Ninja Share Values Everest Hope at $5.5 Million

The market has placed a $5.5 million valuation on Everest contender Ninja after a one per cent share in the Michael Freedman-trained gelding sold for $55,000 through the Inglis Digital October Early Sale, providing a striking example of how racing's biggest events are increasingly shaping demand for micro-ownership. The timing could scarcely have been better for vendor Gary Diamond, with Ninja defeating defending Everest champion Ka Ying Rising in a Randwick barrier trial only a day before bidding concluded, adding another layer of excitement around a horse already secured to represent the John Camilleri and Fairway Thoroughbreds slot in the $20 million sprint on October 17. According to inglis.com.au, purchaser David Blumberg had been following Ninja well before the trial and had already placed a bid, but the sight of the 4YO defeating Ka Ying Rising while travelling strongly convinced him he would need to raise his ceiling if he wanted to secure the share. The Glenugie-based owner has been involved in racehorse ownership for around 15 years but specifically wanted a runner in The Everest, making the online offering an unusually direct route into the world's richest turf race. Ninja has already established a strong racing profile from only 10 starts, winning five races including the Gr2 Missile Stakes, Gr2 Hobartville Stakes and Gr3 Vo Rogue Plate, while his Missile Stakes performance under weight-for-age conditions stamped him as a genuine top-level sprinter. The son of Farnan is also likely to have another lucrative target waiting beyond The Everest, with the $10 million Golden Eagle among the possibilities, meaning Blumberg's one per cent could potentially give him an ownership interest in consecutive races worth a combined $30 million. Diamond was delighted with the $55,000 result and acknowledged that while it represented substantial money for such a small percentage of a gelding, the combination of Ninja's ability, his Everest berth and the accessibility of a one per cent holding created powerful demand. Ninja was not the highest-priced transaction of the sale, with Coolmore offering Defensemen, who was purchased by We Bloodstock for $200,000 and could ultimately continue his career in Hong Kong. Bogey Free realised $190,000, while a five per cent share in Gr2-winning filly Cherry Bomshell sold for $60,000. Overall, the October Early Sale grossed $2,178,050, but Ninja supplied its most eye-catching ownership story: a few clicks online turning a small investor into an owner of an Everest runner little more than a week before raceday.