The first Globe Memorial Richmond Puppy Clasic Auction has been declared an "enormous" success after generating more than $1.4million in sales.
Scores of prospective buyers attended Sunday’s auction, with the pups generating an average price of $4,370.
Greyhound racing fans from across Australia and NEW ZEALAND attended the event, keen to purchase a potential champion.
Richmond club General Manager Wayne Billett said the inaugural day, which will now be held every year, had been a huge success.
“It was enormous,” he said. “I couldn’t be happier.
“I am a little surprised with how well it went. We thought it would be good as we had a high-quality catalogue on offer but it was better than we thought.
Pups whelped between January 1 and June 30, 2014 were up for auction at the western Sydney club.
A pup from Where’s Pedro x Unfinished generated the highest price, selling to Queensland interests for $30,000.
Five other pups each sold for between $10,000-$20,000, with a handful of others also in and around the five-figure mark.
In all, a total of 325 lots were sold at the auction, generating a total of $1.42 million.
“It was pretty competitive, but it was all in good spirit,” Billett said. “The atmosphere was really good."
All the puppies nominated are eligible to compete in the 2016 Richmond Riches Puppy Classic, which will provide more than $140,000 in prizemoney.
The series will feature a triple crown of races over distances of 400m, 535m and 618m, with the feature race over 535m offering $100,000 to the winner.
“It’s a bit of shame the series is so far away, but it will be worth waiting for,” Billett said.
“There were a lot of people there who are coming into the industry for the first time. Just from talking to people I saw there were people new to the game.
“It’s great to see newcomers making an investment in our industry.”
Billett thanked everyone who supported and assisted the event, which was also broadcast live on Sky Racing 2.
