If a major part of a trainer’s job is to get his horse into the right race, then shippers must choose the right merchandise for their wares, which is something Baroda Stud’s David Cox gets more than once. .
Baroda has had some well-received drafts in the UK and France this fall and Cox is quietly optimistic about making it to the top list of the September 5th Sale at Tattersalls Ireland this week with projections draft his strong 21.
“It’s all about trying to make your horse stand out. No matter what you sell, you want to be in that top 10 to 15%,” said Cox at the end of a busy day with a screening at Barn G in Tattersalls Ireland on Sunday.
“You have to think about how physically fit you are, what pedigree you have and then try to make your horse stand out wherever you send it. All the sales expected so far this year, the bottom end of the market is up very strongly, so if you can position yourself in the top 10 to 15 percent of that market, you’ll be highly paid .
“As an example of our horses at this sale, we have a wide assortment of stallions there; We have acumen and stay types, so we have something for everyone. A lot of men and women brag, they didn’t really shop much in the UK this year because of the costs involved, but they will shop here. “
He added, “This is a good buy. It was also an Irish sale, which was important, because we needed to support the Irish sale as well as the British one.”
It was a sale in Ireland that was a relevant point. There is a notable minor representation of Irish coaches at the Yearling Premier Sales at Doncaster and the Somerville Sales at Tattersalls UK but Paddy Twomey, Ado McGuinness and many others have been spotted doing some early assignments on Sunday.
Moving horses to and from the UK has become much more expensive since Brexit and, according to Cox, is a major factor when trainers, dealers and owners decide where to choose raw materials from.
However, judging by the arrival at Tattersalls Ireland on Sunday, a good 48 hours before the sale kicks off on Tuesday, trading at the first Irish aspiration sale of 2022 will be strong.
“Even for ourselves,” explains Cox, “it has become extremely expensive to send cravings to UK sales. It costs almost twice what it used to be, and if you don’t sell one and have to bring it back, that’s far from ideal.
“If you look at the number of British athletes in Ireland this season, I can only imagine that it is much less than it was before, and that is because of the cost of moving these horses and the complexity that comes with Brexit. “
On his hopes for next week, he added, “There aren’t many Irish coaches splurging on aspirational sales and buying by spec. There aren’t many Richard Hannons here and to be honest, fewer and fewer coaches are buying overall.
“There are more dealers, owners and co-buying organizations but sales have been strong so far this year, so I will be actively participating this week.
“We had a lot of footwork today, a lot of English, it was amazing so I think this sale will go well.”
