Like he has for many years, John Kimmel will attend the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Co. 2-year-olds in training auction next week. This time, however, he will do it solely as a bloodstock adviser. Kimmel, 71, said this week that he is retiring from training horses, something he has done since 1984. His stable, down to six horses, will have its final starters this weekend at Aqueduct with Protected and Shadyside on Saturday’s card. Kimmel acknowledged both the personal and professional challenges of being a trainer in New York, including the cost of doing business, competing with the larger outfits, and spending time away from family. “I’ve got four grandkids I very rarely see. I have a son that lives in California who has three kids and it gives me a chance to spend some time with my family – things that being a seven-day-a-week-trainer with 40 or 50 horses robs you of,” Kimmel said. :: Access the most trusted data and information in horse racing! DRF Past Performances and Picks are available now. Kimmel added that “being a trainer in New York is definitely hard,” and said that those who hope to continue should consider taking advantage of the programs that the New York Racing Association is offering, most notably the purse parity for New York-breds who will be running for the same money that non-New York-breds will be competing for later this year and moving forward. “Not having a large number of quality New York-breds would be a mistake,” Kimmel said. “Running for equivalent money against a pool of 1,700 compared to 17,000 is quite an advantage.” Attending horse sales is something Kimmel started doing with his father Caesar in the 1980s. John Kimmel, who won his first race in 1984, was also a practicing veterinarian until 1987. He had a successful training career, winning 1,449 races – including the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint with 66-1 Bar of Gold – and trained 10 individual Grade 1 winners. In 1997, he won three Grade 1s with Hidden Lake, who was crowned older female dirt champion. In 1999, he was the leading trainer on the NYRA circuit with 71 wins, winning three meet titles. In 1997, he tied for leading trainer at Saratoga, making him one of just six trainers to win a Saratoga title over the last 30 years. About three years ago, Kimmel teamed with bloodstock agent Nick Sallusto to attend auctions and buy horses for clients. In the spring of 2024 at OBS, Kimmel and Sallusto purchased a son of McKinzie for $725,000 on behalf of owner Sean Flanagan. That horse turned out to be Chancer McPatrick, trained by Chad Brown, who that year won the Hopeful and Champagne – both Grade 1 stakes.  The Kimmel-Sallusto team purchased Silent Tactic as a yearling for $60,000 before that horse was pinhooked for $500,000. Silent Tactic, now owned by John Oxley, is firmly on the Kentucky Derby trail with a victory in the Southwest and a narrow defeat in the Rebel Stakes. :: Get the Inside Track with the FREE DRF Morning Line Email Newsletter. Subscribe now.  Kimmel pointed out several horses over the years he purchased for reasonable money that went on to win and/or sell for big money later on. He bought Premium Tap for $60,000, and that horse became a multiple Grade 1 winner and earner of $2.5 million. He later sold to Saudi Arabian interests for $5.7 million. Kimmel bought Thunder Gulch for $125,000 and later sold him to Michael Tabor for $475,000. That horse won the 1995 Kentucky Derby and Belmont and was champion 3-year-old. Kimmel also bought Successful Appeal for $55,000, and that horse turned out to be a five-time graded stakes winner and earner of $654,681.  “This market is still filled with opportunities like that,” Kimmel said. “Being able to use my knowledge that I’ve acquired over the years – finding diamonds in the rough – those opportunities are still out there. I’m a big fan of pedigrees, many times looking at those in young mares and young stallions.” Kimmel believes his experience as a veterinarian also helps in examining radiographs and “allows me to interpret what things we can live with and what things we can’t,” Kimmel said.  Kimmel was appreciative to all the owners for whom he trained during his 40-year-career and his staff, led by longtime assistant Loretta Lusteg, who worked for Kimmel for more than 30 years.  “I’d like to thank my staff for being extremely diligent and paying attention to detail and all their hard work, which made my operation as efficient as possible,” he said.  Kimmel said he will miss certain aspects of training.  “I really like being around a horse,” Kimmel said. “I think I have the ability to see when they’re doing great, feeling good energy, and when you’re sending them over in peak condition – that’s a really ego-stroking adventure – I’m going to miss that,” Kimmel said. “Hopefully, as an agent, I’m going to participate some in watching their careers.” :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.