At the recent Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, I Am Invincible had three $1 million-plus yearlings highlighted by the sales-topping $2 million colt out of Tai Tess, while 37 of his yearling averaged $478,649.
They came from a crop where his fee had been raised to $55,000.
These are heady times for a stallion that stood his first four seasons at a fee of $11,000.
I Am Invincible is still on an upward trajectory. A doubling of his fee to $110,000 in 2017 proved no deterrent. The quality of the 200 mares that he covered last spring was truly mind-boggling.
Venturing through the gates of Yarraman Park last spring were the incomparable Black Caviar, A Time For Julia, Amelia’s Dream, Amanpour, Augusta Proud, Champagne Cath, Cosmic Endeavour, Courgette, Commanding Jewel, Diamond Drille, Eloping, Forever Loved, Gallica, Gypsy Diamond, Hoss Armour, Gold Chant, Oakleigh Girl, Precious Lorraine, Real Surreal Rewaaya, Serious Speed, Sister Madly, Snitzerland, Srikandi, Tai Tai Tess, Villa Verdi and so many more bluebloods.
The Blue Diamond trials are already upon us and at Caulfield on Saturday I Am Invincible has two entrants in both the Listed Blue Diamond Preview for colts and geldings and Group III Fillies division.
Making his career debut is the Peter Gelagotis-trained Fandral (ex La Biondina by Rock Of Gibraltar) who was purchased by Gelagotis Racing / Cameron Cooke Bloodstock for $310,000 at the Inglis Premier Yearling Sale.
That makes him second only to the undefeated $750,000 Fastnet Rock colt Long Leaf in the field.
At the other end of the scale is Triple Crown Syndications Invincible Lad (ex Magdalena by Snaadee) an $80,000 Inglis Classic purchase who is second only to the highly promising Charge Forward colt Ollivander, who came from the same sale at a cost of $70,000, as the least expensive in the field.
Invincible Lad (pictured above as a yearling ) has made just one start. He led them up in the Listed Breeders’ Plate at Randwick back in October before running out of puff and beating just two home.
We will be banking on Peter and Paul Snowden showing enough faith in the son Invincible Spirit to send him south for a second stakes assignment.
A brother to Tetsuko, who was placed in the Group II Sweet Embrace Stakes and the Listed Gimcrack Stakes, Invincible Lad is the tenth foal of the stakes-winning Snaadee mare Magdelena who also produced the multiple Stakes-placed Star Cat and the Group III placed Purrpurrlena (Catbird) who is the dam of the 2014-15 South African Champion 2yo Filly Entisaar (More Than Ready) who won the Group1 Allan Robertson Championship at Scottsville.
Purrpurrlena is one of the 200 mares that visited I Am Invincible last spring.
As in the colts division of the Blue Diamond Preview, Fastnet Rock has the most expensive purchase in the fillies division, the $850,000 Easter purchase Downloads who will be making her career debut.
But the two daughters of I Am Invincible, Oohood and Pure Elation are likely to fight out favouritism.
A Sheikh Mohammed Bin Khalifa Al Maktoum homebred, Oohood was narrowly beaten by Long Leaf in the Listed Merson Cooper Stakes when making her debut at Sandown.
The second I Am Invincible filly on show is the first-starter Pure Elation who was an impressive barrier trial winner in Sydney.
Another one in the Snowden stable, Pure Elation (pictured above as a yearling ) will sport the silks of Sir Owen Glenn’s Go Bloodstock. She was knocked down to Paul Moroney Bloodstock for $320,000 out of the Swettenham Stud draft at the Inglis Premier Yearling sale.
If the grey filly salutes on Saturday, the roar of the crowd is likely to be a little louder than usual as Pure Elation is the first foal of the hugely popular Hussonet filly Members Joy.
As her name suggests, Members Joy, an $85,000 Magic Millions purchase, was raced by a syndicate of MRC members who leased her from her owner Swettenham Stud.
Winner of the Listed VRC Cap d'Antibes Stakes, Members Joy was runner-up in the Group II VRC Edward Manifold Stakes and Group II MRC Angus Armanasco Stakes and six years ago was runner-up to Malasun in the Blue Diamond Preview.
There will be plenty banking on her daughter going one better on Saturday.
