OBS begins rescheduled fall yearling sale Tuesday

As the effects of the coronavirus pandemic caused a domino effect on the calendar across the racing and bloodstock industries, the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Co. and Fasig-Tipton swapped the dates of two October yearling sales in response to the postponement of the Preakness Stakes to early October. The move worked out for Fasig-Tipton, which posted solid results in a changing marketplace last week. Now OBS will look to continue the momentum as it comes to this week’s fall yearling sale.

OBS had been scheduled to host its fall yearling sale on Oct. 6-8 at its Ocala, Fla., facility, with Fasig-Tipton’s Midlantic fall yearling sale in Timonium, Md., following on the calendar on Oct. 12-13. The sale companies came to an agreement to change dates, moving the Fasig-Tipton sale up to Oct. 5-6, following the Oct. 3 Preakness. In doing so, Fasig-Tipton was able to follow a formula that had been successful in the past with its Midlantic juvenile sale immediately following the classic race, with a number of prominent horsemen still in town. That sale ultimately concluded with only tiny changes to the average price and buyback rate and a steady median – all positive signs in a market that has been increasingly selective and has shown restraint in the wake of the pandemic.

The OBS sale, meanwhile, shifted back to Oct. 13-14, which allows buyers to attend both auctions.

“The change allows both companies to better serve our buyers and sellers,” OBS president Tom Ventura said in a statement. “While we are competitive, it is important for us to shift gears in a way that helps industry participants as we react to the racing and sales calendar being turned upside down.”

The first session of the OBS sale on Tuesday afternoon is designated as a selected session of yearlings, numbering 169 hips. The opening session also includes a selection of 2-year-olds and horses of racing age. The second and final session of the sale on Wednesday is designated as the open session and contains the bulk of the catalog, with 420 yearlings.

Although the sale attracts prominent buyers from a number of regions, it also provides a local marketplace, and thus a showcase for statebreds who may have been lost in the shuffle shipping out of town for another sale. The catalog includes 283 Florida-bred yearlings, including representatives for several horses currently on the top 10 Florida sire list in Khozan (first by earnings through Oct. 8), Brethren (2), First Dude (3), Adios Charlie (4), Gone Astray (5), Treasure Beach (6), and The Big Beast (8). Jess’s Dream and Ride On Curlin, the top two freshmen in the state, also are represented.

Florida stallions with their first yearlings in this catalog include Grade 1 winners Greenpointcrusader and Noble Bird and multiple Grade 1-placed Neolithic, along with Irish Surf, Rainbow Heir, and Valiant Minister.