Buyers were bidding at the Cape Convention Centre as if the results of the next day’s J&B Met meeting were already known.
Jet Master (Ebony Flyer’s Majorca), Dynasty (Jackson’s Derby), Trippi (Agra’s Schweppes juvenile) and Silvano (Bravura’s Met-2nd) between them had a stronghold on the top prices at the successful sale, which grossed a shade over R100 million with 265 lots sold.
The sale average of 419k was on a par with that of the inaugural Cape Premier Sale of 2011, which averaged R435k for 214 lots sold, the South African record average.
Jet Master led the pack with three of the top-four prices. Mike Bass bid to R2.8 million for a colt out of stakes winning US-bred Fusaichi Pegasus miler Our Table Mountain, who is a full sister to US G1 winner & sire Artie Schiller.
Earlier Bass had outlasted the opposition for a R2.3 million Jet Master colt out of English winning middle distance stayer Mountains Of Mist. The mare is from a solid Gr1 family, and is dam of two graded stakes winners, including the dam of international Gr1 winner Joshua Tree.
Jet Master also had the fourth highest priced lot, a half sister to champion Jay Peg. The filly, which fell to a R2.3 million bid of John Freeman, is full sister to the 2011 Cape sale topping colt.
In-between these Jet Master lots was the only other R2 million-plus yearling, a colt by Dynasty out of winning Badger Land mare Something Of Value. The youngster’s dam is half sister to Gr1 placed Gr2 winner Natural Selection. He will race for Mike de Kock in the colours of Shadwell South Africa.
Among the consignors, Highlands Stud made waves with five of the dozen top-lots – including the two highest prices.
A good few overseas buyers made their presence felt in the middle market. It is to be hoped that this will be the beginning of a long and fruitful relationship for all parties.
The sale’s median price (the price halfway between top and bottom price), often a better indicator for events of this nature than the average price, showed a somewhat unusual pattern. The 2011 Cape Premier sale had weighed in with a R300k overall median, backed up by the same figure for both colts and fillies – a rare occurrence, as colts normally outperform the weaker sex. The 2012 sale, remarkably, had exactly the same R300k median for all three categories. This median is the highest in South African history.
click here for the sale prices grouped by sire & sex
