farhof family of Preis der Diana victress Puntilla and Teruya Yoshida's Prix Vermeille (G1) runner-up Pirika.
Mont dit Mont celebrated a first group 1 success this month when Vertical Blue edged out stablemate Zarigana to land the Prix Marcel Boussac (G1).
Barberot said: "I've bought the horse for some new investors, and we bought some other horses earlier in the day. But he was the one we really fell for."
Predictions that there could be a positive knock-on effect from recent sales activity across the English Channel appeared to be borne out with a pleasing rise across all the key indicators.
Part 1 of the 2024 session had a turnover of €17,830,000 (US$19,256,400) showing a 14% uptick, as 170 of the 197 lots to pass through the ring changed hands for a clearance rate north of 86%.
The average price rose by more that €13,000 to €104,882 (US$113,273), while the median also ticked up from €70,000 in 2023 to €73,500 (US$79,380).
While the two €500,000 lots clearly helped the average, the top end of the market was notably stronger than in recent years, with 22 yearlings making €200,000 or more, compared to 14, 12, and 15 lots to reach that landmark in the last three years.
