News

Bargain Priced Ticket to Commercial Breeding Barn

9th Feb 2010

Breednet - Media Release - Tuesday, 9 February 2010

Acquiring a share in a commercial stallion these days is an expensive business, and most often out of reach of many breeders and owners with most commercial stallion prospects either owned by or the subject of, massive offers from the major farms upon Group success on the track.

Despite the recent downturn in our economy, we saw Caulfield Guineas winner Starspangledbanner reportedly sold just last week to the Coolmore empire for an eight figure sum.

Blue Sky Thoroughbreds’ unique Stallion Fund model has offered owners and breeders alike an affordable vehicle to invest in stallion prospects as yearlings, in a joint venture with the country’s most successful Australian owned farm (and home to numerous champion sires), Arrowfield Stud.

Combining a private equity model with bloodstock expertise, the Blue Sky Stallion Fund has produced startling results from just two editions, purchasing a total of seven yearlings in two years for three stakes performers including Flemington stakes winner COMMON INTEREST, WA Group 1 Derby bound RED HOT CHOICE and Saturday’s Blue Diamond Prelude winner BENETEAU.

BENETEAU (pictured www.stevehart.com.au ) , trained by Paul Messara (Redoute’s Choice) followed up a first start victory at Randwick on Australia Day with a 2 ½ length win from group winner General Truce and Thegreatandthegood in class record time to take the Blue Diamond Prelude in dominant fashion.

Following Saturday’s victory, Timeform has rated Beneteau 120 in its international ratings, making him the highest rated juvenile in Australia by some four points. Bookmakers have followed suit installing the Blue Sky Stallion Fund graduate as $3.60 favorite for the Group 1 Blue Diamond Stakes Saturday week and $7.00 favorite for the Golden Slipper in March.

“It’s certainly exciting to have a colt like Beneteau in the 2009 Fund doing so well”, commented Blue Sky Bloodstock Director Julian Blaxland after Saturday’s win at Caulfield. “Paul Messara and Daniel (Ganderton) have done a great job with the horse and hopefully for our investors he can go on and take out one of the juvenile Group 1 races this autumn. He was a lovely yearling with a great action and I think he’ll get better with age and distance.”

The 2009 Stallion Fund is also likely to have the Mark Kavanagh trained SHRAPNEL first up in the Listed Queen Adelaide Stakes on Saturday, who to date has already shown Kavanagh some of the ability of his well performed half brother.

The Highgrove Stud sold Charge Forward colt from Fragmentation was purchased for the 2009 Stallion Fund by Blue Sky at the Easter yearling sales and is a half brother to boom sprinter and Lightning stakes runner up WANTED. “He trialled last week at Flemington in good style and should run well on Saturday according to the stable, but is probably a better spring carnival prospect” added Blaxland.

The Blue Sky Fund model (Filly, Racing and Stallion Fund) is performance based with no buyer’s commission and a back ended fee structure. The company therefore needs its horses to run and win, aligning Blue Sky’s interests with those of its Fund investors.

“The beauty of the funds is that all our investment is raised prior to purchasing the horses at auction, in contrast to the syndicators model, allowing our bloodstock team, in consultation with our trainers to purchase the horses we really want, rather than a syndicator who must purchase horses he or she knows they can sell at a later date” added Blaxland.

“Our first ever fund was the 2007 Filly Fund which produced stakes winner and Magic Millions runner up SHE’S MEANER where we paid $300,000 for her as a yearling. A syndicator is unlikely to have bid to that level knowing they would have to sell on 10 shares at a later date for a Falvelon filly bred on a $12,000 service fee. We had the Filly Fund in place and therefore Gai (Waterhouse) and I loved her so much we were able to buy her with confidence fortunate for our investors.”

The Stallion Fund allows Blue Sky, in partnership with Arrowfield Stud, to identify the most likely stallion prospects at auction in Australasia and co‐invest in these with the aim of producing one or more colts annually to either stand at Arrowfield or elsewhere at stud upon retirement.

“Obviously its no easy task to select tomorrow’s commercial sire, but by spreading our investors risk through the purchase of a number of colts, and the combination of both team Blue Sky, team Arrowfield and our Fund trainers, we certainly give ourselves every chance of getting the real deal in the selection process” said Blaxland.

At $50,000 per unit, the Blue Sky Stallion Fund is again proving popular with both owners and breeders alike ahead of the Fund’s Inglis Easter Yearling Sale hunting ground in April. Arrowfield and associates will again be contributing dollar for dollar with Blue Sky as the two organizations search for the next Beneteau in Sydney at Easter.

Blue Sky Release