The New Pecking Order

The global economic downturn has impacted on yearling and breeding stock sales in Australasia this year resulting in many farms dropping their service fees in line with the trend we saw earlier in the year in the Northern Hemisphere.

Last year in Australia we had some 38 horses standing at advertised service fees of $30,000 or more and this year there will be less than 30 and none for more than $220,000, with Encosta de Lago taking over at the top of the pecking order from his archrival Redoute’s Choice, whose fee was slashed from $330,000 to $198,500.

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Australian breeders seeking to go to a first season sire this year are flush with options as arguably the best group of horses we have seen in many years retire to stud in 2009.

The stellar list is topped by Golden Slipper winner and Champion Two Year Old Sebring, who will head the roster at Widden Stud at a fee of $49,500 and is joined by fellow new recruits Northern Meteor and War Pass (USA).

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With the Autumn Carnival now at an end the Breednet Sire Prospect Tracker tends to quieten down over the next few months but there are still some opportunities for improvement and three horses to watch on Saturday are Swiss Ace, Solo Flyer and Duporth, all going around in the Group One BTC Cup at Doomben on Saturday.

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QUIZ

1/ Bel Esprit had an impressive two year-old stakes-winner at Caulfield last Saturday, what is her name?

2/ Another impressive two year-old stakes-winner is Facile Tigre, who won the Listed Ken Russell Classic at the Gold Coast, Who is his sire?

3/ Dual Derby hero Rebel Raider was purchased for how much at which sale?

4/ Unbeaten filly Chakvetadze is the first stakes-winner for which Argentinian bred sire?

5/ English Two Thousand Guineas winner Sea the Stars is a blue-blood in the vein of Manhattan Rain, who is his famous mother?


Answers are at the bottom of this page .