$1.5-million Tiz the Law Colt Puts Exclamation Point on Record-Setting OBS Spring Sale

[Wandering Eyes]

by Jessica Martini & Stefanie Grimm

OCALA, FL – The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training had one more seven-figure juvenile up its sleeve with a colt by Tiz the Law bringing a sale-topping $1.5 million during the final session of the four-day auction which concluded with it third straight record average Friday.

“We are very appreciative and glad and happy–all of the adjectives you can apply to the week,” OBS Director of Sales Tod Wojciechowski said at the close of business Friday. “It was a great week for everyone.”

Through four days of selling, 637 horses grossed $88,761500 for an average of $139,343, up 7.1% from last year's previous record figure of $130,149. The median of $65,000 fell 7.1% from a year ago.

From a catalogue of 1,207, 765 horses were offered with 128 failing to meet their reserves for a buy-back rate of 16.7%.

Steve Venosa's SGV Thoroughbreds sold the top two lots at the auction, adding the $1.5-million colt by Tiz the Law purchased by the partnership of Spendthrift Farm, St. Elias Stable, and West Point Thoroughbreds Friday, to the $1.45-million son of Gun Runner purchased by Kerri Radcliffe Wednesday. In all, nine horses brought seven figures during the Spring sale, surpassing the auction's previous record of five to hit that mark. Three of the nine were by GI Belmont Stakes winner Tiz the Law.

The nine million-dollar juveniles were purchased by seven different buyers, with Radcliffe and Mahmud Mouni signing for two each.

De Meric Sales was the auction's leading consignor with 32 head sold for $7,869,000. Mouni, who purchased 10 head for $4,835,000, was the auction's leading buyer. Second leading buyer was Case Clay, who purchased the same number for $3,750,000.

“It's a pretty typical market,” said Clay. “It's pretty polarized, but it's strong at the top.”

In his operation's final offering at OBS, legendary horseman Eddie Woods was the auction second leading consignor with 25 sold for $5,251,000.

“As happy we are with the sale, knowing that we are not going to have one of our top consignors around is a bittersweet pill,” Wojciechowski said.

Among the Japanese buyers who were active at the Spring sale, Hideyuki Mori purchased five juveniles for $725,000, while North Hills Co. purchased the same number for $390,000. Korean interests acquired 16 head for $476,000.

While Mouni was purchasing for a new partnership of Middle Eastern clients, Pedro Lanz continued buying for Saudi clients. Lanz signed for eight horses for $1.535 million.

“The international buyers were here and were excited to buy horses and it looks like they did,” Wojciechowski said. “Certainly there was a broad spectrum of buyers from all over the world.”

More Seven-Figure Glory for Tiz the Law

Tiz the Law was represented by his third seven-figure juvenile of the week when Spendthrift Farm, St. Elias Stable, and West Point Thoroughbreds teamed up to acquire a colt by the GI Belmont Stakes winner (hip 1094) for a sale-topping $1.5 million Friday at OBS.

The $1.5-million Tiz the Law colt | OBS/VidHorse

“We have now bought three Tiz the Laws at the 2-year-old sales,” said West Point's Terry Finley. “He has come forward like a whirlwind. We are very, very high on him. I remember the day he broke his maiden at Saratoga. Visually, I said he was going to be a superstar. He turned out to be a hell of a racehorse and I think he is going to have an impact on the breed for years to come.”

Consigned by Steve Venosa's S G V Thoroughbreds, the dark bay colt is out of stakes-placed Georgian Dancer (Souper Speedy), a half-sister to Canadian champion sprinter River Maid (Where's the Ring). He worked a furlong last week in :10 flat.

“They are very athletic,” Finley said of the offspring of Tiz the Law. “They are very intelligent. All of the pinhookers and farm trainers that I am talking to just say they have great minds and they carry themselves with some poise and some pizzazz. I wasn't as big a believer in him early, but he's got me hook line and sinker now.”

On Thursday, Spendthrift manager Ned Toffey acknowledged the team had found competition stiff for the top colts with stallion potential this week at OBS. The operation was underbidder on several of the auction's million-dollar colts before partnering up for the sale topper.

“It's called the power of partnerships,” Finley said. “When you are with the right partners, it really helps because you can come back at the next sale and you might get a horse that you wouldn't have gotten if you'd spent your budget at the first two sales. In that respect, I think people, even significant players who can do everything themselves, are smart when they say what group of good partners can we look to partner with. I think that structure is here to stay in our business. And I think, if anything, it helps the industry. I don't hear sellers talking that often anymore about you're taking buyers and it effects the upper end. When you see a horse that you wouldn't normally take a look at, but say, well all right, if we can get Spendthrift and the Violas in, we might be in play. All of a sudden you have more buyers instead of fewer.” @JessMartiniTDN

Tiz the Law Colt Tops Big Week for Venosa

The $1.5-million Tiz the Law colt gave Steve Venosa's S G V Thoroughbreds the top two offerings of the week at the OBS Spring sale. The operation sold a colt by Gun Runner for $1.45 million during Wednesday's second session of the auction.

