THERE were gasps from the crowd as a Saudi businessman previously linked to the takeover of Chelsea spent £5.6million on two horses that made a trainer go ‘oh my God’.
Famed trainer Bob Baffert could not believe his eyes when he saw the colt for sale at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale in the US.
Zedan, far left, has friends in high places including Will and Kate… and isn’t afraid to spend big on potential superstar horses
Watch Hip 165 c. CURLIN o/o Horse of the Year Beholder sell for $4,000,000 at The Saratoga Sale!#FasigSaratoga @TaylorMadeSales @HillnDaleFarm @ZedanRacing @DonatoLanni pic.twitter.com/zo5qCRTvTH
— Fasig-Tipton (@FasigTiptonCo) August 9, 2023
Convinced he had to have the horse by Into Mischief, Saudi investor and racing fanatic Amr Zedan dropped £2.5m on the potential superstar.
Incredibly, that mega-money buy came just two hours after he spent a further £3.1m on a stunning sale-topper that had sparked a bidding frenzy at the sales.
Zedan, who was touted as the possible new owner of Chelsea last March, bought the two most expensive horses on sale at the auction.
Born in LA and raised in Saudi Arabia, Zedan is believed to have a net worth of somewhere in the region of £300m.
He is head of the Zedan Group – a behemoth in Saudi’s energy sector – and owns Zedan Racing Stables Inc.
That name might ring a bell as they were listed as the owner of Medina Spirit, the Kentucky Derby winner who was subsequently disqualified and died as a three-year-old.
Medina Spirit’s DQ for a banned substance cast a spotlight on trainer Baffert and his methods.
But the most decorated trainer in Kentucky Derby history, he will now be in charge of Zedan’s two new recruits.
All eyes will be on how the £3.1m yearling – one of the most expensive horses ever sold at the auction – performs.
He is by former US horse of the year Curlin and out of winning machine Beholder, who ended her career with an amazing nose defeat of Songbird in the 2016 Breeders’ Cup Distaff.
The horse is the most expensive sold at the Saratoga sales in 23 years.
But curiously it was the second horse, purchased for £600,000 less, that made Baffert go ‘oh my God’.
Zedan’s agent Donato Lanni told Bloodhorse – who reported on the gasps from the crowd as the price rose and rose – about why they went so high.
He said: “If you’re going to play the game and you want to buy the top end, you’re going to have to stretch – and we stretched.
“The first time we saw him, Bob was like ‘oh my God.’
“So that was it. He loved this horse, and he was adamant that we not go home without him.”
Fasig-Tipton president Boyd Browning Jr, who was in charge of the sale, said: “We have experienced some magical nights in Saratoga in the past and you’ve heard me talk about the Saratoga magic, but we ain’t seen nothing like tonight.
“It was spectacular from the very first horse in the ring.”
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