Cambridge Stud sets the standard at Karaka 2026
Dennis Ryan - Raceform • February 5th, 2026 3:04 PM
In the high-stakes world of elite thoroughbred racing and breeding, nothing is taken for granted, nor does success happen by accident.
Those principles could be no better applied than to Cambridge Stud’s massive play at the 100th National Yearling Sale, when quality bloodlines, meticulous planning and precise presentation combined for the iconic nursery to claim another leading vendors’ title.
At the end of Book 1 selling, all but four lots in the 54-strong Cambridge Stud draft had changed hands for $10,640,000, headed by a first seven-figure result under the ownership of Sir Brendan and Lady Jo Lindsay for their Sword Of State half-brother to multiple Group One winner Ceolwulf at $1.1 million.
On top of those results were Book 2 receipts of $1,195,000 for 14 of 15 lots offered, including the session’s top price of $200,000 for a filly by another member of the Cambridge roster, Embellish.
In the middle of the sales action was Ben Tappenden, little more than six months into his role as Cambridge Stud’s general manager. New Zealand-raised, he learnt his trade with the likes of Curraghmore and The Oaks Stud before heading to Europe and spending eight years as general manager at Whitsbury Manor Stud in the south of England.
During that time the Hampshire nursery bred Frankel’s dual Group One-winning son Chaldean, and now the same person who foaled the classy chestnut and oversaw his yearling preparation is at the helm of the stud he shuttles to from his Juddmonte base at Banstead Manor.
“I started at Cambridge Stud in July last year knowing the decision was made already to commit the yearlings 100 per cent to Karaka 2026,” Tappenden told RaceForm when reflecting on the various stages leading to the National Sale. “This is a decision I was completely onboard with, knowing the importance of supporting our industry in such a milestone year.
“Once our draft was confirmed, the first step apart from routine handling and attending to things like farrier work and weighing was to decide what each individual’s sales prep should look like. Bearing in mind that with 70 yearlings to prepare for one sale, bringing them all into the boxes in October simply wouldn’t work.
“That meant assessing each horse’s nutritional intake and deciding feed volumes, balanced by the workload it could undertake, and adjusting all that week by week as necessary.”
Along with Cambridge’s senior management group, an essential element was the sales preparation team headed by yearling manager Alice Jeffries and her deputy Bella Illston, their numbers boosted by seasonal staff coming on board as the momentum intensified.
“It goes well beyond that core group,” Tappenden points out. “A yearling draft begins with investment in bloodlines, and the success of this sale goes back several years with Sir Brendan, Lady Jo and Henry (Plumptre) purchasing mares globally, securing the right stallions to stand in New Zealand, and Henry, Scott (Calder) and Cam (Ring) choosing the right matings in 2023.”
Any modern business has an emphasis on teamwork and structures that function in an intense environment, something that in the case of a large yearling draft is called for in the build-up and at the sale itself.
“Daily routines were well organised from the start and ahead of the sale we called in former All Blacks manager Darren Shand and he delivered an incredible workshop to the staff. All of these little things helped create a strong environment and once we were at Karaka we set up multiple small teams with designated duties, each having its own support network, with Alice and Bella key to making it all work.”
Interestingly, budgets and calculations around individual or combined returns were not part of the lead-up, even allowing for the post-inspection feedback, the form surge by the likes of Sword Of State and Almanzor, and overall confidence in the strength of the draft.
“We never discussed such things as being leading vendor or having the top lot, that pressure was never on the staff. Instead we concentrated on what we could control, prepping the draft and presenting them to the highest possible standard,” Tappenden said.
“However, once the sale was underway, the overall strength of the market became apparent, and it was great to match Brendan and Jo’s best-ever sale result when the Snitzel-Amarelinha colt was knocked down to Chris Waller and Guy Mulcaster for $850,000 late on the first day.
“I was up and down the steps behind the auditorium as each lot came through and it was a real sense of pride to see so many bidders on each yearling and to receive such positive comments from buyers. By the time the Las Brisas colt got his turn in the ring, for him hit the million and then make $1.1 million, it’s hard to describe that feeling.
“Sadly I had lost my Dad a few weeks beforehand and the first thing I did was bring up my mother’s number and attempt to send her a voice message. I was just too emotional though and I had to ditch that idea.
“Heading back to the boxes there were high fives flying everywhere, from Brendan, Jo and Henry down, the whole team was just so happy, everyone had a bit of a tear. By the end of the day and we had realised we were leading vendor, we saw that as a bonus.
“Reflecting on it all, to be leading vendor at the 100th National Sale is another milestone in the heritage of Cambridge Stud, and for all of us involved in making it happen, the result of everyone working in the same direction, that’s really something to be proud of.”
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