Asked how it felt to have a pair of million-dollar results this week, Venosa said, “I don't know yet. Ask me again next week.”

Pushed to reveal how he would be celebrating the accomplishment Friday evening, he said, “Not sure yet. But without my team, we aren't able to do this. They take as much credit as I do.”

The sale topper was purchased by SGV Thoroughbreds for $125,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale.

“He was just a big, scopey-type horse that we felt would do the job at a 2-year-old sale,” Venosa said of the colt's appeal last fall. “That stallion has been doing really well. So we took a shot on him.”

Venosa continued, “The transformation has been amazing. He just kept getting better and better. As he was showing here, several people would come and look at him every day and every day they said he just blossomed and improved.”

In addition to his three million-dollar juveniles, Tiz the Law also had a colt sell for $825,000 during Friday's final session of the Spring sale.

“They just show up,” Venosa said of the Coolmore stallion's progeny. “They run on dirt, they run on turf, they are showing up at the 2-year-old sales. And the most important thing is they are sound. To bring a horse like that with that size over here to work the way he did, it was very impressive. And he vetted perfect.” @JessMartiniTDN

'It's a Bit Emotional:' Woods Signs Off at OBS

Eddie and Angela Woods watched on from their usual spot on the side of the pavilion as the final horse of their legendary consignment went through the sales ring at OBS Friday. Angela wiped tears from her eyes as the son of Twirling Candy entered the sales ring and, as bidding inched forward, auctioneer Justin Holmberg quipped, “Are you reconsidering your decision?” Ultimately, hip 1177 would sell for $560,000 to Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Sabby Racing and was led out of the ring to a round of appeals for the veteran horseman who has been a staple of the Ocala scene for three decades.

Eddie and Angela Woods | OBS

“It's a bit emotional,” Woods admitted afterwards with a tear in his eye. “It's great, it was fantastic how he sold. 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 type thing.”

Through the years, graduates of the Eddie Woods consignment have included GI Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown, as well as champions Lady Eli, Left Bank, Midnight Lute and Spring in the Air. Just last month, the consignment sold a son of Gun Runner for an OBS record $3 million at the March sale.

“We've been doing this a long time in this place,” Woods said. “It's going to be different.”

Asked for some of his favorite memories from the Ocala venue, Woods said, “I think my favorite memory from OBS will be that we had the first horse to work in :10 flat back in the day when :22 flat was still a good time and a :10 1/5, you were high-fiving everybody. And the first horse to work in :10 flat was notable.”

He continued, “I've been on the board here for a long time. We redeveloped this whole thing from nothing. Out there it was basically a hay barn, if you remember that. And it's changed and it's a beautiful place. To be a part of that development was really good. I am proud of that, too.”

As he left the pavilion for the last time as a consignor, Woods concluded, “We had some great days. We had some bad days here, too. That's part of it. But our record here has been very, very good for the number of horses we've had.” @JessMartiniTDN

Quality Road Colt Tops Clay's OBS List

Bloodstock agent Case Clay made the trek back from the Middle East, where he celebrated the victory of Wathnan Racing's Hit Show (Candy Ride {Arg}) in the G1 Dubai World Cup at the beginning of the month, to Central Florida for the Spring sale and he may have covered that same amount of ground walking the barns at OBS this week. Clay acquired 10 juveniles for $3,750,000 during the four-day auction and made his highest-priced purchase of the week Friday when going to $750,000 for a colt by Quality Road (hip 1081) from Julie Davies's consignment.

The dark bay colt is out of Fuhriously Kissed (Langfuhr), who was third in the 2018 GI Apple Blossom Handicap.

“Time will tell, but he looks to me like a Saturday horse,” Clay said of the colt who was purchased for the emir of Qatar's Wathnan Racing. “He's by a great sire out of a Grade I-placed mare. And he's just a beautiful mover. I really liked him a lot.”

Clay's purchases at the Spring sale also include a $600,000 son of Vekoma (hip 246), and a $500,000 daughter of City of Light (hip 1159).

“Some of them are for Wathnan and some of them are for a different client,” Clay said of his April purchases. “Wathnan is focusing a lot on dirt and the other client that I am purchasing for at this sale is focusing on turf.” @JessMartiniTDN

Gervais Racing Continues Racing And Breeding Expansion at OBS April

Now two years into the game, Randy Gervais continued to expand his and his mother's Gervais Racing brand with the addition of three purchases at OBS April this week. Striking early during Tuesday's opening session, he first went to $400,000 to secure a filly by Speightstown (hip 21) who Gervais claimed was  “a queen”.

“I knew she was the horse I wanted,” Gervais said. “She was the queen to me of the entire sale. I saw [her] and she was early on [in the sale]. I loved her when I saw her. I got here Sunday and I saw her then and I saw her again Monday. I wound up texting my mom to say we found a filly we can't leave without. She's coming [home].”

