YOU may be excused for thinking that the horse pictured (and groom Emile Fredericks from Widden Stud) fetched $250,000 at this week's Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale - a large sum for most people, but you need to add another seven figures to get to the colt's real price of $1.25 million.
Held at Inglis' Riverside Stables, Warwick Farm, the sale is southern hemisphere's most prestigious Thoroughbred auction and annually draws an international crowd (bar COVID-19) searching for the next champion racehorse.
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The pictured colt (by I Am Invincible, from Vezalay) was among 11 horses to fetch $1m or more on the first day of the Thoroughbred auction that has been conducted via the Inglis family for over 150 years.
Two of these million-dollar "babies" pushed the barrier even further each fetching $2m or more with a top at a hefty $2.5m, for a colt by Snitzel from Rising Romance, selling from Arrowfield Stud, Scone.
Inglis posted "a record individual day's trade for a southern hemisphere yearling sale", and which resulted with a $64,470,000 gross from the 175 sold horses. The average was $368,400, with an 85% clearance.
Young "sire of the moment", Capitalist secured his first million-dollar youngster when his colt from Bonnie Mac sold for $1.05m, selling from Yarraman Park, Scone.
While the two-day sale concluded Wednesday, Ingis' focus will switch to breeding stock with its renowned broodmare and weanling auctions scheduled next month.