'We’re trying to upgrade' - Al Shaqab Racing invest with fresh intent at August Yearling Sale

With Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani among the principals on the ground in Deauville, Al Shaqab Racing have gone in search of fresh blood with renewed vigour. 

The Qatari operation have taken a more selective approach to public auction purchases in recent years, but this weekend secured ten yearlings for an outlay totalling €4,135,000 by the time trade reached the latter stages yesterday. That put the owner second only to Godolphin on the leading buyers’ table. 

The haul includes four lots who fetched €500,000 or more, headed by the €675,000 Wootton Bassett filly out of Marbre Rose from Monceaux and a colt by the same sire offered by Haras du Mont dit Mont. The latter was a €575,000 buy.

Monceaux's Wootton Bassett half-brother to stakes winner Lady Galore made his way to Al Shaqab RacingCredit: Zuzanna Lupa

The recruits comprised six fillies and four colts and Haras de Bouquetot’s director Benoit Jeffroy explained the spree represented part of a refocusing exercise. 

“It’s great to be back!” smiled Jeffory. "It’s good to be investing in these yearlings, trying to get a few horses that we liked and into some new families. We’ve really enjoyed going around selecting these yearlings with Sheikh Joaan, who’s been here and very involved for the past week. He said ‘let’s go and find some nice horses for next year’. 

“We spoke in May about trying to regroup and be more select on the broodmare band side. We have about 60 mares now, which is not a lot compared to the big operations, who have a lot more mares and access to the big stallions. We thought let’s stay selective on the breeding side and try to buy some nice horses at the sales. That’s the plan.” 

On the recalibrated buying strategy, he said: “We bought a few in Book 2 [last year], including Baheer, who looks exciting for Richard Hannon, and in Deauville we bought five or six, but not to this level. That’s why we said to Sheikh Joaan that we should keep going with the higher quality yearlings and horses by bigger stallions. If you want to keep a mare it’s good to have one by a big stallion, or if they go on to be a good racehorse then they can become a stallion. We’re trying to upgrade a bit. It’s tough, but we’re trying.” 

Reflecting on trade over the three days, Jeffroy added: “The first day was good, the second day we got beat a few times and today we got beat twice but then got the one we really liked, the Wootton Bassett. It’s a really good market and the guys at Arqana have done a great job. There’s a lot of horses with good pedigrees, good physicals, so we’re lucky we’ve got ten.” 

The buying mission also raises the prospect of Al Shaqab investing at other yearling sales throughout the season, on which Jeffroy said: “We’ll keep going around the European sales but we’ll see how it goes. It depends if Sheikh Joaan is coming or not. He saw the horses here and that’s a big help.”

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