As the 2-year-old sale season in North America comes to its rough midway point, the anticipation is high as the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic juvenile auction returns to its traditional spot in mid-May, where it has found great success.
The stakes-placed colt Crew Dragon sold for $310,000 as the Keeneland April sale of horses of racing age made a solid debut in its new format Monday.
As Keeneland continues to develop its sales operations under new leadership, it will do so with a new face at the helm, but one who is familiar in the bloodstock community. Keeneland announced Monday that bloodstock adviser and consignor Tony Lacy will join the company as vice president of sales. Meanwhile, director of sales operations Geoffrey Russell will retire from his full-time position after 25 years with Keeneland.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Co.'s spring sale of 2-year-olds in training wrapped up its four-day run Friday evening with gains compared to its embattled 2020 edition, continuing a solid start to the juvenile sales calendar.
The Keeneland April sale had a solid run with its 2-year-old graduates over two decades, boasting horses such as dual Eclipse Award champion and Preakness Stakes winner Lookin At Lucky, dual classic winner and champion Big Brown, and additional Eclipse winners Lady Eli, Roy H, and Beautiful Pleasure. In recent years, however, the company has re-imagined this auction. This year, it returns from a pandemic-imposed hiatus with another new look.
A Curlin filly sold for $670,000 as the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Co.’s spring sale of 2-year-olds in training continued to post gains in its third of four sessions on Thursday.
A $1.5 million Quality Road colt and a $1 million Arrogate filly led the way as the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co.'s spring sale of 2-year-olds in training posted another strong session on Wednesday.
A colt from the first crop of Horse of the Year Gun Runner sold for $850,000 as the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co.'s flagship spring sale opened its four-day run with positive figures Tuesday.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. is relishing a return to normalcy this week with its flagship spring sale, which offers more 2-year-olds in training than any other auction in North America, back in its traditional April dates after the calendar was pushed asunder by the coronavirus pandemic in 2020. But OBS continued to do steady business last year through the challenges. Several 2020 graduates, now 3, are possible Kentucky Derby starters, led by Medina Spirit, who will attempt to give Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert a record seventh victory.
More than any other segment of the North American Thoroughbred marketplace, the 2-year-old sales season was turned upside down in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, with the majority of sales either postponed or canceled and figures down across the board. And thus, all eyes were on this season's early sales as the market seeks a return to normalcy. Early figures have been encouraging.
