BY BROCK SHERIDAN

Topping a record Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company Spring Sale on the final day was a $1.5 million Tiz the Law Colt that went to Sprendthrift Farm, Vincent and Teresa Viola’s St. Elias Stable and Terry Finley’s West Point. Consigned by Steven Venosa’s S G V Thoroughbreds LLC, the colt was the ninth seven-figure 2-year-old to sell this week at OBS, padding the record that earlier this week had eclipsed the 2022 OBS Spring Sale that sold five juveniles for at least $1 million.

“Tiz the Law is a stallion where we’ve now bought three of them at the 2-year-old sales, and he’s come forward like a whirlwind,” Finley said. “I think he’s going to make an impact on the breed for a lot of years to come.

“We’ve been doing business with Steven [Venosa] for about 30 years and bought our first really good horse, Awesome Gem, out of Steve’s barn when he worked for J.J. Crupi in 2004. So, I have a lot of respect for the work that he does and this horse, he really was a horse all three of us wanted.”

Sale figures on Friday, the final day of the four-day auction that began Tuesday, reflect 138 horses grossing $18,911,500 for an average of $137,040. Those figures nearly mirror the final day of last year’s Spring Sale when 144 head sold for $19,828,500 for an average of $137,698. However, the median increased 16.7% from $60,000 a year ago to $70,000 Friday. The buy-back rate Friday was 20.1% from 35 horses not sold, the same number that did not change hands on the final day last year.

The cumulative statistics from all four sessions reflect a record average for the Spring Sale at $140,366, passing the previous standard of $129,577 set in 2022. This year’s cumulative average is an 8.5% escalation compared to last year’s average of $129,315. The median dropped slightly to $67,500 from last year’s record median of $70,000 but held as the second highest median of all time for the Spring Sale. 

“Very appreciative and glad, a lot of adjectives that you can ultimately apply to the week,” OBS Director of Sales Tod Wojciechowski said. “The international buyers were here, and they were excited to buy horses, and it looks like they did. Certainly, we had a broad spectrum of buyers from all over the world.”

Cataloged as Hip 1094, the top-selling colt, who worked in :10 flat at the under tack show, is the first foal out of the stakes-placed Souper Speedy mare Georgian Dancer, a half-sister to Grade 2-winner and Grade 1-producer River Maid, stakes-winner Race For Gold, stakes-placed runners Soul Rebel, Selembao and Paige the General and stakes-producer River Nymph. Georgian Dancer has a weanling filly by Gunite.
(Under Tack Video / Walking Video)

Venosa purchased the colt under his SGV Thoroughbreds banner at last year’s Keeneland September Yearling Sale for $125,000. The colt was also a $160,000 purchase by Springhouse Farm as a short yearling at last year’s Keeneland January Sale of horses of all ages.

Venosa, who sold a $1.45 million Gun Runner colt to Kerry Radcliffe earlier in the week, said this was the first time he had sold two seven-figure horses at one sale. 

“Without my team we’re not able to do this. So, they take just as much credit as I do,” he said. “We knew (the Tiz the Law colt) was one of the top horses in the sale. To reach that level, you just never know. You try to lead them up there and, like with the last one, you let the people evaluate them and that’s what they are worth. The most important thing is I’m really excited about the home he’s going to.”

 

Hip 970 sold for $825,000 to Flatland Racing Stables out of the de Meric Sales consignment. Also by Tiz the Law, the bay colt is out of the Curlin mare Dictate Cool, a half-sister to stakes-winner Where Paradise Lay, Grade 3-placed Regulatory Risk and stakes-placed Whispering Pines. The colt worked an eighth mile in :10 flat and the under tack show. He was purchased by de Meric last year for $110,000 at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale.
(Under Tack Video / Walking Video)

“Beautiful horse. He always moved great. It all went the right way for him,” Tristan de Meric of de Meric Sales said. “He’s always trained really well and I’m a big fan of that sire. I think he’s going to keep getting better. [The offspring], they all train so well and I can’t say enough good things about the sire or the horse.”

Case Clay Thoroughbred Management went to $750,000 to acquire Hip 1081 on behalf of Emir of Qatar, HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani’s Wathnan Racing. The dark bay or brown colt from the Julie Davies as agent consignment is by Quality Road out of the multiple graded-placed Fuhriously Kissed, by Langfuhr. He is from the family of multiple Grade 1-winner On Fire Baby and breezed in :10.20 at the under tack show.
(Under Tack Video / Walking Video)

“Time will tell, but he looks to me like a Saturday horse,” Clay said. “He’s by a great sire out of a Grade 1-placed mare and just a beautiful mover.”

