On Bahrain's big day in Newmarket, it was perhaps only fitting that the top lot on the final day of the Tattersalls July Sale should be destined to continue his racing career in that corner of the Middle East, with the dual winner Sea Force (Sea The Stars) (lot 765) soon to enter the care of leading local trainer Jaber Ramadhan after being purchased for 170,000gns.Earlier in the day, The Kingdom Of Bahrain had again put its weight behind Newmarket's July Festival as the sponsor of the three Group races staged on the opening day, with Godolphin's globetrotting king Rebel's Romance featuring among the horses to have his head in front where it mattered, today a winning post engulfed in the bright red livery of the Bahrain Turf Club.Out of luck at a sunbaked July Course was William Haggas, but the Newmarket trainer was a keen observer to the left of the auctioneer's rostrum as Sea Force took his turn in the ring. Formerly owned by Sheikh Rashid Dalmook Al Maktoum, the four-year-old will now carry the colours of Hasan Mefareh Alajmi after being signed for under the name of Billy Jackson-Stops, who was instructing Ramadhan from afar.“He's a good horse so, if we can get him to run to the same level as master trainer William Haggas, we'll be lucky,” said Ramadhan. “We thought we're might get him for 120,000gns or 130,000gns, but the owner was keen and I think 170,000gns is the right price.“Hopefully, we can run him in the [Bahrain] Turf Series. This year, there is a mile division in the Turf Series and, because he's rated 93, he will get in. He will go well on our ground as well. As it's July, it's suitable for us to get him to Bahrain. We've got four or five months, so we can give him a rest and then get him ready for December.”The disruption caused to the latest season in Bahrain due to the conflict in the Middle East has been well documented, but one British-based trainer who will not be deterred from targeting the programme again is George Baker, who also set his sights on the Turf Series after signing for another of the top lots on Thursday.The three-year-old King's Trust (Kingman) (lot 771), a winner in the royal silks at Southwell in October last year, was the horse in question. Offered by The Castlebridge Consignment, he was knocked down to Baker for 110,000gns, having been beaten just a nose from a BHA mark of 83 on his latest outing at Doncaster.“It will be a syndicate of regular Bahrain supporters, people who have been for the last four of five years and have all expressed an interest in being involved again,” Baker said of King's Trust's new ownership. “They gave me a mandate and we had a few horses to look at. They're making their money and he made his money. He probably cost me a little bit more than I hoped for, but he's a lovely horse and he's hopefully perfect for that gig over there [racing in Bahrain].”He continued, “Bahrain has been a huge part of our lives for the last six years. We've supported them and they've supported us. It's tough out there at the moment and we are committing to supporting them. It might be a tough winter for them, but they've got their first Group 1 and they're putting on the Turf Series again. There might be slightly fewer people looking for horses for the Middle East next winter but, where there is disruption, perhaps there is opportunity. We're committed to them and you have to support your friends in troubling times.”'An unmissable event for many'A clearance rate of 91% for this year's July Sale – up from 88% in 2025 – is indicative of the fact that Tattersalls benefited from the consistent support of a wide range of buyers over the past three days, friends both new and old. With 128 fewer lots being offered compared to 12 months ago, total turnover was down by 18% at 13,837,500gns, but the average and the median both held steady. The average was down by just 1% at 29,822gns, while the median was identical to last year at 15,000gns.At the conclusion of the July Sale, Tattersalls managing director Matthew Prior said, “The Tattersalls July Sale is one of the highlights of the bloodstock sales calendar and, together with top-class racing at Newmarket, makes 'July Week' an unmissable event for many and we have welcomed a wide range of domestic and international visitors to a sun-drenched Park Paddocks this week.“Whilst the catalogue may have lacked some of the stars of previous years, we have nonetheless witnessed vibrant trade for top-class breeding stock and racing prospects, particularly among the highly sought-after consignments from Godolphin and Juddmonte, which included two of the top ten prices ever achieved at this fixture, both purchased by Ace Stud.“The sale has also attracted the customary strong contingent of buyers from throughout the Middle East who, despite the ongoing challenges facing the region, have attended in large numbers and made their usual impact at Park Paddocks. As ever, we are extremely appreciative of their continued patronage.“They have been joined by buyers from throughout Europe and further afield, thanks in no small part to the endeavours of our overseas representatives. Visitors have included buyers from Australia, France, Germany, Italy, India, Malaysia, the Philippines, Scandinavia, Spain and North America.“We now look forward to the yearling sales season, with the Tattersalls Somerville Yearling Sale kicking off the action at Park Paddocks on Wednesday, September 2.”He's Waliim heads to QatarThe pre-racing session at Park Paddocks was headlined by the three-year-old gelding He's Waliim (Too Darn Hot) (lot 664), who was offered by James Tate's Jamesfield Stables as the winner of two of his six starts to date for Jaber Abdullah, having doubled his career tally when easily defying a BHA mark of 89 in a Sandown handicap last time.The son of Too Darn Hot will now continue his career in Qatar after being sold for 150,000gns to trainer Ibrahim Al-Malki, whose notable triumphs on home soil include last year's Irish Thoroughbred Marketing Cup with General Panic (Outstrip), a 65,000gns purchase at the Tattersalls Autumn Horses-in-Training Sale back in 2021.Al-Malki also bought two horses on Wednesday for a combined sum of 85,000gns, with his total outlay of 235,000gns identifying him as one of the week's leading buyers.