Buyer demand for local proven and freshman sires was evident throughout New Zealand Bloodstock’s 2023 National Online Yearling Sale on Gavelhouse Plus, which closed on Wednesday night.

Rich Hill Stud stallion Proisir’s star continued to shine, topping the sale when lot 39, a filly by the sire out of Khaseeb, was secured by trainer Johno Benner for $110,000 on behalf of Gary Harding.

“She is a quality filly, Proisir can do no wrong and we wanted her, and that was that,” said Benner, who trains in partnership with Hollie Wynyard.

The filly was offered through the draft of Manawatu’s Fairdale Stud and farm principal Duncan Fell was delighted with the result.

“We’re over the moon, it’s an incredible result for us and the mare,” he said.

“We purposely held her back from Karaka as we thought she wasn’t ready for it, and we felt the page would receive some updates later, which it has in the last few days.

“We could not be more elated and grateful to have such a platform for these later types of horses.”

It wasn’t long before another Proisir filly made headlines when Ancroft Stud laid out $105,000 for Lot 70 (ex Rose’s Girl) from Curraghmore’s draft.

“We offered four yearlings, and we sold the four. I couldn’t be happier right now,” Curraghmore’s Gordon Cunningham said.

“With the sire’s (Proisir) incredible success in recent times, it’s no surprise with these results tonight that the Proisir’s are in big demand.

“I hope she’s lucky for Ancroft Stud, she could be their next Levante or Legarto.”

Meanwhile, Little Avondale Stud are celebrating the result of their only yearling offered in the sale that went the way of Kevin Payne, Darranda Pty Ltd for $90,000.

Lot 16, the colt by Super Seth out of the Per Incanto mare Camillino, was aimed at the online session by studmaster Sam Williams.

“We had a few later type of yearlings left over, and while this one was originally aimed for the Ready to Run Sale, we wanted to support this yearling session and decided to put our best one forward,” he said.

“It was the right decision, plus the Super Seth’s sold extremely well at the yearling sales, they are nice types.

“The online format provided for us was a no brainer. Everything is right there for buyers to access and it can really benefit these later maturing yearlings.”

New Zealand Bloodstock Sales Manager Kane Jones was pleased with the sale’s results.

“We saw vigorous competition for the quality yearlings on offer, with the total turnover surpassing $677,000,” he said.

“Our buyers have a very good grasp of the online format, with an abundance of information supplied by our vendors, providing full transparency and confidence in the product on offer.

“It was tremendously encouraging to see local proven and emerging sires, the likes of Proisir, Ocean Park, Super Seth, Eminent and Ace High all feature prominently in the results.

“The team is working tirelessly behind the scenes, and we look forward to selling more horses in the coming hours and days.”

All lots purchased from the National Online Yearling Sale are eligible to be nominated for NZB’s lucrative Karaka Million Series.

Just nine months after they make their virtual sale ring debut, graduates of the online sale can compete for a share of the $1 million DoubleTree by Hilton Karaka Million 2YO (1200m), followed by the $1 million Karaka Million 3YO Classic (1600m) in their three-year-old season, and then the $120,000 Collinson Forex Karaka Cup (2200m) for the remainder of their careers.