Shunsuke Yoshida, the scion of Katsumi Yoshida, owner of one of the most powerful thoroughbred farms in the world (Northern Farm) and consummate horseman speaks to The Impact about their 2019 draft for the most prestigious thoroughbred sale in Japan, the JHRA Select Sale.
Q: What is the size of your draft? And what do you think buyers can expect from your 2019 draft?
There will be 95 yearlings and 90 foals that will be entering the Select Sales which were bred at Northern Farm.
A: We expect that the horses entering the sales this year would have a great outcome as we have been having from the past several years which includes Group 1 winners not only in Japan.
The price will vary but the buyers can expect high performance for all of the horses mainly at mid to classic distance races.
Also, if a buyer could purchase a Northern Farm bred horse, Northern Farm can do the breaking, training, spelling if the buyer wishes to.
We have 2 training facilities (in Japanese, we call it the “Gaikyu” or let’s call it an outpost) which are called Northern Farm Tenei and Northern Farm Shigaraki.
We can train the horses as well as refresh the horses so they can be in better conditions between the races.
Northern Farm bred horses have been using those facilities and we have been achieving a great outcome by using those outposts.
Q: How many broodmares do you currently house?
A: We have 847 broodmares at the moment.
Q: What are Northern Farm's most successful sales in the past 12 months?
A: The Select Sales has always been a success at Northern Farm.
In 2017, ADMIRE MARS (2018 2yo colt champion in Japan) and DANNON FANTASY (2018 2yo filly champion) were purchased at the yearling sales.
The Japanese Oaks winner (LOVES ONLY YOU) was also purchased at the Select Sales in 2017.
This year’s Victoria Mile winner NORMCORE was also purchased at the Select Sales in 2016 as a yearling.
The two-time Gr.1 winner in US, YOSHIDA, was also purchased in the Select Sale.
Horses that were purchased in 2018 are starting their racing careers from now, and we expect those horses to have a very good outcome same as the horses mentioned above.
Q: What are the factors you keep in mind when planning matings and how far-in-advance do you plan them?
A: We basically plan the matings in the morning of that day by referring to the foals that they have foaled as well as the chemistry they have with some stallions.
Q: Do you breed horses with specific races in mind or do you believe in breeding top-class athletes?
A: We will try to target the Classic races, while it depends on the horse.
At the same time, we also try to maximize the characteristics and the potentiality that each mare/stallion has.
Q: What are the keys to selecting a broodmare prospect and starting her off successfully?
A: We believe it is a combination of the black type, racing performance and appearance
Published In The Impact 15 Issue, 2 Vol
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