HORSE RACING
Quality at Cape sales not a good bet, says Gavin Hunter
International bloodstock expert believes some breeders were being left behind "leading to overproduction and mediocrity"
Two months ago, yearling buyers must have felt like they were shopping at Harrods in London, while last week’s two Cape sales must have seemed like special offers at the local supermarket. The CTS Premier Sale in January saw a R6m yearling total and average of R700,000, but the top price last week was only R525,000. At Bloodstock SA’s yearling sale at the Mistico Equestrian Centre, the average dropped to R60,545 compared with their 2016 Cape sale figure of R134,200. Cape Thoroughbred Sales two-day session at Durbanville racecourse saw the average drop to R78,850 compared with R107,563 in 2016. Contacted for his opinion on the reason for this downturn, international bloodstock expert Gavin Hunter, who lives in Cape Town, said that he believed some breeders were being left behind "leading to overproduction and mediocrity". "With few exceptions, the quality on view at both sales was a bitter disappointment. I have not studied the averages and gross, but if they are down I’m not surpris...
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