Sebonack tops Inglis Digital in an ownership shuffle

Written by Jessica Owers

Cover image courtesy of The Image Is Everything

The 3-year-old gelding Sebonack, a well-performed son of Capitalist, on Wednesday topped the Inglis Digital March (Late) Online Sale. At $270,000, he was a buyback option for his ownership.

Bloodstock agent Simon Vivian of Simon Vivian Bloodstock (FBAA) signed the virtual ticket on the transaction, and he said the sale was a fair and transparent way to settle an ownership shuffle.

“Sebonack was put through the ring as a means for the ownership group to change their respective ownership interests,” Vivian said, speaking to TDN AusNZ. “The horse will remain in the existing ownership but in slightly different percentages, and it was the fairest and most equitable way for everyone to determine the values for those that wanted to sell down their shares, and those that wanted to buy a little bit more.”

The four original owners in Sebonack are Rupert Legh, Glentree Racing, Hesket Thoroughbreds and Gary Lechte.

“The four respective partners will remain in but in different percentage groups, and the horse will certainly remain with Team Hawkes,” Vivian said.

Sebonack was offered through Inglis Digital by Hawkes Racing, who has trained the gelding from Flemington through nine starts. In that time, Sebonack’s sole winning effort has been the G3 Chairman’s S. at Caulfield, which he won impressively with Jye McNeil on debut.

The gelding was then fourth to Daumier in the G1 Blue Diamond S. and his best since then has been a third to Remarque (Snitzel) in a BM94 at Randwick. However, he is lightly raced with enough promise for his owners to remain committed, despite the risk of losing him on a public platform.

“It could easily have happened,” Vivian said. “I have no doubt there would have been a level at which the syndicate would have sat back and decided to let someone else have him.

“I wouldn’t like to suggest what that value that might have been because I was just doing the bidding on behalf of Rupert Legh and the syndicate members, but there definitely would have been a point at which they would have let him go if he got to a price they thought was beyond his value.

“That figure was never discussed or raised with me, though. I was simply acting under instructions.”

Such transacting has been going on in bloodstock for a very long time. One of the most famous incidences was the ‘lottery’ at St Alban’s Stud in 1895, and even further back again the dispersal of Maribyrnong Stud in 1868.

In these incidences, the idea wasn’t necessarily to lose the original assets; it was to resolve an issue. However, the risk is always present that the asset, in this case Sebonack, might have been sold, making it a legitimate transaction either way.

“The auction system seems to be a really fair way to determine an appropriate value,” Vivian said. “I don’t know whether it’s a common practise or not on the digital platforms, but I just know in the situation where you’ve got an ownership group that goes into a horse initially and some want to reduce their holding and others increase it, it seems the most transparent and fairest way to do things.

“Everybody in the horse was involved in the exercise and aware of the plan with him through the sale. So the value of the horse has now been determined at $270,000 plus GST, and the ownership group will restructure based on that figure.”

Sebonack has now been sold twice in his short life. He was an Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale graduate in 2021, sold by Sledmere Stud to Spendthrift Australia for $260,000, which is an interesting comparison to Wednesday’s sale price.

Stormy Lucy goes to Yulong

Yulong, buying once again under the auspices of Chatswood Farm, bought the sale’s second best-seller in the shape of 13-year-old broodmare Stormy Lucy (USA). This daughter of Stormy Atlantic (USA) was offered in foal to Maurice (Jpn) by Arrowfield Stud and she made $195,000.

“She’s a lovely mare who was sold to dissolve a partnership and we wish Yulong very well with her,’’ said Jon Freyer of Arrowfield Stud. “I’m sure she’ll leave a good foal and Maurice had another Group 2 winner last weekend with Bank Maur, who will go around again on Saturday in the G1 Australian Cup.

“The sale process was all very sound. Arrowfield is a strong advocate of the online process. We supported Inglis Digital heavily last year and will continue to do so.’’

Stormy Lucy was imported to Australia in early 2017. At that point, she was in foal to Frankel (GB) and she has subsequently had foals by Capitalist, Fastnet Rock, Snitzel and Dundeel (NZ).

The mare was originally a broodmare import for SF Bloodstock, who bought her at the 2016 Fasig-Tipton Summer HRA Sale for US$575,000 (AU$860,000). In 2019, she was sold at the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale, offered by Cressfield and bought by Andrew Williams Bloodstock (FBAA) for $775,000.

That was the last time the mare changed hands before Wednesday’s sale, and she came with a sizeable record for Yulong.

Stormy Lucy won the G1 Del Mar Matriarch S. and G2 Santa Anita Ana S., as well as the G3 Santa Barbera H. and Listed Golden Poppy S. at Golden Gate during her career. She was also multiple times placed at Grade 1 level.

Stormy Lucy is a three-quarter sister to the Grade 2-winning Big Runnuer (USA) (Stormy Atlantic {USA}), and there is a stack of American black-type on her page that will complement the Yulong roster in Victoria.

The wrap-up

Sebonack and Stormy Lucy were among the seven lots on Wednesday to reach six figures.

Among the others were racehorses Boom Torque, a 3-year-old son of Spirit Of Boom that made $180,000, and Loom And Boom (Spirit Of Boom) at $135,000. Both horses were offered by Healey Racing and bought by Sherian.

Yulong also purchased the broodmare Cascade (NZ) (Sacred Falls {NZ}), who was offered by Inglewood Farm in New Zealand in foal to sire of the moment Proisir, with her final price at $125,000.

Gallery: Some of the top-selling lots, images courtesy of Inglis Digital

Other mares in foal to the likes of Too Darn Hot (GB) and Russian Revolution were also sold for six figures in the sale, with a healthy 117 broodmares offered across the 390-horse catalogue.

The Inglis Digital March (Late) Online Sale grossed $3,310,588, which is almost identical to the same sale’s figure of 2022 ($3,324,150). The clearance rate on Wednesday night was just over 70 per cent, with the average sitting at $12,399.

Entries are now open for the Inglis Digital April (Early) Online Sale, which will run from March 31 to April 5. Entries close at midnight on Wednesday, March 29.