Irish influence growing ever stronger ahead of Osarus Breeze-Up Sale

The breeze-up circus moves immediately on from Doncaster to La Teste-de-Buch in south-west France, where buyers and vendors alike will be greeted by a slightly new look.

The Osarus Breeze-Up Sale, staged on Thursday after Wednesday's breeze, comes in the midst of a fixture logjam but managing director Emmanuel Viaud has come up with a solution.

"It hasn't been ideal but we're making it a bit different this year," he said. "We decided to have the canter 30 minutes after a race meeting at La Teste during the afternoon. It means there is more time for people to come and also so owners, trainers and bloodstock people can enjoy a day's racing before seeing the horses.

"We decided to have it on the training track, just inside the racetrack, and the groundstaff have done a brilliant job, it looks perfect and green."

Around 50 yearlings have remained in the catalogue after withdrawals and the list looks decidedly Irish-centric. There is a huge draft, likely a dozen, from John Bourke's Hyde Park Stud, while Micky Cleere's MC Thoroughbreds and the Johnny Hassett enterprise The Bloodstock Connection also have multiple representatives.

Cleere has an obvious attraction in a filly by Night Of Thunder (lot 26), whose dam has already produced a winner in Italy, Warrior Angel. The Brickley brothers of Ard Erin Stud in County Laois also present two from high-profile stallions. There is a Dark Angel colt out of an unraced sister to Prix Marcel Boussac winner Rosanara, from the family of the smart Rajsaman (9), and a son of Acclamation out of a half-sister to Prix Morny and Queen Mary winner Signora Cabello (65).

"In Ireland it's part of the racing culture, there are plenty of people doing it and I've noticed how there have been more and more consignors coming; first it was ten, then 20, 30, now maybe 40," continued Viaud.

"In France we don't have so many and perhaps we need to try to encourage a few more people to do business with the breeze-ups. We very sadly lost Larissa Kneip last year, she was a great supporter of the event, and also Yann Creff, who was here for a long time and might have 15 horses, is now helping the trainer Thomas Fourcy instead.

"It will not be easy to replace them but there are one or two new names from France. Haras du Bocage are new and they have brought three horses, two colts and a filly, and so is Ecurie Quentin Moulin, which has brought a very nice City Light colt (10)."

Philip Prevost Baratte, who consigns a City Light colt (24) and a Kendargent filly (55), is regularly in the limelight here and sold the top two lots 12 months ago headed by a Zelzal filly named Olkovskha, who made €60,000 to Alain Jathiere. She has won twice for Christophe Ferland, at Bordeaux and Lyon, and ran second to the very exciting Classic prospect Pensee Du Jour in the Listed Prix Rose de Mai in March. 

Viaud has one other unusual attraction up his sleeve for the event. 

"We have a small catalogue of Purebred Arabian three-year-olds to breeze, after the thoroughbreds," he said. "It's something different but there will be visitors from Qatar and some other countries and there are some nice horses that should interest them."

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