Lyndhurst looks to lead the way again

MATCHING last year's feat of selling the top lot will be a hard act to follow but nonetheless Cambridge's Lyndhurst Farm is confident it will have two of the leading lots at this year's showcase Premier Sale which starts at Karaka tomorrow.

Mark and Shelley Treweek's Lyndhust Farm operation upstaged many of the bigger name studs when it sold the Encosta De Lago-Giovana colt at last year's Karaka Premier Sale for $800,000.

"He was lot eight and was sold in the first half-hour of the sale," Mark Treweek said. "It was a long wait to see if he would top the sale but it was the biggest thrill we've had in the business."

"It lifted our profile to a whole new level. We have topped the Ready To Run sales a few times but that doesn't carry anything like the same excitement for a vendor as topping the Premier Sale.

"We ended up with several new clients as a result of it and we have horses to sell for them in our draft this year."

Lyndhurst Farm will present a striking half-brother to last year's sale topper on the second day of the sales on Tuesday.

The colt is by first-season sire Darci Brahma, who was a four-time Group I winner during his outstanding racing career and whose progeny will command plenty of attention.

"He is another very good sort from a mare who leaves lovely horses every time. He is very correct and is a lot more like his mum than last year's colt," Treweek said. "But you can also see that Darci Brahma has stamped him with his qualities."

Giovana was also a four-time Group I winner for her Cambridge owner Carol Marshall, who is helping out with the Lyndhurst draft.

- © Fairfax NZ News