More than 1000 yearlings by 97 stallions will be offered this week by Magic Millions at its Gold Coast sale but just one stands out as unique.
Arrowfield Stud will offer a filly by Japanese champion Lord Kanaloa out of Asterisk as lot 642, part of its collaboration with Katsumi Yoshida's Northern Farm.
The filly is the only Southern Hemisphere bred yearling by her sire in Australia however there are several weanlings that will be offered in 2018.
Lord Kanaloa won 13 of his 19 races and never finished out of the first three. He ran a record 1:06.70 when winning the Group I Sprinters Stakes over 1200m at Nakayama in 2012 and extended to 1600m when clocking 1:31.50 in the 2013 Yasuda Kinen over 1600m at Tokyo in 2013.
At his last start Lord Kanaloa defeated Sole Power to go back-to-back in the Group I International Sprint over 1200m at Sha Tin.
A son of champion racehorse and sire King Kamehameha from the family of Secretariat, Lord Kanaloa was named Horse of the Year in Japan in 2013 and covered 250 mares in his first season at stud in Japan in 2014 and 276 the following year.
It was Lord Kanaloa's speed and affinity with firm ground that attracted Arrowfield principal John Messara to adopt the costly process of breeding to the horse to Southern Hemisphere time.
"He was an outstanding racehorse - great speed at a range of distances and he loved firm ground, making him an ideal horse for Australian conditions," Messara said.
"He's a horse we would love to shuttle here to be honest but this is the next best thing.
"We have been very fortunate to work with His Highness the Aga Khan and Mr Yoshida's Northern Farm in breeding horses this way and this particular filly has a terrific female family as well."
The filly's granddam Ile de France won at Group level in France and North America while her third dam is four-time Grade 1 winner Stella Madrid.
The sale page had a major update on the weekend when half-sister Aerolithe finished second in the Group III Fairy Stakes over 1600m at Nakayama on Sunday.
Messara said the filly is more than a deep catalogue page.
"She's beautifully bred but more importantly she is a lovely type, very feminine and with scope," Messara said.
"She will be sold, it is part of the collaborative ventures we do that call for the horses to be sold.
"The long term partnerships we're working on are with established breeders who can see the benefits of being in two hemispheres so if we can add to things from Australia it becomes a win-win situation for everyone."
You can watch Lord Kanaloa win his second Hong Kong International Sprint.
