Lottery-style sums are nothing new in racing but they have been taken to new heights by Sheikh Mohammed. His recent buying spree reached its zenith over the weekend with the purchase of Manduro, the highest-rated racehorse in the world in 2007. Manduro is to join Darley, the sheikh’s breeding operation, to take up stallion duties at the close of the season.

But the sheikh’s ambitions did not stop there. He also acquired 25 per cent of Invincible Spirit for $15 million (about £7.5 million), which values the stallion at $60 million.

Manduro, the recent wide-margin winner of the Prix Jacques le Marois here, is one more prize asset to set alongside other recent purchases as the sheikh strives to reinvigorate the strength of his stallion tribe. Yet the valuation of Invincible Spirit astonished the international racing community, which has gathered here for the Arqana yearling sales.

Trained by John Dunlop, Invincible Spirit was a talented racehorse, winning the Haydock Park Sprint Cup in 2002. He emerged best of Europe’s new stallions last year and has been represented this year by his son, Law-man, winner of the French Derby in June.

The weekend purchases involving Invincible Spirit and Manduro follow that of the American-trained colt, Any Given Saturday, which was announced by Darley on Wednesday. Bloodstock analysts estimate that the investment in the three horses will have cost the ruler of Dubai around £50 million.

That represents only part of the investment he has committed to fortify his stallion ranks over the past three months. Included in that figure is the expected purchase of Teofilo, last year’s champion two-year-old for whom an option price has been agreed but not yet exercised.

By way of comparison, the sheikh’s expenditure of £125 million amounts to more than double the sum spent on new players over the same period by Manchester United, the biggest close-season spenders in the football transfer market. The sheikh's enthusiasm for racing remains undiluted despite a couple of ordinary seasons posted by Godolphin, his racing stable that is based in Newmarket between April and October. The extent of his outlay in his quest for potent future stallions is unprecedented, even in a bloodstock world fuelled by the petro-dollar.

Among private transactions for which prices have become known, Storm Bird was sold for $40 million by Robert Sangster and his partners at the height of the bloodstock boom in 1981. And Fusaichi Pegasus was valued at a similar sum when purchased by the Coolmore syndicate in 2000. Although both were highly-prized stallion prospects, neither has excelled in that role.

Invincible Spirit will continue to be based at the Irish National Stud, which has retained all of its 46 per cent stake in the horse. Sheikh Mohammed, for his part, has accummulated his holding by buying out other shareholders in the stallion.

Manduro, meanwhile, has the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in his sights after an impressive victory here last week. He will continue to race in the silks of Baron Georg Von Ullmann. Last year the prominent German owner campaigned Shirocco, who was subsequently sold to Sheikh Mohammed for stud duties.

As things stand, some of the sheikh’s new purchases are scheduled to lock horns in the coming months.

Also Arc-bound is Authorized, who will first confront six opponents — among them Dylan Thomas and Not-nowcato — in the Juddmonte International Stakes at York tomorrow. And in America, Street Sense, Hard Spun and Any Given Saturday, all recently purchased by the sheikh, are due to clash in the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

Unlike the Coolmore syndicate, the sheikh has enjoyed slim pickings from the stallions he houses in Europe. This latest string of acquisitions is designed to rectify that shortcoming, although it will take years before the progeny of these horses are old enough to race.

Breeding success

£125m Sheikh Mohammed’s estimated investment in adding to his stallion band in past three months
£50m of that sum has been spent in the past week

Myboycharlie galloped to a facile victory in the Darley Prix Morny here at Deauville yesterday to more than vindicate his recent purchase by the Coolmore syndicate (Julian Muscat writes). Trained in Ireland by Tommy Stack, the juvenile colt accelerated sharply under Kieren Fallon to overhaul front-running Natagora by two lengths in the group one test over six furlongs.

The contest suffered from the late defection of Winker Watson, who was withdrawn by his trainer, Peter Chapple-Hyam, when persistent showers rendered the ground soft. Myboycharlie shortened to 10-1 for the 2,000 Guineas with Ladbrokes.