Damion Flower has always been a special feature in the racing community. His unparalleled talent for spotting the best horses is nothing short of mystic. Ten Furlongs was granted time with the master himself and we got him talking about his method and of course, his superstar, Snitzel.
Q: Have you had a chance to take a peek at the Easter Yearling Sale Catalogue? Are there any first-crop sires you fancy?
A: Yes, as soon as it is online I’m onto it. This being the Easter Sale the proven sires being the cream will rise to the top, so I’ll be concentrating on those sires.
Q:Also, do you see any under-rated first crop sires?
A: I think they have been found during the earlier years sales. Vancouver is the one to watch in my eyes.
Q:What do you look for in a horse, be it a sprinter or stayer?
A: First thing I look at is there walk. To me: If they can’t walk, they usually can’t run “ . I like a horse that has presence and a great attitude. I tend to look for a precocious type as we breed for speed in Australia and the colonial stallions are proven. I like them to be balanced with nice hip and shape. I want them to look “fast “ .
Q:What is your process when buying horses?
A: Firstly, I start off by browsing the catalogue. I then mark out the ones that interest me. From there I punch them into my own pedigree match system and the ones that hit the mark ‘stay ‘and the ones that don’t ‘go ‘. Then comes the sighting of the horses at the complex as they may match-up great in my system but physically they may not, so the ones that match ‘stay ‘and the ones that don’t ‘go ‘. From there we have our short list where we re visit each horse intensely and give them a final mark down by priority followed by getting them vetted. Once vetted and passing our criteria we know exactly where we are at and we do one last private test of our own which we then put a price on them and wait for them to go through the ring.
Q: You've had incredibly talented horses pass through your hands including Snitzel, what characteristics do you think the good ones have in common?
A: Undoubtedly to me it’s their “attitude”. Obviously they are blessed with ability but without that smart sharp mature brain they rarely produce it.
Q: Do you study pedigrees?
A: Yes! It is the first thing I do and it’s a major factor in my criteria. Blood talks!
Q: In terms of sire power, do you lean toward what is more commercially popular? Or do you run more strictly along the lines of how you think the pedigrees will best complement each other? Or is it a more of a balance?
A: Naturally popularity through the sire power obviously will sell on type commercially but for me I like the pedigrees to really complement one another as well. There must be balance of some sort.
Q: Do you find the market has changed over the years with more emphasis being placed on the top end where you could possibly find a Group winner?
A: The cream always rises to the top therefore the market at the high end is always going to be greater especially when looking at a Potential Black Type yearling or Potential Stallion. Answering the question I would say that no matter what state the economy is, the thoroughbred industry regarding sales never seems to be interrupted by this, therefore changes are by the quality that is on the market.
Published in The Impact 2 Issue, 2 Vol
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Credit: Pallavi Shevade pallavi.shevade@secretariatsworld.com