When bloodstock agent Colm Sharkey, who was standing next to top jockey Jamie Spencer, placed a bid of 220,000 guineas (US$288,200, 1 guinea = US$1.31) for the elegant Godolphin horse Galashiels Jan. 30 during the first session of the Tattersalls February Sale, it was the high point of a very ordinary selling session. During his tenure with Andre Fabre, the 6-year-old Australian kid won five races, with his most noteworthy triumphs occurring in the Longchamp and Clairefontaine listed events. Following the signing of the six-figure contract, Sharkey stated: “He’s been bought by Ciaron Maher Racing,” indicating that Galashiels will continue his racing career on the opposite side of the globe. Ciaron was eager to acquire him because of his clear profile for Australia.
“He passed the vetting process, and his pedigree and form match up well. He really is self-explanatory. Ciaron was the one who actually chose Jamie to be involved.All I am is a helpful hand. He will occasionally have some free time before boarding the aircraft to Australia. Even if that might have turned off others, that wasn’t a deterrent because we’ve had success buying off Fabre in the past.” Stonethorn Stud from Glenmayne, a listed half sister of Millisle, the 2019 Cheveley Park Stakes (G1) victor, was the breeder of Galashiels. After being promoted to the Godolphin ranks at Tattersall’s October Yearling Sale Book 2 in 2020 for 115,000 guineas, he was making his second public auction appearance.
As 36 lots changed hands for receipts totaling 1,394,500 guineas during the draft, Godolphin-consigned lots dominated the market. As a result, the consignment was responsible for 9 of the top 10 prices for the day and 56% of the turnover for the day. Alessandro Marconi had a lot of bragging rights among purchasers, even if Godolphin dominated the consignors’ charts. With 17 recruits acquired for a total expenditure of 533,000 guineas, the agent easily held the top spot as the day’s top buyer in terms of the quantity of lots purchased and total expenditure. His acquisitions ranged from the 130,000 guinea Scarlet Princess, a twice-raced Godolphin-bred daughter of Kingman and 2008 Prix de l’Opera (G1) heroine Lady Marian, to the haul’s average price of 31,353 guineas. Through to 2-year-olds by Expert Eye , Starman , and Ten Sovereigns , each of whom were picked up for the minimum bid of 1,000 guineas.
According to the agency, training plans are still subject to change, and the haul will be divided among several trainers and locations. “There’s a big syndicate in Libya that has been very active and we’re happy to be expanding in the Middle East and Europe at the moment,” he stated. Since they’ve previously had some success, they’re content to return to Tatts in the hopes of striking it lucky once again. If you want to find the good ones, you have to buy at every level of the market. 131 lots were offered during the busy selling session, and 114 of those lots were purchased, yielding a strong 87% clearance rate. Consequently, those transactions increased the total to 2,509,500 guineas (US$3,287,445), a 78% increase over the corresponding day 12 months ago.
The average price was up 56% at 22,013 guineas (US$28,837), while the median rose fully 107%, up from 7,000 guineas in 2024 to 14,500 guineas (US$18,995) Thursday. The Tattersalls February Sale continues Jan. 31 at 10 a.m local time.
