By Emma Berry and Brian SheerinNEWMARKET, UK — When owner-breeder Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum died just over a fortnight ago, it could not then have been foreseen that his elder brother Sheikh Mohammed would be present at Tattersalls at all this year. But the Godolphin principal, one of the October Yearling Sale's most stalwart supporters over the decades, has been in attendance at Park Paddocks daily since Sunday and, as has so often been the case, made a significant and welcome impact on the market when signing up 11 yearlings for a total of 15.7 million gns on the opening day of Book 1 of the October Yearling Sale.This included a bright chestnut son of Darley's champion sire Night Of Thunder (lot 130), who set a new European yearling sale record for a colt when becoming the most expensive yearling sold anywhere in the world this year at 4.6 million gns. Offered by Norelands Stud on behalf of his breeder Ling Tsui, the colt is the second foal of the G1 Pretty Polly Stakes runner-up My Astra (Lope De Vega), the fourth generation of her family to have raced for David and Ling Tsui. Their name is of course synonymous with their great homebred champion Sea The Stars, who appears in the third generation of the Night Of Thunder colt as the sire of his great granddam My Titania, who became the first ever stakes winner for her illustrious father when winning the G3 CL Weld Park Stakes back in 2013.“It's been a while since we've done this,” said Norelands manager Matt Gilsenan, with a broad grin. Smashing the European record for a yearling colt is not something that happens every day, when that colt just happens to be the subject of interest to both Godolphin and Coolmore, who knows where the buck will stop? This time, it was at 4.6 million gns, surpassing the previous record set by a Wootton Bassett colt out of Park Bloom that sold for 4.3 million gns to Amo Racing in 2024. “It's fantastic. Look, we're delighted to have horses for Mrs Tsui. He's an absolute superstar colt by a magnificent stallion and out of a mare who's done it as well. I mean, in our wildest dreams though, it was above and beyond.”Norelands' Hamish McCalmont added, “Ever since he was a foal he just was the most amazing horse. As Matt said, it's thanks to Mrs Tsui and the team at home and it's amazingly special. “He lives on the farm, and everyone at home, the guys not even here, it's been a great team effort. It's brilliant.”After seeing off underbidder MV Magnier, Anthony Stroud said of the colt, “He is a particularly taking individual. He has the pedigree, he has the looks and he has stallion potential. He is an extremely nice horse coming from a very good stud. We couldn't be happier to have him. We are so lucky to have bought him but he was definitely at the top end of our valuation, for sure. Mrs Tsui is an excellent breeder.” All told, there were six lots sold for seven figures on the opening day of Book 1. That helped turnover climb a massive 15% to 46,778,000gns – with Godolphin's spending spree accounting for roughly a third of the day's tally. Meanwhile, the median was up by 14% to 240,000gns while the average jumped a whopping 26% to 406,765gns. The clearance rate stood at 85%. Brosnan's Luck Holds True with Loch LeinWhat's meant for you won't pass you by. That's how the old saying goes, and it may well have been running through the mind of Denis Brosnan as he watched his Wootton Bassett colt (lot 87) sell for 3.8 million gns after another epic Godolphin-Coolmore bidding duel.Seven years ago in this same sale, Brosnan had bought back the colt's dam, who was subsequently named Loch Lein and won the Listed Prix Amandine as well as notching a few Group 3 placings in his colours. Having returned to Croom House Stud to launch her broodmare career, the daughter of Invincible Spirit has produced three foals to date, with the first of them, Treanmor (Frankel), having sold for €2 million at the Goffs Orby Sale two years ago. Her third foal temporarily achieved the accolade of being the highest-priced yearling sold anywhere in the world this year but was subsequently knocked down to second by the session-topping Night Of Thunder colt.“We thought he was a two-million horse coming here, but obviously doubling that is a treat,” Brosnan said.