Another power-packed sales season for Newsells Park Stud is set to be followed by a hectic period of foalings and coverings in the coming weeks.
Fillies out of Aljazzi and Shambolic created plenty of headlines for Graham Smith-Bernal's team when selling for 4,400,000gns ($5.91 million) and 3,700,000gns respectively at the top of the tree for Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale, while Irish Oaks (G1) heroine You Got To Me, owned in partnership with Valmont, joined Aljazzi's Frankel filly in selling to Amo Racing at the December Mare Sale for 4,800,000gns.
Such is the depth of the Newsells broodmare band and the potential talent coming through that general manager Julian Dollar will manage the pair carefully.
Dollar said: "The plan is for Aljazzi to be rested. She's carrying to Too Darn Hot but had a late service; she's due the end of May. She has the exciting filly Amo Racing and Alex Elliott bought and a yearling full brother who will go to Book 1 all being well.
"Shambolic is doing very well but, again, is due late. She's pretty much a definite to be rested this year as she's due in mid-May, but she has a very nice yearling Frankel filly who we plan to retain in partnership with her joint-owner, Craig Bennett. She's in foal to Frankel again and we're very excited about her future."
The Hertfordshire stud was also among the buyers at the mare sales last year, picking up Pride Stakes (G3) winner Novus and Upavon Fillies' Stakes scorer Rousay at Tattersalls.
Dollar said of Novus, a dual stakes-winning daughter of Dandy Man recruited for 400,000gns from owner Omar Jackson: "We've decided to send her to Blue Point. She's a nice young mare and we think he'll suit her very well."
He added: "Rousay will go to Wootton Bassett, having just foaled a very attractive filly by Modern Games."
Wide-margin French stakes winner Grand Stars will have a different route planned out after selling to Newsells for €800,000 (845,392) at Arqana in December.
Dollar said: "We were looking to send her to Frankel but, since she showed her best form at the end of last year with Gerald Mosse, we've decided to give her another year in training with Gerald in the hope of winning further black type."
Prix du Muguet (G2) winner and immaculately bred Sibila Spain was picked up from Arqana's Breeding Stock Sale in 2023, when fetching €2 million. Having foaled a filly by Dubawi (IRE) last year, the 7-year-old was unfortunately barren to Darley's champion sire last year and will visit Lope De Vega (IRE) this time around.
Dollar said: "We've had a slight change in plan. Dubawi has been a wonderful stallion for us both on the racecourse and in the sales ring, but we took the step to move on and we like the cross of Frankel with Lope De Vega. We've been a shareholder in Lope De Vega from day one, are big fans of the horse, and there are some particularly good stats on that cross."
Also booked into the Ballylinch Stud kingpin are Innevera, based with partners Fittocks Stud and the dam of multiple group/graded stakes winner Ottoman Fleet, and Luminate, a dual group winner by Lawman (FR).
Leading the band is Waldlerche, a group winner by Monsun and the dam of Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe hero Waldgeist, Prix de Malleret (G2) scorer Waldlied and Gordon Richards Stakes (G3) winner Waldkonig. The half sister to Masked Marvel and daughter of Waldmark could well add to an already impressive CV at paddocks.
"We had a long discussion about her as she's undoubtedly one of our queens," Dollar said. "She's got a lovely Dubawi yearling who we may well keep, a Frankel 3-year-old with William Haggas who is an impressive horse, and a 2-year-old Frankel filly we've retained with our 2025 racing and breeding syndicate.
"She's going back to Sea The Stars as she had a very good horse by him called Waldstern, who was with John Gosden but sadly broke a leg on the gallops. He was rated 107 as a three-year-old and I felt he was a Group winner in waiting. If you could breed a filly out of her by Sea The Stars, that would be an exciting racing and broodmare prospect."
Her daughter Waldlied, meanwhile, is back from Japan and set for a date closer to home having been covered by Equinox.
"We were tempted to leave her out there and breed her again to one of Shadai's stallions, but ultimately we decided to bring her home," said Dollar. "She's due in the middle of this month and will then visit Too Darn Hot.
"She's a big New Approach mare and we loved the Dubawi out of her we sold last year; she was a very special filly. We thought we'd go to one of Dubawi's exciting young sons and Too Darn Hot fitted the bill."
Also slated for Too Darn Hot is Feminism, a winning Shamardal half sister to classic winners Modern Games and Mawj.
