Al Shira'aa Farms snaps up siblings to Mother Earth and Poetic Flare

Half-sisters to this year's Classic scorers Mother Earth and Poetic Flare came under hammer within around ten minutes of one another during day one of the Goffs Orby Sale on Tuesday, and both fillies were knocked down to representatives of Abu Dhabi-based operation Al Shira'aa Farm.

First up came the Sioux Nation half-sister to 1,000 Guineas and Prix Rothschild heroine Mother Earth, who went the way of Kieran Lalor of Al Shira'aa Farms and Meadow Court Stud at €230,000.

The filly is out of the Listed-winning Many Colours, who joined the Wallace family's Grenane House Stud broodmare band at a cost of €50,000, and is a sibling to the Group 2 scorer Night Colours. Mother Earth, who cost MV Magnier €150,000 at the 2019 Orby, and her Sioux Nation half-sister were both consigned by Whitehall Stud.

Just two lots later the US Navy Flag half-sister to Poetic Flare came under the hammer and was knocked down to David Cox at €220,000.

Lot 117: the Sioux Nation half-sister to Mother Earth on the Goffs sales groundCredit: Goffs

"They want to have Group 1 pedigrees and it's a great opportunity to buy a really lovely filly with such a good page and hopefully she's lucky for them," said Cox, in reference to Al Shira'aa Farms. "They have a lot of horses in training in France and have some in Ireland too, so there are lots of options for her."

While Poetic Flare was famously bred by Jim Bolger before being sent out to win the 2,000 Guineas and St James's Palace Stakes for the master of Coolcullen, his US Navy Flag half-sister was bred and sold by Clare Castle Stud after the Tipperary farm acquired the dam, Maria Lee, through Cormac McCormack at a cost of €65,000 in 2018.

The two fillies became the most expensive members of the respective debut crops of Sioux Nation and US Navy Flag.

Although Al Shira'aa Farms may be a relatively unheralded name on British and Irish shores, the operation, which was founded by Sheikha Fatima Bint Hazza Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has enjoyed some successes abroad with Frankel filly Rumi landing the Group 2 Prix de la Nonette in France and Mutamakina claiming the Grade 2 Dance Smartly Stakes at Woodbine.

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