Blue Gum Farm shuttler Canford Cliffs topped Day 1 of this week’s Tattersalls Craven Breeze-Up Sale with a 300,000gns (AUD 610,860) colt destined for Hong Kong.

Already named Sparte Quercus, he is a half-brother to the dam of last year’s LR Flying Scotsman Stakes winner Nafaqa (Sir Percy).  “He breezed very well,” agent Charlie Gordon-Watson said.  “And he’s a solid horse by a sire I like.”

Athassel House studmaster Paddy Twomey had pin-hooked the colt for 65,000 euros (AUD 93,665) at the 2014 Arqana October yearling sale

Canford Cliffs (Ire) had 10 lots average $77,050 at the Inglis Melbourne Premier I Sale in March and there are another two colts and filly going under the hammer at the VOBIS Gold Sale on Sunday.

Coolmore Stud shuttles Canford Cliffs to Blue Gum after a career that saw him win the Group 1 Irish 2,000 Guineas, St James’s Palace Stakes & Sussex Stakes as a three year-old and the G1 Lockinge Stakes & Queen Anne Stakes at four before going down to Frankel when attempting a Sussex Stakes repeat in 2011.

SPARTE QUERCUS