Imperatriz winning at The Valley in Melbourne.
Champion New Zealand racemare Imperatriz’s last victory has proved to be her most valuable.
It came at the Magic Millions broodmare sale on the Gold Coast on Tuesday night (NZ time) when the great mare was sold for A$6.6million ($7.14m), an Australasian record for a racemare, with Imperatriz’s future now almost certainly as a broodmare.
She was purchased by racing and breeding giants Yulong, who have been become a gigantic player in the bloodstock world, with their Chinese owners investing heavily in the Australian racing industry.
Yulong’s owners have a particular affection for buying trophy mares and they don’t come much more trophy than Imperatriz.
She was a A$360,000 yearling purchase who was then syndicated by Te Akau and went on to become one of the best sprinters in the world, with 10 Group 1 wins, most of them in the red-hot Australian sprinting scene.
Imperatriz was retired after a slightly luckless fourth in the T J Smith Stakes on a bog track at Randwick in April.
Ironically the mare who beat her that day Chain Of Lightning sold a few hours earlier at Tuesday’s sale for A$2.5million, also purchased by Yulong.
A veterinary examination soon after that race showed minor signs of wear and tear but Ellis decided retirement was the best option.
Imperatriz won $7.5 million during her career so along with her sale price returns over $14 million in profit, minus expenses, on her purchase price. That will be shared, after commissions, by her syndicate of owners.
It is common for most fillies and mares who are raced by large syndicates to be sold at public auction as breeding by committee is logistically very difficult and the auction system establishes a clear market value.
What stallion Imperatriz will visit this spring is not yet decided but Yulong stand their own stallions in Victoria while she could be crossed with most of the world’s best stallions, apart from obviously her own sire I Am Invincible, the reigning Australian champion.
Bidding on her opened at A$4million and quickly reached her A$5million reserve at which point she was on the market and was going to be sold.
It is believed two of the other giants of world thoroughbred breeding in Arrowfield and Coolmore were also in play at the A$6million mark before Yulong beat them.
Te Akau boss David Ellis, who bought Imperatriz as a yearling, told the Herald he is thrilled for the 14 members of the Imperatriz syndicate and for the New Zealand racing industry.
“To buy a horse for A$360,000, have her win A$7million and then be sold for A$6.6million is special for them and us,” said Ellis.
“But you can’t put a price on the happiness and experiences this horse has given them.
“We are also proud of what this says for the New Zealand industry. People can get into horse racing via syndication and have these amazing results.”
Imperatriz wasn’t even on the Gold Coast, remaining at home in her Waikato paddock, but she will soon by flown to Australia and Ellis says that will be an emotional day.
“Of course it will be sad to see her go but we (Te Akau) put racing syndicates together and not everybody who goes in those syndicates wants to breed horses as well so this is the best and fairest way to sell her.
“But we are very proud and wish Yulong the best of luck with her as a broodmare.”
Michael Guerin wrote his first nationally published racing articles while still in school and started writing about horse racing and the gambling industry for the Herald as a 20-year-old in 1990. He became the Herald’s Racing Editor in 1995 and covers the world’s biggest horse racing carnivals.