Back on June 4 at Epsom Downs in England, 150/1 shot Hoo Ya Mal far outran his odds to finish second in the Derby behind potential superstar Desert Crown. Somewhat surprisingly, he was then offered for sale.
The son of Territories, trained by Andrew Balding, headed to the Goffs London Sale on Monday. That was on the eve of Royal Ascot and there was plenty of chatter about the colt.
Colt Fetches $2.1 million in the Ring
melbAt the sale, many were wondering whether Hoo Ya Mal’s price would reach seven figures. In front of a packed sales ring, a huge opening bid of £1 million ($1.76m) was lodged with the auctioneer describing the chance to buy the horse as the “opportunity of a lifetime”.
The ambitious opening bid was from Gai Waterhouse, Adrian Bott and Johnny McKeever. After a moment of trepidation following opposing offers, the team hit back in £100,000 increases to eventually secure the colt for a huge £1.2 million, around $2.1 million.
Certainly, Waterhouse and co. may have been attracted to Hoo Ya Mal before his Derby run. The fact he saw out Epsom’s tough 2400 metres was enough to convince them to part with the cash.
The well-bred grandson of Montjeu had a great profile, but his form didn’t look top class before Epsom. He had been placed without winning in three Group and Listed races. That said, he was keeping some fine company and his Derby run shouldn’t have been that much of a surprise.
He saw it out right to the line behind Desert Crown and clearly has a big future.
Melbourne Cup the Ultimate Target
Hoo Ya Mal’s future is now in Australia, that much we know. While there are sure to be plenty of other targets, Gai Waterhouse’s husband revealed a little more on British TV during Royal Ascot coverage.
Standing as a bookmaker in the ring, Robbie Waterhouse said during an impromptu interview that Gai would not only send Hoo Ya Mal to the Melbourne Cup, but that he’d win it too! (see the Melbourne Cup odds). That’s something we should certainly all keep in mind.
Americain Passes Away
In other news, 2010 Melbourne Cup winner Americain has unfortunately passed away at the age of 17. The former champ suffered a leg injury during a paddock incident and had to be euthanised.
Formerly trained in France, Americain crowned his excellent career with Melbourne Cup victory 12 years ago before embarking on a career at stud for some nine seasons.
The Dynaformer offspring was a very successful purchase for Rob Roulston. He went to owners Gerry Ryan and Kevin and Colleen Bamford. He was ridden to victory at Flemington by Gerald Mosse and leaves a big hole in the team.
Read more news about the Melbourne Cup.
