A unique partnership by South Africa’s paddock power players to secure the opening session’s handsome Silvano top-seller brought the curtain down on an action-packed first day of the 2022 Bloodstock South African National Yearling Sale at the TBA Sales Complex in Johannesburg on Thursday.
Recently active at the Australian Easter Yearling Sale and a fast-emerging new generation industry leader internationally, Vermaak Equine’s Justin Vermaak told the Sporting Post that the middle market was ‘super strong’ and paid tribute to the breeders as the quality of yearling was ‘top notch’.
It was a big day for Vermaak.
After years of slugging it out in elite level competition on the racecourses of South Africa, a group of SA’s leading breeders formed a power partnership, which was facilitated by Justin Vermaak and Form Bloodstock’s veteran, Jehan Malherbe.
Forest God (#226) was the day’s top-seller (Pic – Candiese Lenferna)
The big hitters who partnered in the Day 1 top-seller include Drakenstein’s Gaynor Rupert, leading owner and breeder Laurence Wernars, Ridgemont Highlands’ Kieswetter family, Wilgerbosdrift’s Mary Slack, and Pieter Graaff of Lammerskraal.
“These are exciting times. Some of our top breeders joined forces in an effort to secure colts with stallion potential. Unity is strength and they acquired two magnificent colts, including the gorgeous grey Varsfontein-bred son of multiple SA champion sire Silvano, Forest God (# 226), who topped the charts at R3,3 million,” added an enthusiastic Vermaak.
Dealmaker Justin Vermaak is flanked by leading owner-breeder Laurence Wernars and trainer Johan Janse van Vuuren (Pic – Candiese Lenferna)
The athletic specimen, who is apparently headed for the Mike de Kock yard when ready to commence his racing career, is bred on the same cross as champion Hawwaam and is out of Jet Master’s stakes winning daughter Touch The Sky.
His second dam is the mighty Mystic Spring. This is the run-like-the-wind family of Bela-Bela, Snowdance, Rabiya and All Is Secret!
Form Bloodstock also signed the chit at R750 000 for the power partnership to secure the Maine Chance-bred Marauding Horde (#72), a son of the red-hot Vercingetorix (Silvano) out of the Indigo Magic mare, My Lady Bluff.
Bred on the same cross as Vaughan Marshall’s Gr1- winning 2yo Ambiorix, the good-looking colt is a half-brother to four winners, including the one-time Joey Ramsden-trained Gr2 Selangor Cup winner, Hard Day’s Night.
Leading West Coast owner Sabine Plattner bought Mauritzfontein’s Vercingetorix colt Celtic Chief (#211) for R3 million, while another Vercingetorix colt, Kwite A King (#16), was an early pacesetter when Cape owner Greg Bortz signed for the Syrilla Stud-bred product for R2 million.
The top-selling filly on the day was lot 73, Klawervlei’s Vercingetorix daughter out of the stakes-winning Captain Al mare Myfunnyvalentine, who fell to the top bid of R1,4 million by Vermaak Equine.
It was a highly encouraging day all round, with the 226 lots catalogued achieving an aggregate of R74 450 000, for an average of R368 564 and a median of R260 000.
