'It's pinch yourself stuff' - Dan Skelton reaps the benefits of Munir and Souede dispersal with €1.23m strike for classy pair

One of the biggest unknowns ahead of the opening session of the Arqana Autumn Sale was trying to divine what the appetite would be of either Simon Munir and Isaac Souede or else Haras de Saint-Voir to secure outright ownership of the horses they had previously shared, a storyline which has rumbled away in the background for much of this French jumps season. 

Highflyer Bloodstock's Anthony Bromley was in the thick of the action as a succession of beautifully bred jumps prospects commanded spiralling prices but if the expectation was that he was acting for his old allies Munir and Souede, it was punctured by the presence of two less familiar figures at his side, as well as that of Dan Skelton. 

Leading the way at €710,000 was Mets Ta Ceinture (lot 380), a three-year-old daughter of Hunter's Light who in her short career for Anne-Sophie Pacault has already won a Grade 3 AQPS bumper and been runner-up in a Grade 2. 

Two lots earlier it was Merci Mam (378), a three-year-old Karaktar gelding from the family of Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris winner Line Marine, and the winner of his sole start over hurdles at Lyon-Parilly for trainer Hugo Merienne, who commanded the attention of at least four bidders before the Highflyer team won out at €550,000.

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With the tension broken after securing Mets Ta Ceinture and hugs being exchanged all round, Bromley revealed the destination of two of Saint-Voir's best bred young prospects. 

"The two big prices, that's Mets Ta Ceinture and Merci Mam, will be trained by Dan Skelton for Lindy O'Hare and her husband Mark," said Bromley. "I know the horses very well - my owners had half of them - and I know their history and the potential of the horses. 

"Dan came over with the O'Hares on a private plane today and he liked them, they vetted well. I didn't expect them to have to pay those sorts of numbers but they're quality horses."

Anthony Bromley: "I didn't expect them to have to pay those sorts of numbers but they're quality horses"Credit: ZUZANNA LUPA

The breakdown in Munir and Souede's partnership with Nicolas de Lageneste created an opportunity and Bromley said that the O'Hares were only too ready to take their chance.

"They're quality horses; it's a real rarity for these pedigrees to come on the market and we had to dig deep," said Bromley. "But they're very enthusiastic new owners to the game, they've had one horse before who won a little bit last year and they're excited about getting some quality youngstock. We thought these two three-year-olds had their whole futures ahead of them."

Skelton has made another very strong start to the core jumps season, winning the Paddy Power Gold Cup on Saturday, and being able to compete for the best-bred horses on the market can only fuel his pursuit of a first British trainers' championship.

"Mark and Lindy had sent us one horse and now these two incredible horses, it's pinch yourself stuff really," said Skelton. "To have such support from them and from all our owners at home is so humbling. They've come in and wanted to get involved in a big way. They picked these two horses some time ago when the wild cards came out and what a pair to get."

Skelton added: "They said to me a couple of weeks ago that they'd love to try and find some horses and take this seriously. They want to get stuck in at the top end and do their best. Lindy absolutely loves horses and their welfare is a big priority but at the same time, they want to compete on the big days and as the price tag would suggest, these horses were pretty well sought after. 

"But Lindy is a phenomenon, she wasn't stopping. I could see old Anthony's ticker was beginning to go, he wasn't sure but I roared him on."

Also among the early lots from the dispersal, Maharaja was another Highflyer purchase at €150,000, with Bromley indicating he would probably stay in France with trainer Mickael Seror. 

In between those two highlights, Willie Mullins' key lieutenants Harold Kirk and Pierre Boulard were able to secure another disperal lot, landing a three-year-old son of Doctor Dino out of a half-sister to Gauloise, a dual Listed winner for Mullins and runner-up in Punchestown's Grade 1 Champion Mares' Novice Hurdle.

After signing the docket at €240,000, Boulard said of Mes Chers Freres: "He’s got the build to make a chaser, he has a lot of scope and a very good rating. He won his bumper quite convincingly and it was a nice run [over hurdles] to be fourth in the Prix Isopani. 

"He remains a novice and I think there could be a lot to come given time. He’s also by Doctor Dino and is from a good Haras de Saint Voir family so he comes with a few guarantees."

Other highlight from the same draft was Kibboutz (431D) - third in last season's Grade 1 Prix Alain du Breil and here retained by Haras de Saint Voir as a breeding prospect for €200,000 - as well as Le Nez Creux (398), who was knocked down to Nicolas Bertan de Balanda on behalf of Alex Elliot for €320,000. 

