'I still haven't got over the buzz!' - meet Tattersalls' newest auctioneer

A new name and a fresh face appeared on the famous Park Paddocks rostrum during the two-day August Sale this week, with Freddie McKibbin making his Tattersalls auctioneering debut.

McKibbin produced an extremely polished performance that completely belied his inexperience, although the 23-year-old confessed there were nerves as well as excitement before he wielded the gavel for the first time in public.

"It was a very surreal feeling being up there and I'm still trying to take it all in," he said. "Waiting just behind the door before stepping onto the rostrum was quite an unusual feeling, it was quite daunting, but I tried not to think about all the history of the place and how big the actual ring is beforehand.

"There was a mixture of nerves and excitement but once I got up there it went by in a flash. I still haven't got over the buzz as it certainly gets the adrenaline pumping!"

Freddie McKibbin conducts proceedings during the Tattersalls August SaleCredit: Laura Green

Despite looking something of a natural, McKibbin, who has worked at Tattersalls for just over two years, explained that he had not initially set out to earn his place among the auctioneering team when he joined the Newmarket-based sales company.

"It started when I was still an intern in 2019 and Ollie Fowlston asked me if I'd ever thought about auctioneering," he said. "But at that point it had never crossed my mind. Ollie sent me a few tapes to listen to and I started practising, and that process was just about going through the numbers over and over and trying to perfect the rhythm of it before adding in any of the bloodstock material."

Having gone through a long and extensive period of preparation that included auctioneering to an empty Park Paddocks ring twice a month, McKibbin was finally handed his auctioneering debut at the second edition of the August Sale, which was topped by the 350,000gns Fabilis when bought by Peter Doyle on behalf of Najd Stud.

Tattersalls chairman Edmond MahonyCredit: Laura Green

McKibbin said that his live auction debut proved something of a steep learning curve and also paid thanks to the senior members of the Tattersalls team who had helped him reach this milestone moment.

"It's been a long process as it started back at the end of 2019 but there's no substitute for the live sale itself and I learned plenty while up there this week," he said.

"Ollie Fowlston has been mentoring me along with Edmond Mahony [Tattersalls chairman], those two have been pivotal in me being up there and I'm very grateful for the opportunity."

McKibbin has plenty of sales ring experience to call upon in his new role having spent a sales season bid spotting at Tattersalls in 2016 before taking his place on the famed Irish National Stud course.

That was followed by a stint in Australia at John Messara's Arrowfield, during which he worked at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, before he applied for the Tattersalls internship.

McKibbin said he was uncertain when his next auctioneering appearance would be, but added that he was very much looking forward to taking to the rostrum once again.

"I definitely felt the pressure but I just wanted to make everybody I was selling for proud," he said. "Hopefully I'll get another run soon, maybe at something like the horses-in-training sale."

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