Baden-Baden Yearling Sale begins Friday

No sooner has Doncaster wrapped

up than the Baden-Baden Sales Company (BBAG) kicks off their

two-day Yearling Sale at the Iffezheim base on Friday. German

bloodstock has made its presence felt on the international stage

more than ever in the last few months, and this auction has had

its fair share of success stories in that time.

Foreign demand is understandable given that recent alumni include this year's

Preis der Diana (German Oaks) (Ger-G1) winner Almerita (Medicean), German One

Thousand Guineas (Ger-G2) winner Lolita (Ger) (Lavirco) and Premio

Regina Elena (Italian One Thousand Guineas) (Ity-G2) heroine Windhuk (Platini), who cost just 5,500 in 2004. On top of that,

Boccassini (Artan) captured the Prix Robert Papin (Fr-G2)

and Manduro (Monsun) the Prix d'Harcourt (Fr-G2) in

France, while Noble Stella (Ger) (Monsun) flew the flag

when taking the New York Breeders' Cup H. (G2).

This year's

301-strong catalog includes offerings from usual suspects Big

Shuffle, with numerically the largest representation at 23;

Dashing Blade; Monsun; and Tiger Hill, as well

as young domestic stallions Black Sam Bellamy, Next Desert, Royal Dragon, Samum and Sholokhov.

International sires represented include Anabaa, Galileo (Ire),

Hernando (GB), In the Wings (GB), King's Best, Medicean,

Montjeu (Ire), Night Shift, Peintre Celebre, Singspiel, as well

as first-crop stallions Choisir, Hawk Wing and High

Chaparral (Ire).

Gestut Auenquelle, Brummerhof, Etzean, Fahrhof,

Gorlsdorf, Isarland, Karlshof and Wittekindshof are the domestic

consignors who have the largest drafts.

Of the yearlings with

established siblings, Hip 43 is a half-brother to Lolita by

Areion consigned by Gestut Sommerberg; Hip 49 is Gestut

Etzean's Sholokhov half-brother by to 2003 Oaks d'Italia (Ity-G1)

heroine Meridiana (Ger); Gestut Romerhof's Hip 84 is a

full sister to Windhuk; Gestut Westerberg's Hip 93, a full-sister

to Boccassini; Gestut Etzean's Hip 127, an Anabaa half-brother to

Manduro; Hip 143, a Big Shuffle full sister to the Group 3 winning-trio Peppercorn, Pepperstorm and Peppeshot

offered by Gestut Auenquelle on behalf of Peter Battel; and Gestut

Rottgen's Hip 165, a King's Best half-brother to the Group 2 scorers Wild Side

(Ger) and Win For Us (Ger).

Other notables include Gestut Wittekindshof's Hip 68, a filly by

Rock of Gibraltar (Ire), who is the first foal out of dual Group 3 winner and

highweight mare Saldenschwinge (In the Wings [GB]), and Hip 107, a Fantastic

Light colt out of the 1999 Preis der Diana (Ger-G2) winner Flamingo

Road (Acatenango) from the draft of Gestut Park Wiedingen.

Toward the

end of Saturday's session, one of the sale's highlights is

offered by Dr. Andreas Dorpinghaus Ina Spengemann as Hip 251, a

Lando (Ger) half-brother to Almerita, while Hip 277 is a filly by

Montjeu (Ire) out of the listed-winning Moneypenny (Neshad)

from the draft of Gestut Gorlsdorf.

Selling begins after racing on Friday. Full catalog and updates

can be found on www.bbag-sales.de.