“You can never tell what's going to happen though, until the two powerhouses get into one another, but all the others were in there as well – Juddmonte, Amo. He was a very special horse, he was very special all the time.”He added, “We failed to sell his dam, Loch Lein, as a yearling. We raced her ourselves, and she was group-placed. Her first foal sold for €2 million and now this one sells for 3.8 million. We kept the filly in the middle and she's in training with John Gosden. She's only had three yet.“As my wife says, it was a lucky day to bring the filly home.”Brosnan first invested in the family in 2007 when buying granddam Ashley Hall (Maria's Mon), a half-sister to the GI Blue Grass Stakes winner Bandini, for $825,000 at Keeneland's November Sale. Loch Lein is not the sole black-type offspring of Ashley Hall. Her full-brother Pedestal was third in the Windsor Castle Stakes while Oliver Show (No Nay Never) was also Listed-placed. Another daughter, My Philly Girl, has produced black-type winners in America.Anthony Stroud, who conducted the bidding for Godolphin, said, “It goes without saying that the people at Croom House Stud do an excellent job and have bred many, many good horses. Of course, it is a lot of money, but that is what these types of horses cost and breeders are striving to breed horses of this calibre. Hopefully he is a very good racehorse.” 'Stuff of dreams' for Hillwood StudCharlie Vigors labelled Hillwood Stud's 1.8 million gns Frankel colt selling to Godolphin as “the stuff of dreams” for breeders Tony Bloom, Ian McAleavy and Patrick Veitch, who received an almost immediate return on their investment in 2.5 million gns December Mares purchase Get Ahead (Showcasing) with the mare's first foal. “This is the stuff of dreams,” Vigors said about lot 27, who set the tone for what was to come at Park Paddocks. “He's always been an exceptional horse. It was the thing to do [send the mare to Frankel] with Chaldean being on the page. We'd seen what Frankels make in the ring and that figure is probably in the ballpark of what we expected him to make. Hugh thanks obviously goes to Sheikh Mohammed, Anthony Stroud and the entire Godolphin team as well as the underbidders, of which there were plenty. He has been very busy all week – never put a foot wrong – and I'm just delighted for the whole team at home.”Stroud, who conducted the bidding from outside the ring in the company of Godolphin principal Sheikh Mohammed, said, “Showcasing is a good broodmare sire, Frankel is just a fantastic stallion and this colt was a great mover and just a beautiful horse.“It's great and fantastic that [Sheikh Mohammed] is here, I mean I think that's testament to his involvement in the sport and his support for British and Irish racing and breeding.“It shows the commitment by the two great men, John Magnier and Sheikh Mohammed, who since the 1980s have been involved in this whole industry and supporting it in every different area as well, you know not only breeding and having farms but being active at sales and on the racecourse. It's just extraordinary really, we've got a lot to thank them both for really.”Annette O'Callaghan Remembered After Breakthrough MillionaireDavid O'Callaghan paid an emotional tribute to his mother Annette, who died following an illness last month, after Yeomanstown Stud recorded its first seven-figure sale when a Ghaiyyath pinhook rocked into 1.3 million gns. The colt (lot 103), bought by Godolphin, was shrewdly sourced for €200,000 at the Castlebridge Consignment at the Goffs November Foal Sale.O'Callaghan said. “That was amazing. Absolutely amazing. First time, actually, that Yeomanstown has broken the million at a sale. We've come close before but never actually broken the million-marker, so it's fantastic. But here, he was an exceptional foal and is an exceptional yearling. He's by a sire who is on the up and up, and everyone was very keen on him. We thought he would sell very well. Did we expect him to do that? No. But it is just amazing when two buyers lock horns. Thank you to Sheikh Mohammed and Anthony Stroud for having the faith in the horse and the best of luck to them.”He added, “At the time, it probably was a fair throw for him as a foal, but we felt that Ghaiyyath was on the up. He has jumped up another level this year and everyone seems to be on the Ghaiyyath bandwagon. I think my mother was looking down on us for that one.”There has been a huge outpouring