Tattersalls’ Horses In Training Sale does not usually rate a mention in the Today programme’s 8am headlines, but the Radio 4 flagship managed to find a few seconds on Monday morning to report that the King is selling 14 of his late mother’s horses at the five-day auction this week.
The item was a little fuzzy when it came to the details, as it suggested that 14 “brood mares” were going under the hammer in Newmarket but named only two. These were Love Affairs, a two-year-old filly who finished second at Nottingham 12 days ago and will, presumably, race on at three; and Just Fine, whose chances of ever producing a live foal are nil, since he is a four-year-old gelding with the potential to be a top-notch novice hurdler over the winter.
In fact, almost all of the 14 horses listed for auction this week are colts or geldings, and it also odd that Tactical, who is due in the ring on Wednesday, did not rate a mention, as he was the Queen’s last winner at Royal Ascot, in June 2020.
But the underlying message was fairly clear: the new King has little interest in the sport that captivated his mother, and now the sell-off has begun.
It is, of course, a little more complicated than that, since all owner-breeders with an operation of any size will sell a proportion of their racing stock in the autumn to make room for the juveniles who will replenish the ranks in the spring.
Newmarket
1.00 Ehraz 1.30 Physique 2.05 Bodorgan 2.40 Believing 3.15 Dual Identity (nap) 3.50 Mister Camacho 4.25 Haseefah 5.00 The Rain King
Wetherby
1.10 Algesiras 1.45 Gelino Bello 2.20 Parisencore 2.55 Medyaf 3.30 Coconut Splash (nb) 4.05 Solomoon 4.35 Ukantango
Uttoxeter
1.20 I Am Gonna Be 1.55 Clifton Bridge 2.30 Getabuck 3.05 Mactavish 3.40 Quinto Do Mar 4.15 Couldbeaweapon 4.45 Major Fortune
Southwell
4.40 Easy Equation 5.15 Cool Lightning 5.45 Golden Apollo 6.15 Hamaamm 6.45 Estidama 7.15 Chichester 7.45 Masque Of Anarchy 8.15 Valley Of Flowers
That said, the Queen had 37 individual runners in Britain in 2022 before her death last month, and more than a third are due to be sold this week. That is a sizeable chunk in anyone’s book, and the extent, if any, to which those horses are replaced will be a guide as to the rate at which the royal racing operation is being scaled down.
But the foundation of any owner-breeder’s operation are the broodmares, and the Queen spent 70 years building a band of impeccably-bred mares at the Royal Stud on the Sandringham Estate. Many will currently be carrying foals that will eventually attract premium prices at the sales, as the final products of her cherished bloodstock operation.
It would make little sense to conduct what would amount to a fire-sale of the late Queen’s breeding stock over the course of just a few weeks, but if or when her broodmares really do start to appear in the ring, the clock will be ticking.
No one in racing ever imagined that the late monarch’s huge investment of time and money in bloodstock would be maintained after her death, so the appearance of some of her racing stock at the autumn sales is no great surprise.
The rate at which the royal breeding operation declines, though, will be the best guide as to how much of her legacy in the sport will endure, and for how long.
Mixed Showcase for Cheltenham
The two-day Showcase meeting in October was once a relatively low-key opening to the new season at Cheltenham, one for the annual members and diehard devotees rather than coach parties and trainloads down from London.
But there is no longer any such thing as a low-profile card at Cheltenham, this side of the Festival at least, and Saturday’s meeting at the home of jumping attracted a new record attendance for the day of 19,471.
The figure was, admittedly, bolstered by around 5,000 students on a package deal, while Friday’s attendance of 8,590 was a 24% drop from 2019, yet it remains an impressive return overall at a time when much of the population is cutting back on recreational spending, and most tracks are struggling to return to their pre-Covid attendances.
At least part of the reason for the growth in Cheltenham’s popularity over the last quarter-century has been the excellence of its marketing and branding. They do not sell just a day at the races, they sell a day at Cheltenham races, as something distinct and unique. And since a premium experience tends to come at a premium price, the fact that their attendance figures remain strong suggests that the racegoers feel, overall, that they are getting what they paid for.
At the same time, though, brand loyalty has its limits, so the reported dismay, among some racegoers at least, at hikes in food and drink prices at this year’s Showcase is understandable. A pint of Guinness, for instance, is up from £7 to £7.50 since the Festival in March.
Worcester 1.20 Lazy Sunday 1.55 Marettimo 2.30 Half The Freedom 3.05 Icare Grandchamp 3.40 New Beginnings 4.15 Punxsutawney Phil 4.50 Nickelsonthedime 5.20 Kingofthewest
Stratford 1.30 Floating Rock 2.05 Bolintlea 2.40 Heltenham 3.15 Pencreek (nap) 3.50 Higher Ground 4.25 Jack Thunder 5.00 Guguss Collonges
Lingfield Park 1.40 Elsaab 2.15 Apex 2.50 Peace Of Mine 3.25 Pearl Beach 4.00 Queen Aminatu 4.35 Street Kid (nb) 5.05 Bugle Major
Chelmsford City 5.30 New Definition 6.00 Vape 6.30 Bird For Life 7.00 Under The Twilight 7.30 Tara 8.00 Charming Kid 8.30 Modaara
Many racegoers, of course, already start their day in a town-centre pub, and may just arrive a little later if an extra 50p on a pint is too much to bear. It is also a small fraction of the overall cost of a day at the track when admission, travel and possibly overnight accommodation are also taken into account.
The simple fact that racegoers noticed the difference, though, is a useful reminder for the track that no one likes to think that their loyalty is being taken for granted or abused.
