England’s Derby runner-up, who was bought by Gai Waterhouse and associates for a cool $2 million, is moving to a new temporary home before heading to Australia.
Hoo Ya Mal was an impressive second to Desert Crown at Epsom Downs. His fantastic Classic performance was under the stewardship of Andrew Balding, but his new connections have moved him across to the up-and-coming George Boughey until he heads down under.
Boughey to Oversee Big British Targets First
The three-year-old Territories colt was sold at the Goffs Sale in London. The event takes place each year just before Royal Ascot.
After a good fight in the ring, it was the Aussie contingent which included Gai Waterhouse that won out at £1.2 million and at the time, it was thought Hoo Ya Mal would head straight to her to be trained.
Now however, the colt is being moved from one English yard to another. Despite the success of Andrew Balding in the recent past, it will be new star George Boughey who gets to train him for the time being.
It seems the colt will love the conditions in Australia. For now though, he will have some major targets in Britain. The St Leger, the last Classic of the season, could be on the cards in September. The Leger of course is a fine lead-up race for the Melbourne Cup.
Before that, Hoo Ya Mal may head to the Glorious Goodwood festival. The $350,000 Gordon Stakes, a Group 3 over 2400 metres, looks like being his first assignment.
After his huge price tag, he’ll have to prove his Derby performance at 150/1 wasn’t a one-off. We should remember too that he’ll be handicapped harshly for the Melbourne Cup. This is where he is bound to head after the Leger at Doncaster.
Waterhouse Excited by Hoo Ya Mal
This isn’t the first time that legendary trainer Gai Waterhouse has bought a Cup contender from Britain. Waterhouse bought Fiorente there in 2012 who went on to win the Melbourne Cup.
Having watched the colt run second in the Derby, Waterhouse put in an offer immediately in private. Having been told they wanted to go to Goffs however, the ownership circle knew the price was rising.
A reserve of £900,000 was placed on the horse at the sales. With that in mind, Waterhouse and co. knew they were heading for a £1m+ price tag.
Waterhouse now seems very excited about this horse. Despite only winning once, his form has remained strong and consistent up against some very good types in England.
Fiorente was a top-notcher in weight-for-age races as well as the Cup and the same is expected of Hoo Ya Mal. For now the Melbourne Cup is the target and the dream. In future though, expect this colt to be challenging for the best conditions races around.
Read more news about the Melbourne Cup.
