Cover image courtesy of Inglis

Entries are open for Australasia’s boutique broodmare sale, the 2025 Inglis Chairman’s Sale, which will be held on Thursday, May 8, to kick off the Inglis Broodmare Sales Series for this year. This year’s edition will no doubt live up to its ‘Where Elegance Meets Excellence’ theme, particularly with three high calibre entries already announced.

The 2024 renewal was a particularly spectacular renewal of the sale, with the top 50 per cent of lots sold averaging $959,833 in purchase price, and nine lots selling for over $1 million for the second year in a row, bringing a total of 34 lots sold for over $1 million across the last five editions of the sale. Nimalee (So You Think {NZ}) set the sale record in 2023 when selling for $3.6 million to Colm Santry Bloodstock and Coolmore Australia, and last year Tom Magnier again took home the top lot when paying $3.4 million for She’s Extreme (Extreme Choice).

Chart: Number of million dollar lots over past five years of Inglis Chairman's Sale

Huge returns for vendors and investors alike

Return on investment has been healthy over recent editions of the Chairman’s sale; last year, Kimochi (Brave Smash {Jpn}) was acquired by Yulong (with Ilsay Vale signing the docket) for $2.2 million as a Group 2 winner, and the mare has significantly increased her value since, winning the G1 Rupert Clarke Stakes at her most recent start and accruing $897,000 in prizemoney over the spring.

In the 2023 edition of the sale, Newgate Bloodstock purchased exquisitely-bred Baaqyah (NZ) (I Am Invincible) in foal to multiple Champion Sire Snitzel for $825,000 and was dually rewarded at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale in January when Sheamus Mills Bloodstock (FBAA) purchased the resulting filly for $950,000. David Redvers Bloodstock acquired Steal My Kisses (I Am Invincible) in foal to Farnan at the same sale for $550,000, and also turned a profit in January when Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott Racing, Kestrel Thoroughbreds, and Kia Ora Stud paid $650,000 for her colt. The offspring of many more to pass through the Riverside sales ring are highly anticipated features in the catalogues for the Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale and Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale this year.

Returns for vendors have been exceptional across the board, with the whole catalogue average sitting about $500,000 for three of the last five editions of the sale, and almost surpassing $600,000 last year.

Chart: Whole catalogue averages for last five editions of the Inglis Chairman's Sale, note that 2020 edition was a virtual auction with a wildcard session

The headline act in a proven high class broodmare

“It’s a special night – one that people really enjoy – and ultimately it’s become a celebration of the careers of some of the best race fillies and mares of recent past,” Inglis Bloodstock CEO Sebastian Hutch said. “We are fielding a huge amount of interest in the sale and are working strategically to consolidate a catalogue that will have anyone and everyone very excited.”

The dams of some of the country’s best racehorses have changed hands at the Chairman’s sale over recent years - including Berimbau (Shamardal {USA}), dam of Imperatriz (I Am Invincible), and Pinocchio (Encosta De Lago), dam of Classique Legend (Not A Single Doubt) - and this year promises to be no different. Already locked in for the May sale is Enbihaar (Magnus), dam of talented racefilly Too Darn Lizzie (Too Darn Hot {GB}).

“He (Magnus) is absolutely killing it as a broodmare sire,” said Dorrington Farm’s Rob Crabtree, who is also offering a complete draft of his homebred weanlings at the upcoming Inglis Australian Weanling Sale. A full brother to Too Darn Lizzie will be sure to excite when offered at the sale.

Herself a winner of the G2 Blue Diamond Prelude (fillies) and runner-up in the G1 Blue Diamond Stakes to up-and-coming stallion Written By, Enbihaar offers bidders access to a young, precocious blacktype family with plenty more to give. The 9-year-old mare is a full sister to the exciting Miss Celine, winner of the Listed Debutant Stakes and fourth-placed in both Blue Diamond run-up events, who will line up in the Diamond on Saturday. To date, Enbihaar’s offspring have already realised $2.25 million at public auction and $731,495 in prizemoney on the track.

Magnus has enjoyed over $18 million in earnings as a broodmare sire, counting amongst his daughters’ progeny G1 Canterbury Stakes winner Mizzy (Zoustar), Too Darn Lizzie, G3 Ken Russell Memorial Classic winner Althoff (Written Tycoon), three Listed winners, and a further nine stakes performers. As a broodmare sire, he is operating at a 60.9 per cent winners to runner state, with 117 winners collecting 337 wins between them.

Racefillies with huge residual value

Two exciting racefilly opportunities already catalogued are Mumbai Muse (Zoustar) and Dancing Alone (I Am Invincible). The former is a Group 3-winning daughter of Mumbai Rock (Fastnet Rock), a daughter of G1 Spinaway Stakes-winning Mani Bhavan (USA) (Storm Boot {USA}) whose offspring have averaged returns of $447,500 when selling through the country’s premier yearling sales.

Mumbai Muse can count Japanese Listed-winning Jazz Etude (I Am Invincible), Group performer Mumbai Jewel (I Am Invincible), and Listed-placed Splendoronthegrass (So You Think {NZ}) among her siblings, with all six foals having accumulated $1.9 million between them on the track. The 4-year-old mare has herself accrued more than half a million dollars in prizemoney and would be a valuable addition of America bloodlines to any broodmare band.

Trainer Michael Freedman told Inglis, “she was a Group 1 standard mare, I have no doubt about that. We just never saw the best of her for differing reasons. but I’m sure she’ll develop into a beautiful broodmare. She has all the right attributes to do so.’’

Zoustar is just starting out as a broodmare sire, but so far has produced three Stakes winners amongst 12 winners from a small number of starters; G3 Black Opal Stakes winner Holmes A Court (Capitalist), who was sold privately to Hong Kong last year, and the Listed winners Dawn Service (Justify) and Discretion Rules (Alabama Express), who were purchased for a combined total of $2.4 million as yearlings. Offspring of his daughters have accrued over $1 million in stakes across 36 starters. His daughter G2 Dane Ripper Stakes winner C'Est Magique sold to Tom Magnier for $1.7 million last year, and is in foal to Snitzel.

Six-time winner Dancing Alone is not only a top line specimen, but also a half-sister to promising colt Growing Empire (Zoustar), whose dual Group 3 wins and top flight performances so far suggest that a Group 1 win is not far away. A $1.4 million yearling herself, 5-year-old Dancing Alone promises access to elite Australasian bloodlines, counting among her close relations NZ Champion 2YO Filly Il Quello Veloce (NZ) (Captain Rio {GB}), Holmes A Court, Western Australian sire Long Leaf, and 2014 internationally leading sprinter Terravista (Captain Rio {GB}).

“Physically she’s as good as you’ll ever get, she really typifies an Easter yearling, and on top of that and most importantly she delivered on the track in terms of her ability and winning races,’’ trainer Bryce Heys told Inglis. “(She has) the perfect combination (of attitude and looks), and (is) what the market is looking for – physically perfect, competitive and talented, but with a kind nature.

“I have no doubt in my mind she’ll leave a gorgeous foal.”

Champion Sire I Am Invincible needs little introduction as a broodmare sire, already counting amongst his daughter’s offspring the Group 1 winners Asfoora (Flying Artie) and Kimochi, as well as six other stakes winners and nine further stakes performers. His 169 winners, from 314 starters, have accrued over $23 million across 392 wins, averaging $73,248 prizemoney per runner.

The coming weeks will no doubt bring a flurry of announcements of high calibre additions to this year's catalogue. Entries close for the Inglis Chairman's Sale on March 7.