'The pedigree is young and very exciting' - WH Bloodstock all set for Tattersalls with blue-blooded draft

With the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale just around the corner, the WH Bloodstock team will be busier than ever in the elite Book 1 section by bringing a draft of 13 individuals by some of the world's leading sires and with top-notch distaff pages. 

Violet Hesketh and Mimi Wadham's operation at Highclere near Newbury was set up in 2018 and has gone from strength to strength. Among its winning graduates within that time are Irish Oaks heroine Magical Lagoon, German 2,000 Guineas victor and Futurity Trophy runner-up Devil’s Point, and Nell Gwyn Stakes scorer Mammas Girl. 

It is a busy, and often stressful, time for all concerned with these hugely valuable youngsters prepped to the minute ahead of their dates with destiny. However, Hesketh appears to be revelling in the responsibility of offering some beautifully bred yearlings at Park Paddocks, with selling commencing on Tuesday. 

She said: "We're thrilled as this is the biggest draft we've ever sold. We feel very excited to be offering yearlings by elite sires such as Lope De Vega, Frankel, Havana Grey, Sea The Stars, Dubawi, Night Of Thunder, Mehmas and Wootton Bassett. We're offering them for a range of clients, some new and some old, so it's exciting."

The first lot for WH Bloodstock into the ring is a Camelot filly out of a Medicean sister to Group 3 scorer Yakaba (lot 44), a family which traces back to St James's Palace Stakes winner Sendawar, while another by a bona fide top-class sire is the Lope De Vega colt from the family of Fillies' Mile heroine Crystal Music (501). 

Hesketh said: "We've got a lovely Camelot filly who was purchased for €200,000 in France. She's a beautiful, big, strong filly who's a great mover and has a great mind.

WH Bloodstock will offer a Sea The Stars colt out of a sister to King Of Comedy for Daylesford StudCredit: Edward Whitaker

"The Lope De Vega colt is for a client and is a lovely, big rangy horse with great movement. The mare is really exciting. She was a stakes horse herself and is two from two [winners]. Her three-year-old son Spectacular View was fourth in a Listed race and he looks like he should be winning a stakes race. The pedigree is young and very exciting."

Catalogue updates are often a key component of the sales – especially at one as prestigious as Book 1 – and a selection of the draft consigned by WH Bloodstock had the rub of the green on that score.

Among those with a constantly improving page is a Harry Angel half-sister to Ollie Sangster's Simmering [75], a winner of the Group 2 Prix du Calvados and third in this year's 1,000 Guineas who was due to run in the Grade 1 First Lady Stakes at Keeneland on Saturday night.

"The Frankel colt out of Gingham [162] has had an update since the catalogue was printed," Hesketh added. "Royal Chapel [his Kingman half-sister] has now won two races, including a Listed contest on Monday."

WH Bloodstock will also be consigning on behalf of some of Britain's leading studs, including Daylesford. The son of Sea The Stars [355] is the first foal out of Kingman mare Queen Of Comedy, a sister to stakes scorer and St James's Palace Stakes runner-up King Of Comedy and half-sibling to Prix de Diane winner Star Of Seville. 

Hesketh commented: "He's an exceptional first foal and is strong with great size. He's pretty hard to fault and it's a lovely Daylesford family."

Romantic Proposal: Group 1 winner's Dubawi colt is another highlight of the draftCredit: Lorraine O'Sullivan (racingpost.com/photos)

There is also a filly by Night Of Thunder [102] who hails from the family of the Kildangan Stud sire's brilliant sprinter Highfield Princess, while the Dubawi colt [382] is out of a Group 1 winner in Flying Five Stakes victress Romantic Proposal. 

"The Night Of Thunder filly was pinhooked by some French clients of ours. The sire can do no wrong and she looks super sharp," said Hesketh. "We're also very excited to be offering a colt by Dubawi out of a Group 1 winner in Romantic Proposal for Branton Court Stud. She won her Group 1 over five furlongs and this colt looks super rapid; he looks ready to put a saddle on tomorrow."

The high-quality draft also includes a pair by the late Wootton Bassett, including a brother to Group 2-placed juvenile Kansas [151] from the famed family of Rafha, while a filly by another sire sensation in Havana Grey [463] should also prove popular. She is out of the brilliant producer Talampaya and therefore a half-sister to Pattern scorer La Rioja among three black-type performers, as well as to the dam of high-class sprinter Liberty Beach. 

Hesketh said: "Since the catalogue was printed, Kansas was second in the Flying Childers and a Listed race, while we're also prepping a Havana Grey on behalf of a new client. The mare, Talampaya, has been an exceptional producer and this has been her most elite cover so far. The filly has a great mind and a great action."

The draft is completed by a Lope De Vega filly out of Princess Royal Stakes winner Highgarden (181) who is "beautiful and an exceptional individual". She is joined by a Mehmas colt (68) out of a Galileo half-sister to dual Derby winner Harzand – his sister sold to WinStar Farm for 380,000gns at last year's Book 1 and is in training in America – while there is also a Showcasing filly (421) out of the black-type Casamento mare Simplicity, described by Hesketh as a "nice, sharp filly".

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