The Craven Breeze-Up Sale.

The first of six breeze-up sales across Europe in a six-week period, the Craven Breeze-Up Sale heralds the start of spring for the bloodstock industry and holds an increasingly important position in the sales calendar.

The 2000 sale was well-supported with 154 sold lots but the quality of two-year-old was reflected in the average sales price – a mere 24,958 guineas. Inflation is an obvious consideration, yet the value placed on Craven breezers has risen astronomically as a result of racecourse success rate, with the average lot selling for 137,590 guineas in 2024.

Covid affected years (2020 and 2021) aside, the Craven Breeze-Up Sale has achieved an average of over 100,000 guineas since 2014, with recent flagbearers ensuring the sale is the forefront of breeze-up season for years to come.

The results defy belief, and it was the George Boughey-trained Believing who became the sale's fifth individual Group 1 winner since 2022 when taking the Al Quoz Sprint on Dubai World Cup night. The filly, who sold for 3 million guineas to Coolmore at the December Mares Sale, arguably sits near the bottom of the recent Group 1 graduate table – a statement which demonstrates the sheer success of the sale.

The nature of a breeze-up sale suggests a birthplace for top-class juveniles, and it has proved to be true, with both dual Group 1 winner Vandeek and Group 1 Futurity Trophy victor Hotazhell bought in 2023 and 2024. Yet the Craven has proved it is not simply a source of juvenile speed, with the quintet of Group 1 graduates headed by two Classic winners - Irish 2000 Guineas champion Native Trail and 1000 Guineas heroine Cachet.

Thirty-one individual Group and Listed winners have originated from the sale since 2022 and whilst they may not have reached the dizzying heights of Classic glory, a few have gone close. In 2023, Freddie Tylicki picked up Ambiente Friendly for a mere 80,000 guineas and the colt progressed to finish placed in both the English and Irish Derbies at three.

So, what catches the eye in this year's renewal of the sale? For those in search of a top-class juvenile, it may pay to keep close attention to the offspring of highly anticipated first-season sire Starman. He is represented by seven lots, including a half-brother to the Group 1-placed sprinter Spycatcher (Lot 34) and a Knockanglass Stables consigned colt from the family of Blue Point.

Elsewhere in the catalogue, the Speightstown colt out of Champion US Two-Year-Old Filly She Be Wild (Lot 138) offers a unique opportunity for purchasers to buy into a top-class American pedigree, whilst the page of a St Mark's Basilica filly (Lot 117) has the

potential to receive further boost with half-brother, the Grade 1 placed juvenile Al Qudra, set for a busy Classic campaign.

This year's sale, in short, was easily summed up by Tattersalls chairman Edmond Mahony.

"The Tattersalls Craven Breeze Up Sale is unquestionably Europe's leading breeze-up sale for Group 1 winners.

"The calibre and consistency of Group 1 winners sourced from the sale are a testament to the outstanding quality that Europe's leading breeze-up consignors offer year after year, and this year's catalogue is no exception."