Lot 455 - Wootton Bassett x Avenue of Pleasure (Image: Magic Millions/ Longwood Thoroughbreds)
The first foal produced by Longwood’s I Am Invincible mare Avenue Of Pleasure produced a huge result for the Victorian farm, as they sold her brown colt (Lot 455) on day three of the Magic Millions for the princely sum of $750,000.
Purchased by bloodstock agent Michael Wallace on behalf of Gandharvi Racing, owned and run by Bangalore-born businessman Kuldeep Singh Rajput, the colt was sired by Wootton Bassett who is presenting his first crop of Australian yearlings on the Gold Coast this week.
When the prior lot, a bay filly by Wootton Bassett, was snapped up for a cool $2.1 million by Te Akau racing head honcho David Ellis, Longwood’s principal Michael Christian might have been forgiven for dreaming of a seven-figure price tag.
As it was, the team were delighted to raise $750,000 for the athletic colt, who is paid up for VOBIS Silver and will be trained by Michael Freedman.
“The colt had been very well received, he’s a beautiful animal with perfect conformation and he looks a real beast, so we were very happy with the price,” said Christian.
“Wootton Bassett has really established himself as one of the leading sires in Europe, he’s been there and done it and his progeny are very consistent, so I would be amazed if he didn’t prove a success over here.”
Avenue Of Pleasure has also hit the ground running and has already more than paid her way, having been picked up for $550,000 by Longwood at the 2022 Inglis Chairman’s Sale when she was in foal to Wootton Bassett.
The mare won twice for trainer Grahame Begg before being retired through injury in 2021, but her pedigree would always ensure a future at stud.
“She’s the most beautiful mare you could imagine,” said Christian.
“It’s amazing to think that her first foal would fetch that sort of money, and she’s since produced another foal by Zoustar. On the strength of the yearling we sold today, we sent her back to Wootton Bassett and she’s now in foal to him. There’s some question about whether Wootton Bassett will return to Australia, so we were obviously delighted to secure his services again.”
Later in the day, Longwood secured $360,000 for Lot 622, a beautiful bay filly by I Am Invincible out of Ellicazoom, the Testa Rossa mare who won six times during her racing career.
As for the remainder of Longwood’s draft, Christian is confident their Zoustar colt (Lot 693) out of Bella Nipotina’s family will prove popular with buyers, particularly as his full-brother Brereton (trained by Peter Moody and Katherine Coleman) is a Stakes winner.
Similarly, their fillies by I Am Invincible (Lot 890) and Castelvecchio (Lot 984) should also attract plenty of interest when they go through the ring on Saturday evening.
Comments