Trainer John Hawkes rated All Too Hard in the same class as Lonhro as a racehorse and he reckons the Vinery sire has the potential to make a similar impact at stud.

Hawkes and his sons Michael and Wayne were determined to buy a yearling from All Too Hard’s first crop at the 2016 Gold Coast Magic Millions and their persistence was rewarded with a $440,000 bid for the colt from Roman Treasure (USA) on Friday.

“He was my pick of all the All Too Hards this week,” Hawkes said. “I liked him from the minute we arrived here. The boys rated him, too. So did plenty of others but fortunately we had the final say.”

The All Too Hard colt is the first foal of Roman Treasure (Roman Ruler) and was offered by Vinery (as agent). His dam won three Listed sprints in New York and she was also Group 1 placed in the Test Stakes at Saratoga. Second-dam Jeanne Jones (Nijinski) was a Group 1 winner of the Fantasy Stakes and she hails from a blue-blooded family of stakes winners in the USA and Japan.

All Too Hard emulated the Hawkes-trained champion Lonhro when he defeated Pierro in the 2012 Caulfield Guineas. “He’s among the best horses to have come through the stable,” Hawkes said after the stallion-making classic. “This bloke has so much ability and he’s in the same class as Lonhro.

“He’s just an absolute athlete with a big heart and a stallion’s pedigree.”

All Too Hard was the dominant first-season sire at the Magic Millions on Wednesday and Thursday and he was back in the spotlight when Asian buyers took a fancy to his stock on Friday.

The China Horse Club paid $470,000 for the colt from G2 Karrakatta Plate winner Night War after parting with $290,000 for his filly from Furline on Thursday.

Hong Kong based George Moore Bloodstock weighed in with $320,000 for the All Too Hard colt from Rightly So. He’s the first foal of a mare who won the G1 Ballerina Stakes at Saratoga.

And Macau businessman Thomas Li – who races G1 Emirates Stakes winner Hucklebuck – paid $290,000 for the colt from Miss Rangoon (USA). He is a half-brother to G3 BTC Classic winner Platinum Kingdom.