Omaha Beach

Capping a productive day for the team of Pegram, Watson and Weitman and trainer Bob Baffert, Desert Gate (Omaha Beach) powered away from his rivals with ease to score in the Texas Derby at Lone Star on Monday. The group was also represented by Usha (Tiz the Law), winner of the GIII Winning Colors Stakes at Churchill Downs on Monday. Pounded down to 1-5 favoritism while getting Lasix for the first time, Desert Gate broke sharply and put the screws to Vintage Cowboy (Essential Quality), who carved out an opening...

Jethorse LLC paid $375,000 for General Graham (Omaha Beach), a 3-year-old undefeated ridgling who won in starter allowance company Keeneland on April 8, to post the highest price of Friday's April Selected Horses of Racing Age Sale which followed the races on closing day of the Spring Meet. Consigned by Kenneally Racing, agent, General Graham is from the family of Horse of the Year Sovereignty. He is out of Grade I-placed Giant's Causeway mare Flying Spur. "We're delighted with General Graham," consignor Eddie Kenneally said. "Two for two, hasn't done...

The 51st Sovereign Awards were held by the Jockey Club of Canada Thursday, and among a list of venerable champions to be crowned, 2025 King's Plate hero Mansetti (Collected) topped the lot as Canada's Horse of the Year. Owned by Al & Bill Ulwelling, the son of Collected also claimed the GIII HPIBet Marine Stakes and the Woodstock Stakes as well as placing second in the GIII Ontario Derby and Prince of Wales Stakes. Mansetti garnered 81 votes while champion Caitlinhergrtness (Omaha Beach) came in a close second with 74....

by Jessica Martini & Stefanie Grimm OCALA, FL - With vibrant trade throughout the day, the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's Spring 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale concluded its third session Thursday with figures still well ahead of its 2025 renewal and on track for a record-setting gross, average and median ahead of the auction's final session Friday. A filly by Bolt d'Oro became the auction's fourth million-dollar juvenile when purchased by Bill Childs's CSLR for $1.3 million. The session-topper was consigned by Raul Reyes's Kings Equine. Through three of four sessions,...

by Jessica Martini and Stefanie Grimm A filly from the first crop of Jackie's Warrior became the second highest-priced juvenile to ever sell at the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's Spring 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale when she brought a final bid of $2.3 million and the four-day auction reached its halfway point Wednesday with double-digit gains over its 2025 renewal. Through two sessions, 314 horses have sold for a gross of $50,655,000. The average of $161,322 is up 13.0% from the same point in last year's Spring sale and is up...

by Jessica Martini & Stefanie Grimm OCALA, FL - The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's Spring 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale had its first million-dollar juvenile when bloodstock agent Justin Casse bid $1.95-million for a colt by Epicenter late in the day and Tuesday's first session of the four-day auction concluded with an average price well ahead of last year's record-setting figure. During the session, 159 horses sold for a gross of $24,578,000. The session average of $154,579 was up 20.6% from last year's opening session figure and 10.9% ahead of the...

With 17 juveniles sharing the fastest furlong breeze of :9 4/5, a filly by Omaha Beach (hip 74) separated herself from the pack with a nifty pedigree update and a bullet quarter-mile work in :20 4/5 during Monday's first under-tack preview session for the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's Spring 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale. Hip 74 is consigned by Tom McCrocklin, who signed the ticket to acquire the filly for $400,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton October sale. "She's a very nice filly, always has been," McCrocklin said Monday. "She's a big,...

Payson Stud's breeding program has been a fixture in the Thoroughbred industry for more than four decades, built by the late Virginia Kraft Payson. Since Mrs. Payson's passing in 2023, trustee Christian Erickson has carried her legacy forward, and I've been fortunate to serve as bloodstock advisor to the program. Our goal in recent years has been simple: upgrade the broodmare band. That goal led to some of the hardest--and best--decisions we've made. Together with the team at Gainesway Farm, we sold foundation mare Summer Sweet, the dam of champion...

Last seen running fourth as the favorite in the GIII Robert B. Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita Feb. 7, heavily-favored Desert Gate (Omaha Beach) had no issue with a short field in the Hot Springs Stakes Thursday at Oaklawn Park, taking just three rivals gate to wire to win easily. The 2-5 choice, who was racing with blinkers on for the first time, broke just a step slow but rushed up to lead from the rail ahead of 9-5 second choice Soldier N Diplomat (Army Mule). The pair quickly separated...

After a career of always showing up for a piece of the pie, it's finally Skippylongstocking (Exaggerator) who's the talk of the town, and the statesman strolled home to the roar of an appreciative Oaklawn crowd to confidently win the GIII Essex Handicap. The seven-year-old entire has been exclusively in graded stakes company since early April 2022, when he ran third in the GII Wood Memorial at Aqueduct. He never left the ranks after that, and placed at the highest levels every year since--hitting the board in the 2022 GI...

CROSSINGTHECHANNEL (c, 3, Omaha Beach--In the Navy Now {SW, $253,020}, by Midshipman) proved himself a tough customer last year as a juvenile, finishing second Nov. 8 at Laurel Park behind eventual Turfway Prevue Stakes winner Hometown Bound (Mitole). He resurfaced Dec. 13 at Aqueduct and ran a strong second behind next-out GIII Gotham Stakes hero Iron Honor (Nyquist), earning a 91 Beyer to wrap his 2025 before returning Jan. 4 at that venue for a sophomore bow. Successfully breaking his maiden there by a neck, Crossingthechannel was hammered at the...

LEINANI (f, 3, Omaha Beach--Romy, by Karakontie {Jpn}) debuted Jan. 24 over this main track in a six-furlong maiden dash, closing from the back of the field to run fourth. Well supported to the tune of even-money favoritism for this second jump, she was away alertly this time and moving well behind fractions of :23.93 and four panels in :47.30. In hand from four off the rail and clearing those early pacesetters coming off the bend, Leinani drew away from Slow Kara (Medaglia d'Oro) to win by 8 1/4 lengths....