This colt is destined to be a headliner. That is if one of
the industry's best judges James Bester is correct in his assessment that Camarena's full
brother (pictured above) will top next month's Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale in
Sydney.
Bester one of the country's leading Bloodstock Agents is
regarded as a fine judge of horseflesh and he has seen hundreds of top yearlings
throughout Australia in recent years. But it was this colt that left Bester breathless.
"This is the most outstanding yearling I think I have
ever seen in Australia. He is perfect," Bester claimed.
Outstanding. It's a powerful word, but perhaps it is the
right one when describing the colt that will be offered on the first day of the Sydney
sale as lot 72.
The colt is being presented by industry leaders Collingrove
Stud, who are acting as agents for Victorian based Davilora Lodge.
Not only is this colt "outstanding," Bester also
claims the Easter record price of $1.5 million (shared by two horses including Group One
winner Viking Ruler) is set to tumble.
"This colt could be a record breaker. He is everything
you want from a yearling - a beautiful mover and his family doesn't get any better,"
he added.
"He is by the king in Danehill and out of a Marscay
mare and that cross is always a winner. Plus the family is already proven at Group One
level."
Davilora Lodge is the property of David Thomas and Lorraine
Smith and Lorraine was pleasantly surprised by the huge wrap given by Bester.
"It's a great honour to have a man of his knowledge
and experience choose our colt out from what is a catalogue filled with so much
quality," Lorraine said today.
Lorraine was quick to point out that her and husband David
aren't expecting to top the Easter Yearling Sale in Sydney.
"Look it would be great if we could, but I am just
keeping my feet on the ground and just have everything crossed."
"He's a lovely colt and he would probably be the best
we've ever bred," Lorraine said. "Let's just hope there are a couple of people
who really, really like him."
The Danehill colt looks just about assured of breaking the
"Davilora record" for a yearling, which currently stands at $400,000 for a
Danehill filly out of Christmas Spirit at the Easter Sale three years ago.
It's probably not well known that Davilora Lodge purchased
the mighty New Zealand Horse of the Year Tycoon Lil as a weanling before selling her off
as a yearling a year later. If the Canny Miss colt is set to be pipped by another to
become the sale topper this would be the yearling that would be more "accepted"
than the others.
"It would be good to see the Tycoon Lil colt by Zabeel
make a good price for sentimental reasons and we sold her to Peter Walker when she was a
yearling," Lorraine said.
Breeders for seventeen years, Lorraine and David, stitched
up one of their biggest deals in the past year when they sold their star mare to Darley.
"This is the last youngster we have from Canny Miss as
we sold her in foal to Danehill," she said referring to an undisclosed seven figure
deal which was struck between Davilora and Darley.
Darley, headed by one of the world's richest men Sheikh
Mohammed, also went all out to purchase the Group One winner Camarena from her then
Canberra connections.
Canny Miss, who recently produced her new owners with a
full sister to Camarena, is now in foal to the champion Northern Hemisphere based sire
Danzig - the sire of Danehill.
With Darley already having purchased a large part of the
top class family, it is expected the dual hemisphere breeding operation could be one of
the more interested onlookers when lot 72 enters the ring in just over a week. |
