"$200,000 for a greyhound ... that's ridiculous. AND, they knocked it back."

That was a comment I heard from so many greyhound owners and trainers early in 2024 when the owners of then “boom” young dog Morton was starting his race career.

Morton (Tommy Shelby-Chloe Louise) by that time had raced 15 times for nine wins and had been third in the Group 1 Silver Chief.

You can understand “dog blokes” who have never been involved with such a hot prospect being unable to believe a greyhound is worth that sort of dough.

Not my mate Mick Zammit, now me. Mick and I discussed at the time the value in purchasing a young prospect like Morton who was already showing Group 1 ability, or the relative merits of spending millions on an untried yearling thoroughbred.

It is history now that Morton went on to win the G1 Gold Bullion, the G2 Qld Derby, rung 2 nd in the G2 Warrnambool Cup, third in the G1 Silver Chief, The Sandgroper, G1 Harrison Dawson, Brisbane Cup Consolation, and be a finalist in the G1 Temlee, G1 Australian Cup … you see what I mean.

That $200,000 for Morton now stands at the dog having won 16 races and earned $517,000.

Mick was always adamant $200,000 for a dog the calibre of Morton was NOT a huge offer.

He equates it to the thoroughbred industry and the purchase of yearlings. Only a few weeks after Morton's Derby win, the annual Magic Millions yearling sales were underway and as usual some of the lots were bringing upwards of a million, some two, occasionally three ... yes $3 million.

Is that value?

Mick and I totally agree ... not in the slightest.

To make our point, let's hark back to the highest priced yearlings sold in Australia during 2022.

We chose that year because those horses are now racing and with the opportunity to prove worthy of their huge sale cost ... or are they?

The top six yearlings sold in the country during 2022 are:

KANDINSKY ABSTRACT

Bought for $3 million by Tom Magnier of Coolmore Stud and sent to Chris Waller.

To time of writing, he has raced eight times for a Canterbury maiden win and a win at Warwick Farm, no placings, and has earned $93,000. They gelded him so any chance of picking up something at stud of the $3 million purchase price is long gone.

That was a pretty good buy … don’t you think!

CONGREGATION

Magnier paid $2.25 million for him and sent him to Waller.

To time of writing, he has started four times for two wins and earned $147,000 from a win at Canterbury in a maiden, and at Rosehill in a 2YO.

SNITZEL-SILENT SEDITION

Hawkes Racing paid $2.2 million for the as yet unnamed filly. The mother was a racetrack star, and she has been mated three times to champion sire Snitzel, the offspring being sold for $600,000, $700,000 and the $2.2 million yearling mentioned here. NONE of them have been named.

I AM FAMOUS

Bought for $2 million, it too went to Chris Waller. From nine starts it has won three at Warwick Farm, Hawkesbury and Rosehill, been placed once and earned $166,000.

SUSPECT

Magnier and Waller again.

This time it cost $1.9 million and from eight starts it has won at Albury and been placed three times for stakes of $55,000. Gelded it was long ago cast off from Waller and Magnier.

KUNDALINI

Herron Bloodstock paid $1.7 million for her and in six starts she has won a Maiden at Sale and been placed four times but earned $284,000. Of that $195,000 came from her 3rd in the Inglis Millennium.

So, that's the top six purchases in 2020, bought by the cream of breeders, owners and trainers. That is $13 million to get a return of $745,000 and the majority of that came from just one horse.

Gai Waterhouse/Adrian Bott, on their website, advertise yearly training fees of $63,000 … and you can expect the added extras to be huge.

That takes the $13 million initial outlay to almost $14 million and probably much, much more with those added costs.

Ciaron Maher Racing is believed to charge $8000 a month for the training of one horse.

Don't forget too that trainers get 10% of all prizemoney won and jockeys 5% ... but the unwritten law among the very best is "apparently" that trainers get 20% and jockeys 10%.

So, $223,000 of the $745,000 those six highest priced yearlings of 2022 have won, comes out as well.

Obviously these premier breeders, owners, trainers are paying out millions for these yearlings and have every reason to believe they will be well worth the cost.

Consider, too, that if you decide the top trainer is not for you and move the horse elsewhere ... most of those top trainers will get their trainer's percentage of prizemoney for the next three months.

It's in the contract you sign with the top trainers when your million dollar yearling enters the stable.

Now for the clincher.

If you decide to sell that high priced yearling down the track, some trainers have a claim of up to 25% of whatever you get for the horse.

Consider that if you get a Golden Slipper winner and along comes the famous stud wanting to buy your colt for stud duties.

You instantly lose 25%. In most quarters 10% is the standard fee trainers charge.

Or, consider if the filly with the great pedigree that cost $2 million at the yearling sales but could not trot on the track, is sold off to a stud wishing to give her a chance as a broodmare because of that fabulous pedigree.

It's the same deal as the superstar winner of the Slipper.

No wonder we see all those adverts for yearlings, the trainers talking up their Magic Millions purchases, and the syndicators offering 5% of a colt for $12,000 (that might only get you 2.5% in some yearlings) or thereabouts.

Don't even get me started on syndicators.

Which brings us back to Morton and that $200,000 offer for an already proven high class race dog.

You tell me which deal you think is the best ... the proven greyhound, or the unproven yearling!

I remember Doc Chapman, the famous medico who turned to thoroughbred training decades ago, telling me decades ago the major studs, the syndicators etc "sell dreams".

Of course there will always be Winx, the $200,000 yearling purchase who won $25 million, but there is only one Winx.

How many dreams come true?

Yes, Mick Zammit and I have shared a VERY small interest in a race mare trained by Joe Pride. She won two races and $120,000 in stakes. Her yearling purchase was $260,000. When Joe sacked her early this year, she was put up for on-line sale.

Our dividend from the sale came to $154 … yes, $154.

As Mick said “it would not buy you a nice raincoat”. We are out of horses and firmly entrenched in greyhound racing.