$1.8 Million Exceed and Excel Colt from G1 Winner Platelet

Tara Madgwick - Friday January 10

A protracted bidding duel marked the sale of Lot 640, a powerhouse colt by Exceed and Excel from dual Group I winning sprinter Platelet with Hawkes Racing prevailing over a persistent Coolmore.

$1.8 Million Exceed and Excel colt sold by CressfieldConsigned by Cressfield, the colt is the second foal of Strategic mare Platelet, whose first foal, a colt by Fastnet Rock made just $80,000 at Inglis Classic in 2018.

Cressfield have built a highly successful breeding program through acquiring outstanding racemares and sending them to the best sires with this colt a shining example that is now the highest priced yearling ever sired by Exceed and Excel.

Hawkes Racing currently have an outstanding Exceed and Excel colt in the stable in Exceedance, winner of the Group I VRC Coolmore Stud Stakes, so their determination to purchase this colt is understandable.



“He was the colt of the sale,” said Wayne Hawkes in his post sale comments.

“Tom Magnier just came up to congratulate us.

Platelet was a brilliant racemare that won 10 races highlighted by G1 Sangster Stakes and Goodwood Handicap “It was big money but he looks a ready made 2YO and we would expect to see him as a Magic Millions and Golden Slipper horse next year.

“This was actually the easy part, the hard part starts in a few months when he arrives at Rosehill.”

Platelet has a filly foal to follow by Merchant Navy and was covered by him again last spring.

Darley’s perennial champion sire Exceed and Excel is enjoying great results at this sale and this was his second million dollar colt at the Gold Coast this year.




 

Advertisment
More Reading...
Exceed and Excel Colts Surge Late
The session topper for the first day of Magic Millions on Wednesday arrived late in proceedings with an Exceed and Excel colt from intriguing Frankel mare Dream in Colour (GB) selling for $1.1million to the bid of Coolmore’s Tom Magnier.
Exceed And Excel's Athelric Rewarded for Consistency
It was a 1-3 for Godolphin in Saturday’s Listed Queensland Day Stakes (1200m) for three-year-olds at Eagle Farm.
TBA Mourn Passing of So You Think
Thoroughbred Breeders Australia (TBA) and Aushorse join the wider industry in mourning the passing of So You Think, one of the modern greats of the Australian turf and a truly elite sire.
Juvenile Trial Watch – Hawkesbury
A lone 2YO went around in an 800m trial for two and three year-olds at Hawkesbury on Tuesday and the Snitzel colt won in good style carrying the Mulberry Racing colours.
Delacroix Brings Dubawi Outcross to Coolmore Roster
Blueblood 3YO Dubawi colt Delacroix has been retired and the dual Group I winner will stand at Coolmore in Ireland in 2026.
Best On Breeding
Placed behind subsequent Melbourne Cup heroine Empire Rose in the New Zealand Oaks, Eau D'Etoile (Sir Tristram) became that rarest of broodmares with three Group 1 winners and a Listed stakes-winner to her credit on the way to earning Broodmare Of The Year status and that should have been her crowning achievement.
15th G1 Winner for Exceed and Excel
Turning 20 this year, Darley’s champion sire Exceed and Excel has just finished a super successful Magic Millions Sale that saw him with 24 yearlings average $398,542 to be the third leading sire by average and in South Africa on Saturday he posted a 15th Group I winner.
A New Benchmark for Edinburgh Stud
An emotional Ian Smith watched on as bidding reached $1 million for Edinburgh Stud’s stunning Exceed And Excel colt out of the Smoke Glacken mare Smokin’ Alice (USA) to set a new benchmark for the stud.
2025 G1 Cox Plate Field and Barrier Draw
A field of nine has been finalised for the 2025 Cox Plate with favourite Via Sistina drawing gate seven for Chris Waller and James McDonald, while one three-year-old has accepted to run in Nepotism.
Magic Millions - The Book
The famous US sports journo, Red Smith, once proclaimed that : “writing is easy … I just sit down at my typewriter and open a vein”.