The family of Gr 1 winner FUNSTAR (Adelaide – Starspangled) is one of the very best female lines ever to race in Australia.
And last night, Japan’s leading breeder, Katsumi Yoshida purchased her.
He forked out $2.7million for the beautiful mare who was not in foal. The price paid is a world record for a mare purchased online.
While racing here with Chris Waller as her trainer, she won the Gr 1 Flight Stakes, and was runner-up in three other Gr 1 features – the Epsom; the Surround and the Queen Of the Turf Stakes.
She won $1,142,325 in prize money.
“I am so thrilled that we were able to purchase a beautiful mare,” Yoshida said.
“We have her (half) sister Youngstar and also have mares related to the granddam User Friendly.
“We are looking forward to seeing their progenies winning in Japan.”
Funstar’s managing owner Oliver Koolman – who discovered the filly at the 2018 Easter Yearling Sale where he purchased her for $80,000 – was lost for superlatives at the result.
“I’m absolutely stunned. It’s hard to fathom just how much of an amazing result this is,’’ Koolman said.
“She was a fabulous race filly and mare and we had a lot of fun with her but never in our wildest dreams did we expect she would sell for $2.7m in any sale, let alone a digital sale.”
Funstar’s family tree is extraordinary.
Quite apart from her own racetrack record, the mare’s half-star by High Chaparral, Youngstar is also a Gr 1 winning millionaire.
Their other half-sister, Baggy Green, won a low-key race as a racehorse, but as a broodmare produced the 3 x Gr 1 winner Tofane, recent winner of the Stradbroke Hcp.
While their grandmother, User Friendly, was Champion 3YO of Europe and winner of 8 races, with 5 of them at Gr 1 level.