Quality Road was also represented by Hip 1092, a bay colt purchased by Mahmud Mouni for $650,000 after working a quarter mile in :20.80. Consigned by Ciaran Dunne’s Wavertree Stables Inc. as agent, he is out of Grade 3-winner Genre, by Bernadini and is a half-brother to multiple graded-placed runner Cooke Creek. The colt was purchased last year at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale for $410,000 by Red Wings.
(Under Tack Video / Walking Video)

Rounding out the top five Friday was Hip 1177, out of the consignment of Eddie Woods as agent. By Twirling Candy, the colt is out of the multiple graded stakes-winner Irish Jasper, by First Defence and is from the family of champion female sprinter Artie’s Princess. Irish Jasper also has a yearling filly by Candy Ride (Arg) and was bred back to Twirling Candy in 2024. The dark bay or brown colt produced a :10 flat work at the under tack session and was a $150,000 purchase by Quarter Pole Enterprises at last year’s Keeneland September Yearling Sale.
(Under Tack Video / Walking Video)

The colt was the final horse sold from the Eddie Woods consignment as the longtime leading consignor is set to retire following this sale.

“It’s great. It was fantastic how he sold,” an emotional Woods said. “He was a beautiful horse. I expected him to sell well, and it was neat for a really nice horse to be my last horse and not some $5,000 horse. And he’s going to a good spot.”

“It’s kind of bittersweet,” Wojciechowski said of Woods’ retirement. “Knowing that we’re not going to have one of our top consignors around is a bittersweet thing.”

Woods cemented his place in the OBS annals during the March auction when he sold a Gun Runner colt for an OBS record $3 million. The parade of success continued for him this week as he consigned Hip 833, a bay colt by the late champion Uncle Mo who topped Thursday’s session when he sold for $1.3 million to Ramiro Restrepo’s Marquee Bloodstock.

“I think my favorite OBS memory is that we had the first horse ever to work in :10 flat back in the day,” Woods recalled. “That was when :22 flat was still a good time and :10 1/5, you were high fiving everybody. The first horse to work :10 flat, that was notable. And then we sold a horse for an awful lot of money here. 

“We had some great days; we’ve had some bad days here. It’s just part of it,” Woods continued. “But our record here has been very good for the amount of horses we have. I’ve been on the board a long time here and we’ve developed this whole thing from nothing. To be part of that development has been really good, very proud of that too.”

 

The top selling Florida-bred on the day at $300,000 and the final 2-year-old to go before the auctioneers Friday was Hip 1206, a filly by Ocala Stud’s popular second crop sire Win Win Win out of Just Like Lucy, by Majesticperfection. Just Like Lucy is a full-sister to multiple stakes-winner Pretty Perfection from the family of Grade 1-winner Sweet Talker. Bred in Florida by the late Brereton C. Jones, the filly worked an eighth mile in :9.80 at the under tack show.
(Under Tack Video / Walking Video)

Wavertree was the leading consignor Friday, selling 11 head for $2,220,000 while S G V Thoroughbreds LLC was second on the list, tied with de Meric Sales at $2,027,000. S G V sold four 2-year-olds Friday while de Meric marketed seven.

Case Clay Thoroughbred Management led all buyers Friday with the purchase of four 2-year-olds for a total of $1,950,000. Spendthrift Farm, St. Elias and West Point were second with their lone purchase of the sale topper at $1.5 million. Mahmud Mouni bought three horses for $1,180,000 to rank third among buyers Friday.

Leading all consignors for the four days was de Meric Sales having sold 32 horses for $7,869,000. Eddie Woods sold 25 juveniles for $5,251,000. Wavertree sold 33 head for $5,081,000.

Mahmud Mouni was the leading buyer during the four days having spent $4,835,000 on 10 2-year-olds. Case Clay Thoroughbred Management also bought 10 head and spent $3,750,000. Kerri Radcliffe as agent for Memo Racing bought two juveniles for $2.5 million.

Next on the OBS calendar is the June Sale of Two-Year-Olds and Horses of Racing Age Sale on June 17-19. The under tack sessions are scheduled for June 9-14.

Portions of this story and quotes were taken directly from an OBS press release.

Return to the April 18 issue of Wire to Wire