Well known New Zealand syndicator David Ellis waited until the end of selling to make his biggest mark on day one of New Zealand’s Premier Yearling Sale at Karaka.

Ellis hadn’t spent more than $200,000 until five lots from the end when he went to $NZ740,000 ($A577,000) for a Stravinsky-Jesmonds Gift filly, comfortably the highest-priced lot of the day.

The filly from the Cambridge Stud draft is from the family of Canny Lad, Canny Lass and Sepoy, and her half-sister by Zabeel was sold for $800,000 at Karaka last year.

“She’s a beautiful filly, she’s got a lot of class, she’s got an international pedigree and that’s probably why there was so much interest in her,” Ellis said.

“It’s a big thrill for us to be given the confidence by people to buy fillies of this quality.”

Ellis said he was prepared to spend more to get what he said was his first-choice filly of the New Zealand Bloodstock sale.

The sale had been trucking along at a fairly slow pace with the average and clearance rate down on last year.

“I’ve found that there’s been some good buying but I think the prices will improve tomorrow,” said Ellis, who spent $2,402,500 on 14 yearlings on Monday.

“The breeders have had in some cases unrealistic reserves and I think that they’ll come down a bit.”

Sir Patrick Hogan’s Cambridge Stud also sold the second-top priced filly, a $650,000 filly by Zabeel out of Diamond Like, a member of New Zealand breeding’s royal family and a descendant of the peerless broodmare Eight Carat.

Gai Waterhouse bought the filly after negotiating a price when she was passed in for $600,000.

The filly’s half brother, now racing in Australia as Zephyron, fetched $2 million at Karaka two years ago.

The leading colt, by High Chaparral out of Avondale Cup winner Creil, went for $650,000 to Willie Leung on behalf of Hong Kong buyer WK Lee.

A three-quarter brother to international Group One winner So You Think is among the highly anticipated lots on Tuesday.