Hawkesbury Valley produced another major feature winner after Prime Star scored a gritty win in the postponed $2 million feature Inglis Millennium at Warwick Farm last week.
Restricted to graduates of Inglis sales, the race was run on a heavy track, Prime Star worked hard to defeat Pride Of Dubai filly Bella Nipotina and Brazen Beau colt Larimer Street for the minor placings.
Prime Star was bred by Kurmond residents Chris and Lynne Lawlor, principals of veterinary products company International Animal Health, who engaged the Ian and Linda Duckworth operated team at nearby Fairview Park Stud, Grose Wold, to sell the colt.
The colt fetched $55,000 and was knocked down to the China Horse Club, Waterford Bloodstock and Sydney trainers Michael and Richard Freedman, who prepare Prime Star for a number of first-time happy owners.
Liking the colt so much the Lawlors also kept a share in the colt, now reaping the rewards.
"I'm absolutely thrilled to bits,'' Chris said.
"He (the colt) was always a lovely horse. I've still got the mare Barinka (a New Zealand Group 1 winner by Shinko King), and she's got a foal at foot by Deep Field, and is in foal to Dundeel."
Prime Star by is Victorian based shuttle sire Starspangledbanner, an Australian bred son of Danehill Dancer's globe-trotting galloper and stalwart sire Choisir.
Interestingly, Barinka has a yearling filly by young Teofilo sire Kermadec on offer at Inglis' Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale next month, however, now owned by others after the Lawlors sold the chestnut as a weanling.
Rubisaki - winner of the $1m Inglis Sprint, was also a Classic Yearling Sale graduate selling for $85,000 from the filly's Mid North Coast breeder Ian Smith of Edinburgh Park Stud, Wingham.
Trained at Plumpton, Victoria by Patrick Payne, Rubisaki has won five races and had two seconds from her seven starts, bringing great joy to her connections who hail from as far north as the Gold Coast to Tamworth, and down to Tasmania.
Rubisaki adds an exciting chapter to the sire record of her Coolmore Stud based Encosta de Lago stallion Rubick, also the sire of Yes Yes Yes.
Classic spells success
With the wet weather conditions easing for the Highway Session of its Classic Yearling Sale last week, Inglis posted a 51 per cent increase in the average at $38,178 at its Riverside headquarters at Warwick Farm.
Buyers spent a touch over $5m for the 132 lots sold.
While an $85,000 top was achieved at the inaugural Classic Highway Session last year, this year's top at $160,000 was for a colt by young Redoute's Choice sire Scissor Kick, who stands at Arrowfield Stud and was also vendor of the colt. Produced from winning Hussonet mare Phaedra, the colt sold to John Foote Bloodstock, Queensland.
While the stallion, Sooboog, was represented with several good sales in Book 1 of the Classic Yearling Sale, the Kitchwin Hills based Snitzel horse also highlighted in the Highway Session. Sooboog was the leading sire by average and aggregate for three or more sold.
Over the two sessions, Sooboog had 10 youngsters sell for a total $702,500 ($70,250 average) with a top of $130,000.
Mike O'Donnell's Fairhill Farm, Mulbring, was the overall leading vendor by average.
Boorowa's Newhaven Park Stud also had good results with the first crop yearlings by their home-based Pentire sire Xtravagant with 10 youngsters selling for $672,000, his top at $120,000.
Coolmore Stud's American Pharoah topped the first season sires list by averages at $151,000 with five selling, his top $250,000 filly from To Please A Lady sold via Geoff Harris' Toolooganvale, Scone.
Capitalist had the highest top price of the first crop sires at $340,000, with the chestnut Golden Slipper winner by Written Tycoon also leading the way by aggregate at $2.36m from 22 sold lots.
Another Newgate Farm based horse, Extreme Choice, had his eight yearlings average $280,000, while Arrowfield Stud's shuttler Shalaa had 11 average $220,000.
It was interesting to see two Victorian based stallions - Godolphin's highly touted dappled-grey Frosted, and Spendthrift Farm's Group winner and Group 1 placed Redoute's Choice bay, Swear, each represented with one yearling.
Each of their yearlings fetched $80,000, however, the big difference is that Frosted commanded a $38,500 service fee, while Swear was $5500, when these horses were conceived.
