Outstanding race mare Strawberry Field will be set for feature races during the Melbourne Spring Carnival after selling for $1 million at the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale today.

Top Sydney horseman Gerald Ryan outlasted Patinack Farm to snare the much sought after racing and breeding prospect.

An opening bid of $300,000 came from the floor before a $500,000 offer was quickly received at which time the stakes winning four-year-old was “on the market.”

Bidding then rose quickly past $700,000 and $800,000 with Ryan and Patinack’s Ben Lawrence fighting it out for the lovely mare.

Ryan was delighted to be able to secure the stakes winning daughter of Encosta de Lago – who was a Magic Millions Yearling Sale graduare.

“She’s a really nice mare,” Ryan said. “She has a lot of up side – in fact I can’t see any down side at all.”

“She’s been out for a while spelling and she will enter work soon and be set for the Spring Carnival.”

“You’ll see her racing at Caulfield and Flemington later on in the year,” Ryan said.

Earlier in the day stakes winning mare Silently was purchased by the Sedgewyn Syndicate for $400,000.