Zoustar bound for the UK

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The stallion, who formerly shuttled to Godolphin property ‘Kelvinside’ at Aberdeen, took honours as the sire with the highest average for his sold progeny at the recent Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale.

By Sadler’s Wells’ El Prado, Medaglia d’Oro had four youngsters sell at the sale who averaged $633,750. The stallion’s top price came early at lot 10, which sold via Widden Stud for $1 million, the first of 11 yearlings to command a seven figure price tag.

Medaglia d’Oro’s Golden Slipper winning son Vancouver – who holds court at Coolmore Stud, took honours for the leading first crop sire at the Magic Millions book one sale – his progeny averaged $185,714.  

The champion Australian juvenile colt of his year was represented with 35 youngsters, 28 of them finding new owners, the top making $400,000.

Aquis Farm’s Queensland based first crop Snitzel sire, Spill The Beans, had two youngsters sell at an average $225,000, while Widden Stud stallion Outreach had a filly from Queen Of The Nile, fetch $180,000, the Exceed And Excel sire’s only representative in book one.

Hinchinbrook’s son Press Statement, who stands at Vinery Stud, Scone, had six yearlings sell for an average of $170,000, and the Victorian based Rich Enuff had seven sell for a $150,000 average.

Rich Enuff stands alongside his outstanding Australian sire Written Tycoon (at Woodside Park, Victoria), the liver chestnut horse had 40 lots sell for an average $292,125.

This was helped along with his top-selling colt from Golden Penny, which commanded $900,000 when sold by John and Trish Muir’s Milburn Creek Thoroughbreds, to Sydney bloodstock agent James Harron.

The colt boosted Milburn Creek Thoroughbreds’ sale aggregate to second spot as the leading vendor by average at the sale, with eight sold for an average $401,250.

Only the Mitchell family’s Yarraman Park were ahead of Milburn for average, with 27 yearlings selling for a $429,444 average.  

Yarraman has the advantage of standing Australia’s hottest sire I Am Invincible, who’s yearlings averaged $442,636 off the 55 sold.

This also boosted Yarraman Park to top spot for the leading sale vendor, with gross sales at $11.59m for the Scone district’s 27 sold lots.

Zoustar, who’s progeny averaged $320,375 at the Magic Millions, is due to commence his first northern hemisphere stud season at Tweenhills Stud in England next month.

Part-owned by Qatar Racing, Zoustar has just completed serving 100 plus quality mares at his home of Widden Stud at a fee of $60,500.  

A son of ill-fated sire Northern Meteor, Zoustar will stand at a fee of 25,000 pounds (about $AUS45,000)

The reigning champion Australian first crop sire, Zoustar has already had a memorable first half of the current season with his first crop of three-year-olds.

These include stakes winners and his star filly Sunlight (Group 1), as well as Lean Mean Machine (Group 2, and Group 1 placed), Sun City and Charge (Group 3), and this season’s Listed winners Zoustyle and Persuader.

Zoustar’s current season’s stakes horses includes Zouzain, who to date has twice been Group 1 second placed.

The not overly tall bay stallion was represented with a seven figure yearling at the Gold Coast sale, when the half-brother to promising colt The August fetched $1.075m.

The spotlight now moves to New Zealand for the heralded 2019 Karaka Yearling Sales near Auckland, the next on the Australasian sales calendar for the year.

Australians will be thick on the ground as many buyers have found much racetrack success with previous acquisitions.

Its 93rd sale edition consists of 1284 listed lots in books one, two and three and runs from January 27 to February 3.

Numerous Australian based or shuttle sires are represented. The NZ based first crop sires with yearlings are Australian bred and performed sires Complacent (by Authorized), Mongolian Khan (Holy Roman Emperor) and Sweynesse (Lonhro), and Irish bred Contributor (High Chaparral).