Highly respected trainer Charlie Appleby has been paid the highest compliment by Darley & Godolphin principal Sheikh Mohammed.
According to racingpost.com, the trainer of Pinatubo – the Godolphin-owned 2yo of last year who was rated the best juvenile in the world for the past 25 years – has been sent a trio of Godolphin purchases from last year’s Tattersalls October Yearling Book 1 Sale.
Now northern hemisphere 2yo’s, the three colts cost a king’s ransom – at 9 million guineas something in the order of collectively just over A$18 million.
What is unusual about this is that the top yearlings are normally shared among Godolphin’s trainers, also including Saeed bin Suroor, Andre Fabre and John Gosden.
Among the prized colts is a Dubawi half-brother to Gr1 winner Barney Roy, a Frankel half-brother to Golden Horn – winner of the Gr1 Epsom Derby and Gr1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe – and a Kingman colt from the family of Fame and Glory (Ascot Gold Cup).
The trio were the three highest priced lots of the Tattersalls showpiece, and Appleby noted: “All three colts arrived at Moulton Paddocks before Christmas and seem to be doing well. His Highness Sheikh Mohammed liked them at the sales and hopefully they can bring Godolphin further success in 2020 and beyond.”
