Song goes for nearly $3 million at Tattersalls

Money may not buy love, but it can get you a pretty nice broodmare.

Blue-blooded SONG (Sadler's Wells) headed an electric second breeding stock

session at the Tattersalls December Sale in Newmarket Tuesday when selling for

1.7 million guineas ($2,967,702) to Australian owner Paul Makin.

The unraced three-year-old, in foal to Danehill Dancer, was offered as Lot

No. 1613 from Mary-Ann Penfold's Bugley Stud. She is a full-sister to Irish One

Thousand Guineas (Ire-G1) winner Yesterday (Ire), three-time classic-placed

Quarter Moon (Ire) and Oaks (Eng-G1) third All My Loving (Ire), and hails from

Kirsten Rausing's superb family of Alborada (GB) (Alzao) and Albanova (Alzao).

Early bidders on the bay included Adrian Nicoll of BBA Ireland, Reiley

McDonald and local agent Hugo Lascelles, but her destiny was decided by a duel

between Makin's agent, Grant Pritchard-Gordon of Badgers Bloodstock, and John

Warren, acting for Newsells Park Stud. Makin tried to constantly up the ante,

first matching Warren's 1.3 million guineas with a 1.5 million guineas offer.

His rival could give only 50,000 guineas more and when that 1.55 million guineas

was surpassed by Makin's 1.7-million guineas, the battle was over.

"I just wanted to get into the family -- how many chances do you get to go

into a pedigree like that?," said Makin, who is best known in Europe for

campaigning Group 1 winner Starcraft (NZ). "There are a lot of fillies being

bred from in there. There were only four I wanted in this sale, and this one

ticked all the boxes; she was the nicest mare I saw.

"Beautiful women breed beautiful children, that's the way I look at it. I'm

rationing down my number of mares, and she'll go to Mountain View Stud in

Ireland with my other couple of mares. We hope she has a really nice foal."

Although Australian-born, Makin spends much of his time in Hong Kong, where

he runs a successful betting operating. He indicated that Song will likely be

bred to Sea the Stars next spring.

Coolmore PR supremo Richard Henry and his wife Roisin were partners in Song,

having bought her dam Jude (Darshaan) as a three-year-old for 92,000 guineas at

the 1997 December Sale.

"We were just lucky the day we bought the mare and bred her to the best

stallion around, which was Sadler's Wells," Henry quipped.

Her first two foals by the Coolmore stallion were Quarter Moon and Yesterday.

The mare's 2001 daughter by Sadler's Wells, Because (Ire), sold in foal to

Kingmambo for $2.8 million at Keeneland November last year to Hugo Lascelles.

Jude's 2008 Sadler's Wells colt sold for 290,000 guineas to Charles

Gordon-Watson at Tattersalls October, and the 15-year-old mare produced a

Galileo (Ire) filly earlier this year. She is not currently in foal, but will

visit Galileo again in 2010.

Warren was again underbidder for MASSARRA (Danehill), a sister to Group 1

winner and top sire Invincible Spirit. Selling as Lot 1654, the 10-year-old mare

was offered in foal to Galileo by Voute Sales for Prince A A Faisal's Nawara

Stud Company. John Magnier's son M.V. offered the successful 600,000 guineas

bid.

"She'll come back to Coolmore, and the cross of Danehill with Galileo is one

that's worked before," Magnier said. "I'd say it's most likely the lads will

send her to Galileo again next year."

Andrew Tinkler, CEO of the Eddie Stobart haulage firm, has made a splash at

this year's horses in training and yearling sales, and he gained his first

potential broodmare Tuesday paying 540,000 guineas through agent Dwayne Woods

for listed winner SUGAR FREE (Oasis Dream {GB}). John Warren was the underbidder

on the three-year-old, who was offered by European Sales Management as Lot 1684.

"There's a good chance she'll race on next season, probably with Michael Dods,"

Tinkler reported. "It would be nice to get a bit more black type under her name

before we breed from her. We've been trying all day to buy one, but had been

struggling. We've been picking the dearer ones, and this was the last of the

three we'd singled out that we really wanted."

Premio Lydia Tesio (Ity-G1) heroine EVA'S REQUEST (Soviet Star) will be

heading to the United States after being bought for 525,000 guineas on behalf of

a longstanding client of agent Hugo Lascelles.

"Her racing career is over, and she's for an American client who has bought

successful here before," Lascelles said. "She'll be going to Smart Strike, and

she was a really tough, attractive hardy racemare."

Rathbarry Stud consigned the four-year-old as Lot 1710.