Ocala Breeders' Sales Company

A yearling filly from the first crop of multiple Grade I winner Taiba (hip 80) attracted the highest price of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's January Winter Mixed Sale Tuesday when selling for $150,000 to Marc Gunderson. The filly was one of three on the day--and two from Beth Bayer's consignment--to sell for six figures during an auction which produced increases over its 2025 renewal. By the close of business Tuesday, 183 horses sold at the Winter Mixed sale for a gross of $3,476,100. The average of $18,995 rose 30.2%...

The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company will kick off 2026 with its single-session January Winter Mixed Sale Tuesday. The auction, with 307 catalogued lots, begins at 11 a.m. and features newly turned yearlings, broodmares, and broodmare prospects. Bidding on the OBSOnline January Horses of Racing Age and 2-Year-Old Sale began Monday at noon and will conclude Friday at noon. Several of the on-line offerings will be available for inspection on the OBS sales grounds during the live auction. After a record-setting season of sales in 2025, consignors look for demand to...

A filly from the first crop of GI Belmont Stakes winner Mo Donegal (hip 177) brought top price of $240,000 during the first session of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's October Yearlings Sale Tuesday in Central Florida. The bay filly--one of three to bring $200,000 or more during the session--was bred by Peter E. Blum Thoroughbreds LLC and was consigned by Richard Kent's Kaizen Sales. Christophe Nouvellet, bidding on behalf of Dream With Me Florida, LLC, made the winning bid. "She was a standout in the back ring," Nouvellet said....

Will Douglass is to join Ocala Breeders' Sales Company as its international representative. The agent established Will Douglass Bloodstock in January of this year. Previously, he had worked for Charlie Gordon-Watson since 2010 and as an assistant to Classic-winning trainers Luca Cumani and Ed Dunlop, and Australian champion trainer David Hayes. "I am looking forward to working with [the] team at OBS and helping them expand their international client base," Douglass said. "OBS has a long history of selling outstanding horses that are successful all over the world such as...

What has been a competitive yearling sales season makes a two-day stop in Central Florida with the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's October Yearlings Sale to be held Tuesday and Wednesday in Ocala. A total of 507 horses, including 48 supplemental entries, have been catalogued for the sale, with Tuesday's opening session featuring hips one through 258 and Wednesday's session offering hips 301 through 551. Each session begins at noon. "We're all anticipating a good sale, and it looks like a lot of people are coming into town," said consignor Francis...

Bloodstock agent Will Douglass has joined Ocala Breeders' Sales Company as the company's international representative. Douglass, who began his career as a bloodstock agent in January 2010 when he started working with industry veteran Charlie Gordon-Watson, has also served as assistant to trainers Luca Cumani, Ed Dunlop, and David Hayes. He established Will Douglass Bloodstock in January, advising clients on all aspects of private sales, auction purchases, bloodstock, and racing management. "I am looking forward to working with the team at OBS and helping them expand their international client base,"...

Dear Editor: A July 31 letter printed by Thoroughbred Daily News criticized Florida's racing and breeding programs. This letter, seemingly targeted at the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders' & Owners' Association, compels a direct response, particularly given the source and timing. Considering the Source The author of this letter has not appeared as a breeder-of-record on a registered Florida-bred foal that we know of since 2019, holds no current Florida racing license that we are aware of, appears to have no recent Florida starts as an owner or trainer, and is not...

Many involved with the sport probably know little about trainer Librado Barocio. But that could be about to change. His small stable has been on fire as of late and it recorded a milestone when Lovesick Blues (Grazen) upset his better known rivals to win the GI Bing Crosby Stakes Saturday at Del Mar. For the trainer who has been training off and on since 1999, it was his first Grade I win. How did it feel? That was among the questions our team asked Barocio when he joined us...

5. Spun Candy, CD, 6/28, 6 1/2 furlongs (VIDEO) Beyer Speed Figure- 86 (f, 3, by Hard Spun-Sugar Plum Fairy, by Drosselmeyer) O-Commonwealth Stable 3, On Our Own Stable and Dallas Stewart. B-Brushy Hill Stable (Ky). T-Dallas Stewart. J-Brian Hernandez Jr. Another who showed dramatic improvement--topping her previous high Beyer by 18 points--in her first try over a wet surface. A modest $85k Ocala 2-year-old purchase, she had been knocking heads with tough maidens in her first five starts, including Immersive and Senza Parole. 4. Roofer, BAQ, 6/27, 6 furlongs...

Following the news of his passing, tributes  to legendary trainer D. Wayne Lukas poured in from across the industry Sunday. "A four-time winner of the Kentucky Derby, today we lost one of the great champions of Churchill Downs and one of the most significant figures in Thoroughbred racing over the last 50 years. We will miss his humor, his wisdom and his unmatched capacity to thrill the fans with the performances of his horses on our sport's biggest days." Bill Carstanjen, CEO of Churchill Downs Incorporated "D. Wayne Lukas was...

OCALA, FL - With a flurry of late big-ticket items, the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's June 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale concluded its two-day run with a new record price, as well as highwater marks for both average and median. "You always hope," OBS Director of Sales Tod Wojciechowski said when asked if he expected the splash of records. "We saw the same pattern that we saw in the 2-year-old market all year and I am glad that it held all the way to June. Sometimes you worry about the last...

The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's June Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training, the final major juvenile auction of the season, gets underway Tuesday in Central Florida, with bidding scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. The auction, held in recent years over three days, will be held over two days this year with a catalogue of 851 2-year-olds. "I think there are some horses who breezed very nicely and have a little bit of pedigree here and then you have your usual range of horses who don't have as much pedigree that...