Racing: Sale-topping filly travels full circle

Danehill's money-spinning Downunder show at the National Yearling Sales climaxed where it all began at Karaka yesterday.

Ireland's Adrian Nicol, who bought Pencarrow Stud's sales-topping $1.3 million Danehill-Encens filly, was the brains behind packaging the last 20 Southern Hemisphere yearlings by the superstar stallion.

The chairman of Kildare-based equine empire BBA-Ireland first planted the idea with auction bosses Peter and Philip Vela at the Magic Millions sales at the Gold Coast two years ago.

He then hand-picked the blue-blood mares to be serviced by Coolmore Stud's group one legend, who died in a freak paddock accident in May 2003.

"I saw the lot as foals when I was at the sales last year, then followed up a few months later," said Nicol.

"I knew early on that this filly was the one I wanted to buy. This one was always the star, in my opinion.

"If she doesn't race well I'd be disappointed.

"She has every credential you could want: looks, athleticism, physique.

"It's like buying a Renoir."

Nicol's pin-up pick is out of a mare who won as a 2-year-old in France and has produced two winners.

One of them is Ecomium, an impressive Newmarket winner and an early favourite for the English Derby before being sidelined with injury.

"This page," said Nicol, pointing to the yearling's pedigree, "would stand up anywhere in the world."

He has divided ownership in his $1.3 million purchase into four shares, with the others already snapped up by a Canadian, two Englishmen and two Australians.

Lindsay Park in South Australia will be the filly's early home, before she moves to the Melbourne stable of Tony McEvoy.

Nicol followed the same path with Karaka's 2004 million dollar Danehill baby, Offenbach, who has already shown trial promise and is expected to make his race debut in the spring.

The show-stopping bid from Nicol was his first sales-topper since he bought the Robert Sangster-owned Trichelle for $700,000 in 1983.

Nicol had been a regular buyer here since 1974 but took a 20-year sabbatical, sourcing his Southern Hemisphere stock instead from Sydney, before enticed back last year by the Velas' marketing muscle.

"The Velas have done an unbelievable job," said Nicol, who also paid $600,000 and $575,000 for two other Danehill fillies, out of Magical Moment and Dance My Dance respectively.

"Nowhere in the world do you get hospitality like this and it's a very easy sale to work.

"How could I not come back again with the depth they now have in their catalogue?

"I know there will be no Danehills but there are still plenty of others to come for."

Auckland bloodstock consultant Rob McAnulty, one of the super-sire's biggest Kiwi fans in recent years, will be feeling the void more than most.

But after snapping up Ascot Farm's Danehill-Fern colt for $700,000, he felt he had grabbed the bargain of the three-day Premier sale, which ended yesterday.

"I'm very happy with that. He's way under my budget," said McAnulty, who had $950,000 extra in his pocket after missing the Zabeel-Marquise colt on the opening day.

"I had in excess of a million to spend on him."

McAnulty said the Fern colt was in the mould of the other Danehills he had bought in recent years, which include Danske ($650,000), Danbird ($1.1 million) and Danroad ($440,000).

"I've got so many people interested in buying him it's a joke. I'm over-subscribed and at that price the people who are in are going to want more.

"It looks like we'll have to race him in Australia to get black type.

"Danske won a group one here but the breeding industry is still slow to show interest in him."

The last 16 Southern Hemisphere stock of Danehill to sell at Karaka averaged $528,438, a jump on the $417,273 average for his 11-strong class of last year.

Danehill Day

* Adrian Nicol sowed the seed for the superstar stallion's fantastic Karaka sale two years ago.

* The Irishman hand-picked the blue-blooded mares to be served.

* He paid a sales-topping $1.3 million for a filly.