RACING CONFIDENTIAL: How Man City owner Sheikh Mansour can take over racing with world-class £23m stud farm
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Manchester City supporters will be hoping January sees some investment in their team but the club’s owner has already made an eye-catching signing of his own. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan wouldn’t usually be associated with horseracing but interest has been pricked that he might be about to step up his interest in the sport after he completed a £23.2million deal for one of Europe’s most historic stud farms.
![[Mansour completed a £23.2million deal for one of Europe’s most historic stud farms]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/08/10/93863487-14262377-image-a-49_1736333458730.jpg)
Haras de Fresnay-le Buffard was put on the market by the Niarchos family in February 2023. It had been bought by Stavros Niarchos, the Greek shipping magnate, in 1979 from its previous owner, the esteemed French owner-breeder Marcel Boussac. The names involved in that last paragraph emphasise the importance of this stud. Marcel Boussac’s influence on the sport was such that he has a Group One race, staged at Longchamp on Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe day in October, named in his honour.
![[Haras de Fresnay-le Buffard has a 16-room chateau, which was renovated in 2015, and covers 240 hectares in the heart of Normandy]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/08/10/93863539-14262377-image-a-50_1736333462093.jpg)
As for the Niarchos family, their distinguished dark blue silks with a silver cross on the body and a white cap have been carried by some of the giants of the turf, ranging from Miesque, Six Perfections, the Arc winner Bago and, more recently, Alpha Centuri.
![[Sir Gino stunned Kempton with a spectacular ride to win the Ladbrokes Wayward Lad Novices' Chase on December 27]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/08/10/93863597-14262377-image-a-51_1736333635593.jpg)
This illustrates the significance of Sheikh Mansour’s purchase, which was confirmed by his lawyer Edouard Vitry on New Year’s Eve. The stud has a 16-room chateau, which was renovated in 2015, and covers 240 hectares in the heart of Normandy. Forty-five European Classic winners have been bred there.
![[Ballyburn trainer Willie Mullins was left in a state of shock over the manner of his horse's defeat]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/08/10/93863615-14262377-image-a-52_1736333638298.jpg)