of emotion towards the O'Callaghan family after Annette's death. O'Callaghan admitted to not having time to read all of the letters and cards sent to Yeomanstown Stud following his mother's passing.He concluded, “It has been difficult but we are lucky in that we have been so busy because you have to keep going. Between family, children, ponies and horses, we didn't have time to stop. You can't imagine the amount of letters and cards we have had with kind stories about my mother. She was just a kind person to a lot of people. We haven't even read them all yet. There's hundreds of them. She left an impression on a lot of people.”The Ghaiyyath colt is out of the winning Kodiac mare Maria Christina, a half-sister to GII Monmouth Stakes winner Speaking Of Which (Invincible Spirit).Mountarmstrong Stud joins millionaires' row with Wootton Bassett fillyIt was very much a case of millionaires' row at Tattersalls on Tuesday and, another major farm to get a piece of the seven-figure action was Mountarmstrong Stud, whose Wootton Bassett filly out of G1 Matron Stakes winner No Speak Alexander (Shalaa) was sold to Richard Brown of Blandford Bloodstock at 2.6 million gns. “Savage – absolutely savage,” said Mountarmstrong Stud manager Rob Tierney shortly after the hammer dropped. “We were going very well with her and obviously she is a beautiful filly. But it all changes when you come up to the ring and she just got a great reception. Ever since we started showing on Friday, we felt something special could happen because she just got better and better and people were liking her more and more. It's just fantastic. It has been a very strong sale so far.”Brown added, “The sister from last year [Silent Beauty, who sold for €1 million at Goffs] has gone on and won two Listed races, and I was the underbidder on her. Arguably, I thought this filly had more size, scope and strength than her. She is a rare specimen and it is rare to see a filly like her. She is one of the best fillies I have seen this week and probably for a long time. I think she is outstanding.”Stewart stardust once again with 1.1m Blue Point fillyIt wouldn't be Book 1 without breeder Trevor Stewart supplying some stardust with his brilliant Cassandra Go family – and this time, it was his Gleneagles daughter out of that great mare, who hit the headlines when her Blue Point filly sold to Godolphin for 1.1 million gns. Consigned by Ballyhimikin Stud, the daughter of Holly Golightly, a winner and fourth in a Listed contest herself, is the latest seven-figure lot that Stewart has sold from the family at Tattersalls.“It's so exciting because every daughter — I think Cassandra Go had a few — has made a million,” Stewart beamed. “Every daughter has had a million-pound yearling, which is just amazing. And I hate to say this, but she has an even nicer City Of Troy filly foal, which will certainly not be sold. So it's very exciting.”He added, “I have three daughters on the farm – three daughters and two granddaughters breeding, and one great-granddaughter. And I keep saying every time I sell something like this, there'll be no more releases. But I'm afraid financially sometimes you have to release something.”Flay cooks up a delight for Loughtown StudLot 82 provided a pinch-me moment for Paddy Burns when the Blue Point filly brought Loughtown Stud's biggest result to date. The daughter of Light The Stars, a Sea The Stars half-sister to leading sire Lope De Vega, was sold to American owner-breeder Bobby Flay for 825,000gns and the excitement may not be over yet for the family as the filly's two-year-old half-sister Haven (Wootton Bassett) has been supplemented for Friday's G1 Fillies' Mile.“We sold the mare's two-year-old here last year, and Coolmore bought her for 550,000gns,” Burns said. “She's a winner and is now supplemented for the Fillies' Mile. It's a very hot race and we'd be delighted with a place.”Burns and his wife Helena moved into Loughtown Stud in 2018 with four broodmares. He continued, “We keep trying to upgrade the broodmare band. We've bought some nice fillies. We're covering them well. Light The Stars is in foal to Frankel – we can pay for the nomination now!