Fireworks erupted early at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale when a Frankel colt surged to $2 million, becoming the opening session’s first seven-figure sale and ultimately secured by Coolmore’s Tom Magnier.
Presented by Segenhoe Stud, the colt is out of Lonhro mare Antibes, making him a brother to the talented Mark Walker-trained Chateau Eze.
Breeder John Camilleri opted to offer the colt at auction, and Segenhoe general manager Peter O’Brien said the sale reflected the depth of Camilleri’s program.
“John Camilleri sends those mares over there – it’s a big risk to send them up there, travel them, bring them back (and) foal them – so he deserves all the credit,” O’Brien said.
“The mother had a ton of ability but it doesn’t read it in the book, so John backed his knowledge of her ability and had a big swing with her and he’s got the just rewards.”
The colt hails from the family of A Time For Julia and is closely related to Group 1 VRC Oaks winner Personal, adding further pedigree appeal.
Magnier confirmed the colt will join Chris Waller’s stable and said the group was unanimous in its admiration.
“We’ve had a lot of Frankels in the northern hemisphere, (more) than in the southern hemisphere, so we know them well, (and) we’ve had a lot of luck with the grand dam,” Magnier said.
“All the team really liked him. He’s a lovely fluid-actioned horse and he ticks all the boxes.
“Chris really liked the horse all week. I suppose there’s a couple of horses that you don’t agree on, but when everybody agrees on a horse, it gives you the confidence to go a little bit further.”
Not only is he the fifth Frankel colt to fetch $2m at Magic Millions, he is also the highest-priced Frankel ever sold in Australia.
Soon after, the sale registered its first million-dollar filly of the year, an I Am Invincible daughter from nine-time Group 1 winner Avantage. She was knocked down to Glentree Thoroughbreds and Badger’s Bloodstock for $1,050,000.
Luke Simpson of Glentree said the filly continued to impress throughout inspections.
“She’s a lovely filly that we saw earlier on in the week and we kept our eye on her and every time we saw her she just kept improving,” Simpson said.
“We’ve seen her other siblings and I think she was equally as good as them, so she had all the attributes that we were after.”
