Haunui delighted with 2024 weanling draft

Lot 79, Proisir x Respect colt

Haunui Farm is one of the foremost names among vendors at the New Zealand Bloodstock National Weanling Sale every year and their 2024 crop of weanlings catalogued for Karaka on Thursday are right up to the respected nurseries’ usual high standard.

Haunui Farm also boasts a proud history with its weanling offerings, having sold the likes of Group One winner Jungle Rocket (for $21,000) and Karaka Million (1200m) hero Hardline ($43,000) through this sale.

“We’ve sold Karaka Million and Oaks winners through our weanling drafts over the years, and pinhookers had some excellent results with the weanlings that we sold at last year’s sale,” Haunui’s managing director Mark Chitty said.

“We like to cap our numbers at around 55 for the yearling sales every year, so the weanling sale is a nice way to offer some of our other stock and provide some good opportunities for buyers at the same time.”

Those pinhooking results from Haunui’s 2023 weanling draft included a Proisir colt that was recruited by Riversley Park for $60,000. He later went through the ring again during Book 1 of Karaka 2024 and was sold to Ciaron Maher for $260,000.

Haunui Farm’s 2024 weanling draft numbers 18 and, like Curraghmore’s, includes the progeny of a range of sires.

Lot 79 is a well-made colt by Proisir out of the unraced Savabeel mare Respect, who is a full-sister to the Group performers Live And Free and Clementina.

Lot 68 is a Super Seth filly out of the O’Reilly mare O’Pristine, whose dam So Pristine won the Gr.2 Queen of the South Stakes (1600m) in Adelaide.

“I think they’re a lovely bunch of weanlings this year by a variety of sires,” Chitty said. “There’s particular interest in some of them who are by very topical sires such as Super Seth, Almanzor and Proisir, and we’re confident they’re going to be favourably received by the buying bench.” – NZ Racing Desk.