More than 1,200 juveniles cataloged for OBS spring sale
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The breeze-up sale season in North America continues with a sizable catalog at this week’s Ocala Breeders’ Sales Co.’s spring sale of 2-year-olds in training.
The spring sale typically has the largest catalog of the three OBS 2-year-olds in training sales, as the company offers the bulk of the crop in North America. There are 1,207 juveniles cataloged for this year’s edition, which takes place over four sessions from April 15-18.
In advance of the sale, 2-year-olds have the chance to work or gallop before prospective buyers on the Ocala Training Center’s all-weather Safetrack at an under-tack preview show from April 6-12. Through five of those seven sessions, there was a crowded leaderboard, with 24 juveniles tied for the bullet furlong at 9 4/5 seconds and three tied for the fastest quarter-mile at 20 2/5 seconds.
Yaupon, among this year’s freshman sires, has a pair of bullet furlong workers with a colt consigned by de Meric Sales and a filly consigned by Pick View, respectively. He also had one of the fastest quarter-mile workers with a filly from the consignment of Tom McCrocklin.
The only other stallion represented by multiple horses in the group is Maximus Mischief, with a pair of bullet furlong-working colts. They are joined by colts by By My Standards, Complexity, Essential Quality, Galilean, Into Mischief, Leinster, Shancelot, and Win Win Win; and fillies by Army Mule, Authentic, Curlin, Good Magic, Justify, Kantharos, Munnings, Not This Time, Rock Your World, Temple City, Tiz the Law, and Upstart. The fastest quarter-mile time is shared by a Mitole filly and an Independence Hall colt.
OBS comes into this sale with a head of steam, kicking off its 50th anniversary season last month with strength at the top of the marketplace. The OBS March sale was led by a $3 million Gun Runner colt, purchased by agent Donato Lanni on behalf of Zedan Racing. That was a record price for an OBS sale, eclipsing the previous record of $2.45 million paid by agent John Moynihan on behalf of Coolmore interests for a Tiznow colt at the 2017 April sale. Boosted by that, the cumulative average price for OBS March was up 6 percent compared to the 2024 edition, although the median ticked down 3 percent. The cumulative buyback rate in a highly selective marketplace improved to 18 percent from 24 percent the year prior.
Last year’s OBS spring sale established records for the average and median figures, narrowly edging the previous high-water marks in those categories. The buyback rate for the sale was a solid 19 percent.
Woods out on high note
Eddie Woods will bring his final 2-year-old consignment to the OBS spring sale, with 44 juveniles entered, as agent, prior to outs. Woods is already headed out on a high note, as he consigned the record-priced $3 million Gun Runner colt at the OBS March sale.
“Eddie has been a big part of OBS for a number of years now, and he’s been instrumental in the growth and evolution of the 2-year-old sales,” OBS director of sales Tod Wojciechowski said. “It was very gratifying to see him go out like that.”
Woods, a native of Ireland, is based out of his facility in Ocala, Fla., and has consigned juveniles for more than three decades. His sales graduates include dual-classic winner and Eclipse Award champion Big Brown, as well as Eclipse champions Lady Eli and Left Bank. Woods plans to remain involved in the sales business, working in consulting and helping to purchase horses as an agent.
Woods also breaks and trains young horses, with his prominent clients including “The Avengers” partnership for trainer Bob Baffert. Recent graduates of Woods’s training program include Citizen Bull and National Treasure, both Eclipse Award champions for that group, and another 2025 Kentucky Derby hopeful in Rodriguez.
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