The 2019 streamlined version of the Cape Premier Yearling Sale looks to be a leaner and meaner real deal market place, and a likely launching pad to maintain the simmering industry momentum gained in the past twelve months.
“I can make a General in five minutes, but a good horse is hard to replace.”
Abraham Lincoln’s words ring so true.
It’s an indisputable fact that when reflecting back over our recent times, some admittedly tumultuous years, in South African horse racing, people have come and gone – but really good horses are the foundation that have kept the flames burning though the nervous days and carried our flag with pride wherever in the world they have competed.
And the dream of owning a good horse is what will fill the Cape Town International Convention Centre on Wednesday 23 January, when 226 of our finest hand-picked yearlings will come under the hammer.
The sale, now in it’s ninth year, has become a fixture on the international sales diary for leading buyers locally and abroad, and history suggests it’s the one place you could pick up that one horse that could prove a lifechanger.
The CPYS Gr1 and stakes winning alumni honour roll are comparable with any sale anywhere – the difference being that the value quotient is unparalleled.
A leading international buyer told the Sporting Post of this sale last year:
“They are well raised and in most instances, well presented. There’s nowhere else on earth I can go and get horses of this quality for US $25,000-50,000. In the USA, horses like this would cost five times that amount. There are some terrific looking horses here.”
The 2019 renewal has an exciting mix of top sires, from leading internationals Camelot (4), Frankel (2), Uncle Mo (2) and Zoffany (2), to South Africa’s top 5 in the last generation of Captain Al (9), Dynasty (11), Silvano (8), Trippi (6), Var (10), to beautifully bred and well performed first-season sires Coup de Grace, Futura, Global View, Legislate and Louis the King.
The catalogue includes an exceptional mix of proven bloodlines, class and recent top-level form with 54 lots out of Stakes winners – including 12 out of Gr1 winners – and 43 siblings to stakes winners – including 14 siblings to Gr1 winners.
International bloodstock expert Grant Pritchard-Gordon, who assisted inspectors Kerry Jack and the veteran John Kramer with the CPYS Yearling Selection in September, praised the quality of young horses he saw during the process and added his view of the timing of the popular event.
He said: “In Australia, the Magic Millions sale is early in January and in New Zealand they have the Karaka Sale in late January. I have noticed that the South African breeders’ view of a yearling sale in January seems to be changing to the positive. They’re starting to see the benefits.”
This is one of only two CTS sales programmed for 2019.
“It’s a flagship event showcasing the quality that has made SA breeders respected internationally. We are proud to host the premier sales session on the African continent. I wish vendors and buyers every success,” said CTS CEO Wehann Smith.
Read more about the big sale here