“This filly is beautiful, she resembles her mother, and, so I'm told, granddam Lady Vettori.”He added, “I just want to thank my wife, who is at home looking after four kids and she does all the veterinary work, plus Brian and Brendan on the farm.”Flay, who described his breeding and ownership operation in Europe to be “growing,” revealed that Andrew Balding would train the filly. He also explained that, given he owns a mare under the second dam, Lady Frankel (Frankel), he had a natural affinity towards the pedigree of the filly who meets every one of Flay's strict criteria.He said, “This is my kind of family. I am very selective in what I buy at these sales – it has to come from an attractive, big family and by a proven sire. It has to have intrinsic value. I'm not the guy who's going to go out and buy 12 colts to try and win the Derby. That's not my play. I actually own another filly in this family, Lady Frankel, so I know the page very well.”He added, “She will go to Malcolm Bastard before joining Andrew Balding, who helped identify her for me. I sent Andrew a very small list and she was one of his favourites. Andrew is one of the best in the world so, if I am going to give him something to train, I am going to want him to like it! Thankfully he loved her.”Flay's distinctive yellow and orange colours are perhaps best remembered for being carried by Breeders' Cup winner Pizza Bianca (Fastnet Rock), who he sold for a cool $3 million to John Stewart at Fasig-Tipton in 2023. He subsequently purchased her back in a private deal. In Europe, his Group 3-placed Go Go Boots (Night Of Thunder), who was trained by John and Thady Gosden, ran in last year's Oaks before being shipped to America. He also has horses in training with Donnacha O'Brien in Ireland.On his Book 1 purchase, Flay continued, “Here's the thing: Blue Point is one of the hottest sires in the world right now, right? So, when you have a filly from a family like this and who looks like she does, you have to pay for them. It's like buying a piece of real estate that's in a great location. With all good intentions here, she will go to Andrew, try to get some black-type and hopefully stay in my family for generations. I mean, who knows, maybe my daughter will be breeding out of her in years to come. For me, that would be the dream. I want to keep this horse for the rest of her life.”He concluded, “As well as Andrew, we have horses with John and Thady Gosden, who have been so good to me, and a couple with Donnacha O'Brien in Ireland. I am definitely growing my European operation and I try to keep it equal with the United States. We probably have roughly 10 on either side of the pond and I want to keep it to that number. That way, we can keep it as a boutique operation.”Ace in the hand for Cheveley Park Stud Richard Thompson and his mother Patricia of Cheveley Park Stud have had no end of success with homebred fillies, and have enjoyed Group 1 success this year with Estrange (Night Of Thunder), who was a Book 1 purchase four years ago.The Thompsons, who added three well-bred fillies to the fold on Tuesday, were the third-leading buyers of the session after Godolphin and Blandford Bloodstock, with their purchases led by lot 152, a filly from the first crop of Ace Impact bought for 750,000gns.“We're always looking for well-bred fillies if we can just freshen things up,” said Richard Thompson. “Chris [Richardson] and the team are always looking around and today we've identified three that we've been able to buy. That's great news for the stud and a big part of keeping things moving for the future.”The unbeaten Arc winner Ace Impact had five yearlings sold on Tuesday for an average of 242,800gns, making him the leading freshman sire of the sale so far. Lot 152, offered by Barton Stud, had been pinhooked as a foal by Alex Elliott for €220,000 at Goffs and held particular appeal with a deep family behind her. She is a half-sister to the G1 Grand Prix de Paris winner and young Haras d'Etreham stallion Onesto (Frankel), their Juddmonte-bred dam Onshore (Sea The Stars) being out of an unraced sister to the celebrated matriarch Hasili (Kahyasi).Thompson added, “We love the family and she's by an unbeaten Arc winner who was a great horse. So, fingers crossed, he'll work out as a decent stallion, but we just love the way she moved, and the family is very strong. That's what we want at Cheveley Park Stud.” The post Godolphin Smash European Record With 4.6m Gns Night Of Thunder Colt at Tattersalls Book 1 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.