'I think it's going to be strong' - fine year for Ballylinch and Lope De Vega looks set to continue at Arqana

On top of an excellent year for stalwart Lope De Vega, Ballylinch Stud are looking ahead to another good showing at Arqana's August Yearling Sale this weekend. 

Lope De Vega has to date sired 20 individual black-type winners in 2024, led by four top-flight winners. The leading sire in Europe by prize-money and winners can thank, in particular, Prix du Jockey Club hero Look De Vega and Poule d'Essai des Pouliches heroine Rouhiya for that charge, while in the United States the son of Shamardal has been represented by Turf Classic Stakes Program Trading and recent Fourstardave Handicap victor Carl Spackler. 

Ballylinch managing director John O'Connor said on Thursday: "Lope De Vega is [having a great year] but hopefully there's plenty more to go for the rest of the year, he's got some lovely two-year-olds coming on as well as the Classic crop."

Excitingly, the stud can look forward to Look De Vega standing alongside his sire in due course, but attentions now turn to the action in Deauville, where buyers from around the world are out in force. 

Overseeing the seven-strong draft, O'Connor continued: "We try to be consistent with our drafts, we've been coming a long time and more or less feel what the market requires here. 

"We try and bring them [horses] to suit that and try to bring something that will have international appeal, those by leading sires and out of a strong damline. That's mostly what you need in this sale."

Ballylinch Stud's Lope De Vega filly out of Normandel, a sister to the dam of PyledriverCredit: ZUZANNA LUPA

On the turnout from buyers ahead of the opening day on Friday, he added: "It's strong, you can see most of the biggest international teams are around already. I think it's going to be strong."

Ballylinch's team includes a trio by Lope De Vega, namely a filly out of black-type-winning Sea The Stars mare Conte De Fee (lot 99), a filly out of a Group-winning Le Havre sister to Pyledriver's dam La Pyle (240), plus a filly out of a Golden Horn half-sister to Deutsches Derby hero and Group 1 sire Sea The Moon (297), from the excellent family of Schiaparelli, Salve Regina and Samum. 

Others from the draft include a filly by Lope De Vega's stud mate New Bay (159) who is out of a close relation or half-sister to Group 1 winners Lumiere and Sheikha Reika, plus a Siyouni filly (312) out of the Listed-winning Galileo mare Solage, the dam of another black-type winner in Opera Mundi. 

It is the further family of Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud heroine Plumania and Prix Vermeille scorer Left Hand, while another who appears on the page, Aventure, runs in Saturday's Prix de Pomone, just a stone's throw away from the sale ground. 

The first into the ring will be the operation's Pinatubo half-sister to Lope De Vega's Italian Derby runner-up Juan de Montalban (40), while there is also a colt by the red-hot Night Of Thunder (46) from the family of top-level winners Hermosa and Hydrangea. 

O'Connor said of the draft: "I think she [the Lope De Vega filly out of La Pyle's sister Normandel] is an exceptional filly, she's got a lot of quality and is out of a very good racemare. She's a beautiful mover and is very correct."

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