Wingmen proved to be the star draw at the Tattersalls Cheltenham January sale when he was evening’s top lot of £250,000, a record for the January sale.
The Kayf Tara five-year-old gelding was an impressive 12-length winner of a Ballycrystal maiden last Sunday when ridden by Rob James for trainer Gordon Elliott and the Crocodile Pockets Syndicate, and he is set to remain under Elliott’s care having been bought for the Bective Stud operation of Noel and Valerie Moran.
“He is a very nice horse, and Gordon thinks a lot of him,” said buyer Eddie O’Leary, who was sat with the Cullentra House Stables trainer and who will continue to train Wingmen.
“He is a big raw horse, he won’t begin to see the best of him until next year, he has been bought on behalf of Bective Stud."
Bred by Cathal Ennis, Wingmen is out of the winning Flemensfirth mare Raise You Five and is a dual Tattersalls Ireland graduate – he was initially purchased as a foal at the November NH Sale by Timmy Hillman for €47,000, who then consigned the gelding under his Castledillon Stud banner at the 2021 Derby Sale bought by Mags O’Toole for €88,000.
Wingmen was one of five Irish pointers to realise a six-figure sum in the sales ring on the evening with the Doyle brothers responsible for three of the remaining six-figure quartet.
Highflyer Bloodstock went to £150,000 for Sean Doyle’s Sanda Rena, who was a four-year-old mares’ maiden winner at Borris House before Christmas in the colours of Doyle’s younger brother Gearoid, with the elder Doyle also selling Westerninthepark to Milton Harris for £100,000.
Donnchadh Doyle meanwhile enjoyed yet another notable sale this season when J H Bloodstock and Donald McCain signed for his 11-length Boulta winner Speed Davis for £105,000 whilst the remaining six-figure pointer, Denis Murphy’s recent Tinahely victor Coco Mademoiselle went to Dan Skelton for £100,000.
Matthew Prior, Tattersalls Head of Sales, said: “I am delighted that this first sale of the year has produced such a positive result with a record-breaking top price and seven horses fetching over £100,000.
"The next Tattersalls Cheltenham sale is on February 23 and entries are being taken now and we look forward to offering the first four-year-olds of the 2023 Irish point-to-point season.”