Columbus headed to Closutton

Mullins will welcome one of the best stayers of his generation in France to the Closutton academy in Columbus (342), the highlight of a successful day-one raid. 

And such is his growing reputation on the Flat that Kirk and Boulard were keen to emphasise those credentials rather than any potential over hurdles after landing the four-year-old son of Oasis Dream for €400,000. 

After Kirk and Farrington had traded €10,000 raises across the Arqana arena the Mullins team made a firm statement of intent with a jump of €50,000 and that sealed the deal for the Group 3 winner, who showed he is far from a one-dimensional stayer when finishing third to Sibayan in the Group 1 Preis von Europa over 1m4f on his penultimate start for trainer Christophe Ferland. 

"He’s not all that big but a real racehorse and he has excellent form on the Flat," said Boulard. "I think Willie will stay on the Flat with him and he certainly doesn’t have the profile to go over fences. 

Columbus: high-class son of Oasis Dream made €400,000 to PB Bloodstock, Harold Kirk and Willie MullinsCredit: ZUZANNA LUPA

"It’s his Flat performances which attracted us and Willie will look for a client on that basis. He could be one to campaign internationally."

Raced by his breeder, Gestut Brummerhof's Gregor Baum, Columbus is out of the Rip Van Winkle mare Cribbs Causeway - herself Group 3 placed at 1m6f - while his third dam, the Listed winner Approach, produced both dual Group 1 winner Coronet and Irish Derby runner-up Midas Touch. 

Also set to continue his career on the Flat with Mullins is Love Me Tender (356), a Tai Chi half-brother to Lord Charming who boasts Niarchos blue hen Coup De Folie as his third dam, after Kirk won out at €180,000

Trained by Peter Schiergen to win twice in his native Germany at three, Love Me Tender finished fourth to Azimpour on his most recent start in the Listed Grand Prix du Nord over 1m2f at Chantilly. 

Boulard confirmed that a similar ownership group would be sort as with Sober, with Australian syndication vehicle OTI taking 50 per cent and Mullins putting together a partnership among his own owners for the other half. 

Mullins will now have two horses named Love Mr Tender under his care, with a four-year-old son of Doctor Dino carrying the silks of JP McManus having landed a Grade 3 novice hurdle at Tipperary last month. 

Cole and Farrington land former Derby prospect as the Hays go on recruiting drive

The Mullins team went on quite the run as late afternoon turned to evening but they were denied at the end of a persistent duel with Dermot Farrington in their pursuit of Midak, the horse supplemented by the Aga Khan Studs for the Derby run in memory of their late principal. 

At that stage of his career the son of Footstepsinthesand was unbeaten in three, having won the Group 3 Prix Greffulhe prior to his Epsom mission. 

Midak: Group winner and Derby runner sold to Dermot Farrington for €300,000Credit: ZUZANNA LUPA

On rain-softened ground Midak could only finish tenth behind Lambourn and was gelded before his final start for Francis Graffard, when he was fourth at Listed level over 1m1f. 

Standing with Farrington near the entrance to the Deauville ring, Alex Cole confirmed that at €300,000 he had been bought for Jim and Fitri Hay and would be aimed at Dubai by trainer Ian Williams. 

Midak's family could receive a timely update as early as Tuesday when Mirik - who is out of his dam's half-sister Mila - lines up as one of the favourites for the Group 3 Prix Thomas Bryon on the Chantilly Polytrack.

Also bound for a campaign in Dubai for the Hays is Chibitty (355) - who was second in the same Listed Prix Fabuleux in which Midak ran and went on to be third in the Group 3 Prix Perth on his final start for Mikel Delzangles. 

The gelded three-year-old son of Zelzal is rated 108 and was bought by Farrington for €230,000. 

Saint Voir dispersal powers major gains across all indicators

The end of the association between Munir/Souede and Haras de Saint-Voir accounted for a major upturn in the figures, with 193 out of the 228 lots offered changing hands for €8,137,000, up almost 75 per cent on 2024, with the average price also climbing steeply by 35.86 per cent at €42,161. 

The clearance rate ticked up from 80.65 per cent to 84.65 per cent while the median also enjoyed a slight rise, up from €12,500 to €13,500.

Selling on day two begins at 11am local time with a catalogue devoted to jumps bred two-year-old stores and yearlings. 

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