By Brian Sheerin
Group 1 winner La Petite Coco (Ire) (Ruler Of The World {Ire}), who boasts a 50% strike-rate on the racetrack and almost £400,000 in career earnings, will be one of the star attractions of the Tattersalls December Mares Sale.
Bred by Bernd and Ute Schone in County Offaly, La Petite Coco provided Paddy Twomey with his first Group 1 winner when landing a memorable Pretty Polly S. at the Curragh in June.
She carried the colours of Barry Irwin's Team Valor for the majority of her racing career, including her five wins, and the man behind that ownership vehicle thinks that the 4-year-old appeals to a broad spectrum of prospective buyers.
Irwin said, “I think that La Petite Coco has a chance to become a really good producer. It's a loaded family. There's a lot of top-class horses over middle distance and staying distances in there. She should have plenty of international appeal, especially amongst the Japanese. They seem to have a wider scope than Europeans. The fact that they can race another year or two if they want, should appeal to them.”
La Petite Coco is sold as a filly-in-training and Twomey says there are plenty of miles left in the tank. So much so, the County Tipperary-based trainer revealed that he would be delighted if her new owners decided to keep her in training for one more season with him.
Twomey said, “La Petite Coco is being sold as a horse-in-training and is lightly-raced with 10 runs and five wins. She won the G1 Pretty Polly S. and was third in the G1 Yorkshire Oaks on ground that was probably quicker than ideal at the time. The winner [Alpinista (GB) (Frankel {GB})] is as good a filly we've seen in Europe for some time and the second [Tuesday (Ire) (Galileo {Ire})] won the Oaks and at the Breeders' Cup. It was a very good race and it was probably a trainer error on my behalf as I ran her back a bit soon at York. She's not a big work horse at home and you have to feel your way as you go along with her. That was a big mistake on my part.”
He added, “After that, Barry mooted the idea of selling her and I said I'd keep her fresh. She's one you'd love to see racing on next year if the opportunity came its way. If she is sold and her new owner asked me to take her back I'd be delighted to have her back to train. I think she's a filly who has more in her. For example, Pearls Galore (Fr) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) had the best season of her life as a 5-year-old and I don't think La Petite Coco is any different. She's by a son of Galileo who won a Derby and she's five champions on her page and is very well-bred. She has two career-paths open to her and, while one will end up being her ultimate goal, if she ends up coming back into training before she goes breeding, that will be up to her new connections.”
The world-renowned green and red silks of Team Valor have been carried by a number of top-notchers down through the years but, according to Irwin, the operation is becoming more commercial. The sale of La Petite Coco is a statement of that fact.
He explained, “We're commercial now. I've done this thing [syndicated horses] since the middle of the eighties and it's fun–everybody enjoys it. But as I've gotten older and wiser, hopefully, I think that at some point you have to start taking some money off the table.
“The market today is definitely a seller's market. It's not a buyer's market. It reminds me of the early eighties. There was one Keeneland sale where they sold more than 30 yearlings for a million dollars, the prices were outrageous. It is difficult to buy horses right now. So I think if we sell horses that still have racing life in them, we'll get a premium and then we can take that money and turn around and buy some more.”
He added, “I think she should get better with age. There's no reason why she shouldn't. Both her sire and the dam side indicate she should get better with age.
He added, “We have sold a few fillies down through the years who have produced very good horses. Blue Rose Cen (Ire) (Churchill {Ire}), who won the Prix Marcel Boussac by five [lengths] is out of a mare that Gary Barber and I raced and we sold her to Fasig-Tipton. And through the years, we've sold a lot of fillies and mares that went on to produce Grade I and Group 1 winners and champions. We have a particularly good record selling to Japanese owners. Some of the foundation stock for the Shadai Stud family hails from a couple of mares that they bought from me.”
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