Hong Kong-bound trainer James Cummings looms as a potential buyer at the Inglis Ready2Race Sale in Sydney. (Photo: Bronwen Healy. The Image is Everything – Bronwen Healy Photography)
If it was a weigh-in before a heavyweight boxing fight, Inglis’ Sebastian Hutch would be the one exuding confidence that demanded he be the short-priced favourite.
His opponent? Magic Millions and, perhaps to a lesser degree, New Zealand Bloodstock which also operates in the two-year-old space.
There are Hong Kong trainers and connections aplenty on the ground, adding to the auction house’s confidence that a genuine market will be in play in the middle to the top-end of the market.
A smattering of Malaysian and Chinese buyers will also underpin other levels of the market.
That said, of the Hong Kong connections at Riverside Stables a day out from the sale, there was one trainer who stood out: James Cummings
Cummings is enjoying a “gap year”, having departed as Godolphin’s private trainer in Australia at the end of last season, and preparing himself for the pressure-cooker environment of Hong Kong.
Sales grounds are foreign territory to Cummings, he was a regular at the major yearling auctions with Godolphin, but his appearance at Riverside Stables this week is more than just a day out for he and his family.
It’ll be a significant step forward in the careful planning of his pending move to Sha Tin where he’ll train alongside fellow expatriate Australians John Size, David Hayes, David Hall and Mark Newnham, another who has made a flying return to Sydney for the sale.
Newnham leads the trainers’ premiership with 11 winners, two ahead of Hayes, Caspar Fownes and Tony Cruz.
Manfred Man, Ricky Yiu, David Eustace and Jamie Richards, as well as Francis Lui and Jimmy Ting, have also made the trip from Hong Kong to Sydney for the sale, which could break turnover records.
Expectations are that aggregate sales could be north of $16 million for the 224-lot sale, although Inglis Bloodstock chief executive Hutch wouldn’t go into specific company benchmarks.
Having watched rival Magic Millions conduct its Horses in Training Sale on the Gold Coast from afar last week, Hutch was clearly in a combative mood and keen to position the Ready2Race Sale as the market leader.
That is in Australia, at least, anyway.
“So, rather than just playing lip service to the market and talking about how important this sale is, we’ve actually gone and invested in the sale,” Hutch told The Straight unprompted.
“It’s a sale format that we genuinely believe has the capacity for growth and we’ve gone and backed vendors accordingly to go out and source nice horses through weaning sales, through yearling sales and look to try and develop confidence.
“Not just amongst the vendors, but amongst the buyers that this is the sort of place where you can come and see nice horses, identify nice horses and ultimately end up with a nice racehorse.
“It’s led us to what I think is our best group of horses for the sale. If you go through the auction history of the sale.
“I think over 80 per cent of the horses have been through public auction and thus sold through public auction and thus specifically identified to be re-offered at this sale.
“That’s something that the buying market can take confidence from.”
As a result, Hutch says, the key market of Hong Kong, as well as leading Australian stables including Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, Chris Waller, Ciaron Maher and others, are engaged in the sale.
The sale is held on a Thursday this year, as opposed to the Tuesday in recent years. Many pundits might suggest that it was because of the presence of Hong Kong superstar Ka Ying Rising in The Everest, for which he is an odds-on favourite.
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But Hutch says it’s nothing of the kind.
“Honestly, it has nothing to do with it. It’s specifically based on feedback from. admittedly, yes, international based buyers, but they felt that the sale would be easier for them to work being on a Thursday and thus giving them what they felt was Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday to prepare for the sale,” Hutch said in reference to mainly Hong Kong trainers.
“Basically a sale on a Tuesday meant they had to fly out after racing on Sunday and Sunday is an important race meeting, whereas with the sale on a Thursday, it allows them to have a better lead in.”
As for Cummings, a soon-to-be Hong Kong resident, the first signs of just how active he intends to be in acquiring young horses to spearhead his Sha Tin stable next season and beyond will be apparent at Inglis’ Riverside Stables from midday on Thursday.
As for Inglis, the market will decide whether the confidence is justified with the biggest clue coming about 5pm to 6pm (AEDT).