Racing revellers are set to spend more than £200m in 72 hours on horses at the Tattersalls thoroughbred sales in Newmarket. Billionaires, millionaires and rulers of nations lined up alongside celebrities, jockeys and trainers in the hope of finding a future winner of the world’s best races.
None of the year-old rookies has set hoof on a track, but they are seen as racing certs for glory, sired by champions such as Frankel, who retired undefeated and is rated the GOAT, and Galileo, who won the Derby and King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes before becoming the world’s most desired stud. More than 1,800 of horseracing’s hottest prospects are going under the hammer this week at the No1 horse fest on the planet.
Sheikh Mohammed’s record-breaking purchases
United Arab Emirates Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum fired the starting gun on the sensational sale by snapping up a chestnut colt known as ‘Lot 27’ for £1.9m without breaking a sweat. The 77-year-old ruler of Dubai, dressed in a green tracksuit and white trainers, casually broke off mid-conversation to whisper to one of his racing team.
One tiny downward gesture with an index finger later, and the Sheikh’s Godolphin stable was pronounced the new owner of the colt whose dad was Frankel and mum was £2.5m triple top race winner Get Ahead. The Sheikh was not finished there. He then bought Lot 130 for £4.8m, the highest price any horse has ever sold for at the annual auction or anywhere in the world this year.
Night of Thunder colt fetches record sum
Another chestnut colt, he was sired by 2014 2000 Guineas winner Night of Thunder, which hails from one of the Sheikh’s all-time favourite horses Dubai Millennium. The Brit-bred horse won the Dubai World Cup before tragically dying aged just five from grass sickness, an equine ailment caused by eating bacteria-infected food which paralyses the digestive tract and causes nerve damage.
The Newmarket crowd, including footballer-turned-racing trainer Michael Owen, triple champion jockey Ryan Moore and King Charles III’s racing manager John Warren, fell silent as the bidding reached multi-millions. One fan said afterwards: “That was tenser than any horse race. I have never seen anything like it. Clearly the Sheikh has an attachment to the horse and really wanted it. When he won you wouldn’t have known it. His expression did not change. I would have been running around with my shirt over my head.”
£15.6m spent in six hours
The colt was bred by Sunderland Holdings and sold by Norelands Stud in Ireland, fetching an amount that was beyond their dreams. Farm manager Matt Gilsenan said: “You know, it's a crazy world!” The Sheikh’s representative Anthony Stroud said: “He was a really beautiful colt by Night Of Thunder from a very good family. He has the pedigree, he's got the looks, he's got stallion potential, and is just an extremely nice horse coming from a very good stud, and we couldn't be happier. It was the top end of our valuation.”
The big-spending Sheikh was still not satisfied, and in the end he blew £15.6m in six staggering hours. Despite a line of pristine Bentleys in the car park and the vast sum spent on horses, there were few signs the crowd included many of the world’s super rich. Most folk were dressed in jeans, sweatshirts and baseball caps. One sported bright red shorts. Scores of Newmarket locals turned up to watch the spectacle for free.
One said: “It’s the best kept tourism secret in Britain. The horses are wonderful, the people are real characters and it’s so exciting. Some people come here instead of going to the races.”
Auctioneer describes ‘incredible’ atmosphere
Shirley Anderson-Jolag, Tattersalls’ first female auctioneer, said the atmosphere was ‘incredible’. The opera singer switched to selling horses after being captivated by the drama of the auction.
“Not much beats this for pure drama,” she said. “When huge sums of money are being bid the entire place goes silent. All you can hear is the sounds of the horses’ hooves in the parade ring. Then as the winner is recognised there is this sudden murmur of excitement and realisation something extraordinary has just happened. It all adds up to a memorable day out particularly for those who have made millions and - I imagine - spent millions.”
