The Tattersalls Cheltenham Festival Sale, which takes place after racing at Prestbury Park on Thursday, has the highest profile among the expanding market of boutique jumping sales and takes a break from the norm by offering a mare entered to run at the Festival on Friday.
Traditionally, the auction has offered winning point-to-pointers and bumper horses with the potential to be stars of the future, as Grade 1-winning graduates such as Bravemansgame (Fr), Gerri Colombe (Fr), Santini (GB) and Slate House (Ire) have demonstrated. However, there could be a much quicker return on investment for the buyer of the first lot through the ring on Thursday evening, Harmonya Maker (Fr). The seven-year-old daughter of Saddler Maker (Ire) has been declared to run in Friday's G2 Mrs Paddy Power Mares' Chase by her trainer Gordon Elliott.
To date, Hamonya Maker has won five of her 15 races, including the G2 Carey Glass Irish EBF Mares' Novice Chase in January. She has been kept busy this season and has never been out of the first three in her five starts since November, which include two victories.
The remainder of the 30 lots catalogued for the sale are aged either four or five and have recent winning or placed form in the point-to-point field. Lot 10, from Ballycrystal Stables, is the half-sister to Grade 1 winner Stay Away Fay (Ire) (Shantou). Named The Big Westerner (Ire) (Westerner {GB}), she won on debut at Ballycahane earlier this month.
Last year's catalogue of the same size saw 20 horses sold on the night (67%) for a total of £3.45 million. The co-top lots, Romeo Coolio (GB) (Kayf Tara {GB}) and Jalon d'Oudairies (Fr) (No Risk At All {Fr}), were bought by Gordon Elliott for £420,000 apiece and they finished second and third at Cheltenham in Wednesday's G1 Weatherbys Champion Bumper.
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