“He's going to Qatar for some stakes races we have over there,” the trainer said of He's Waliim. “I think the horse will be running over 1,400 [metres] or a mile and Qatar will suit him very well, especially as he likes firmer ground. He impressed us on his last run and I think he will do the job in Qatar. He will ship straight away, so he can have some time to acclimatise there.”Al-Malki will be hoping to have He's Waliim ready to rock and roll by the time the Qatari season gets underway in October, with the trainer explaining that the timing of this sale helps in that regard, whilst acknowledging that the number of horses fitting his criteria was thin on the ground this week.He added, “We also bought two horses yesterday, horses for handicaps. I'll be honest with you, we haven't found too many good horses. It's a pity that we don't find the horses here like at the October sale [Autumn Horses-in-Training]. The October sale always has better horses, but there is no time to send them to Qatar and acclimatise them before they race. In October, we have already started racing in Qatar.”Thorne makes Excellent purchase for Shamrock ThoroughbredsThe first six-figure lot of the day was another horse leaving the ownership of Jaber Abdullah, namely the four-year-old Excellent Believe (Make Believe) (lot 650), a three-time winner for Jack Channon who ran his best race in defeat when filling the runner-up spot behind the high-class Zeus Olympios (Night Of Thunder) in last year's G3 Superior Mile at Haydock.Stephen Thorne will be the man tasked with trying to revive Excellent Believe after a couple of lacklustre efforts more recently, a downturn in form that potentially worked in favour of the Co. Dublin-based trainer, who struck the winning bid of 100,000gns on behalf of Shamrock Thoroughbreds.“He strung five solid efforts in stakes company together. Obviously, we have to forgive the last two runs, but I feel like when we come to these sales, we have to forgive a recent run or two to try and get what we want, otherwise we're competing in a market where we have nowhere near enough money to compete,” Thorne explained.“I thought he was one of the better horses in the sale. He was drawn very wide in Sandown last week and he was drawn on the wrong side in the Hunt Cup. He could be targeted now at a big premier handicap somewhere back home and, hopefully, he'll get back to the stakes form that he showed back in the spring [when third in the Listed Amethyst Stakes at Leopardstown]. I'd say he'll have a little break and we'll plan for an autumn campaign. I think he handles some juice in the ground.”Certainly, it won't be the first time that Thorne has worked his magic if he can find the key to Excellent Believe, with the trainer having enjoyed some great days with recruits from the July Sale over the years, both in his own name and in his previous role as long-time assistant trainer to Ado McGuinness.He added, “We only have two opportunities a year to buy this type of horse. At this sale, the pool of quality horses gets narrower and narrower every year, but we've always had plenty of luck here. Current Option was bought here many years ago, a Group 3 and Listed winner, and Bowerman was the same. He won a big pot in Qatar. I bought Sir Les Patterson from this sale last year and he's worked out very well for us, too. We're trying to increase the quality in the stable all of the time and, fingers crossed, he [Excellent Believe] will add to it.”Ra-Ra-RaspoutineFergal O'Brien and Syd Hosie were among the National Hunt trainers to get in on the action later on Thursday, with O'Brien first off the mark when forking out 100,000gns for the three-year-old Raspoutine (Time Test) (lot 725) from the draft of Sir Mark Prescott's Heath House Stables.The 77-rated Raspoutine will now embark on a career over jumps for Tom Hayes, a new owner to the yard for whom O'Brien has reportedly been trying to buy a horse “for the best part of three months”.“The store sales have been very strong,” O'Brien explained. “We went to Doncaster and there were horses there that we could have bought for 100 grand, but they didn't really fit the bill. This lad, I thought he'd be somewhere between 80,000gns to 120,000gns. That was what we valued him at. But it's no good just having the money, you have to try and get a bit of value as well.”He continued, “We bought one here on Tuesday and I went to Sir Mark's to see Raspoutine. I just loved him when I saw him and he vetted really well. Looking at his videos, he looks like he's getting outpaced over 1m2f and 1m3f. Hopefully, we can get him to jump some hurdles and Mr Hayes can have a bit of fun. He's a beautiful horse and I came back especially for him today. When I saw him again, I actually loved him even more. I'm absolutely delighted. It's a lot of money, but you pay your money, you take your chance.”Those sentiments were echoed by Darren Dwyer who, along with Hosie, signed for another choice lot from the Somerville Lodge draft in the 83-rated Poetry Of Time (Ulysses) (lot 759), the winner of his last two starts in handicaps at Salisbury and Chepstow.“With the way the sales are going – and there was a lot of good people on him – we knew it was going to be tough,” Dwyer said of the gelding's price tag. “You never like to spend that kind of money, but that's what they cost.“We just liked his profile. He has won over 7f at Chepstow on soft ground and he's by Ulysses. He's been bought as a dual-purpose horse. Hopefully, he can jump and then we'll have a nice juvenile on our hands. And if not, we can go back to the Flat with him and contest some nice races.”The post Sea Force Caps Bahrain’s Big Day with Star Turn at July Sale Finale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.