Purchased as a yearling at Keeneland September for $120,000 by Equinox for George A. Sharp and consigned at OBS by Niall Brennan Stables, the filly is a half to pair of winners and worked her furlong in :10.

“I looked at every single horse,” Gervais said. “My bloodstock agent is Clay Scherer and we're really good friends. He's a big addition to the team. We loved [hip 21], and not just because she was early. I loved her. I thought she was a queen so I was super excited to get her. She was number one on my list for fillies.”

Gervais noted he was happy to be stake his claim early.

“I was very happy that I was aggressive early on with her. I personally believe that if she was later on in the sale, she would've cost $200,000 more so I was happy with what we did.”

Gervais noted that, while he and his mother were especially keen on fillies as they are looking to establish a breeding operation, a good colt wouldn't be overlooked.

“I'm open to anything,” he said. “If the horse is right, the horse is right. You're buying the individual. I don't want to sell myself short by saying I'm only coming for fillies and have a colt that I pass on. But with a filly, you can win a black-type or a Grade III and have a really nice mare that you can then breed to.”

Keeping that open mind, Gervais Racing signed two days later for a colt by Maclean's Music (hip 704) from the Kinsman Farm consignment for $475,000. Out of a half-sister to champion 3-year-old filly Letruska (Super Saver), the colt also worked in :10. Similarly to the Speightstown filly, Gervais knew what he wanted when he saw it.

Sire Maclean's Music | Lee Thomas

“He was number one on my list for colts,” he said. “I liked 704, [hip 249] and [hip 727], those were my top three colts. And I thought [hip 704] was a notch above both of them. When I saw him walk out of the stall, he just spoke to me. He walked out of the stall like a man. I saw him before I got [hip 21] and I knew I had to wait around until Thursday. He came out of the stall on Monday before I even got to [hip 21] and I thought 'oh man, I've gotta leave with a filly and a colt'. Then I saw him on Tuesday and these horses, they're shown so many times and every single time that Kinsman brought him out, he just took it.”

Of the price, Gervais said he would've been willing to spend whatever was needed.

“I was prepared to go up high for [hip 704]. It helped me out that another Maclean's Music [hip 727] was 20 hips behind me. I knew they were going to battle each other. I knew people liked mine and people also liked that one. Everyone has a different taste.”

In his third and final purchase for the week, Gervais Racing picked up a Complexity filly (hip 295) who RNA'd in the ring and sold post sale for $45,000 from the Grade One Investments consignment.

“We got another little RNA horse,” Gervais said. “That's just fun and I'll send her to a new trainer whose a friend of mine.”

The three purchases made this week go along with a pair of colts who went the way of Gervais Racing during the OBS March sale last month.

“As an owner, I don't like being the owner that just says [to a bloodstock agent], 'hey, what do you like?'. I have to be there and see [the horses] myself. When I get there, we make a list like everyone else. We [Gervais and Scherer] go through and I picked who I liked.”

When it comes to the racing side of his operation, Gervais keeps that same open-mind mentality and lets the horses tell him when they're ready to join trainer Dallas Stewart's barn.

“I let them speak,” he said. “I sent [hip 21] to WinStar to just go relax. I think the fillies are better later on in the year so I'm not going to debut her until probably September. I'm going to move right on with [hip 704] and I'm hoping for a Saratoga debut.”

Additionally, several of Gervais's yearling purchases from last year are already at the track including a $150,000 Not This Time colt purchased at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale.

“I bought a Not This Time from the Saratoga Sale and he's going great,” Gervais said. “He's already with Dallas at Keeneland. He might debut at Saratoga. If he can make a Churchill race, great. But I've seen in my experience that the horses that really carry on are ones that are lightly raced as 2-year-olds. I want the horses to feel good in their bodies and be conditioned. I don't have to buy a horse and go run it.”

Even with OBS April concluding Friday, Gervais said he wasn't done shopping quite yet. Saying he has between 15 and 20 horses currently in training, Gervais doesn't have an ideal number saying with a laugh, “Call me in September.” He also added he'd be shopping at the [Fasig-Tipton] Timonium Sale.

“I'll look around [at Timonium],” he said. “I'll talk to Clay but I'm not really looking for anything, just window shopping. If I go and I see something I have to leave with, then that conversation will change. I'll have to sleep on it, pray on it, see if it feels right and that's when I'll make my move.” –@SGrimmTDN

De Meric Sells Tiz the Law Colt to Chris Hartman for $825K

A colt from the second crop by Coolmore stallion Tiz the Law (hip 970) went to trainer Chris Hartman on a final bid of $825,000 early in the final session Friday and Hartman noted that the colt would go to a Texas-based partnership named Flatland Racing Stable. Consigned by de Meric Sales Friday after they paid $110,000 for the him at Keeneland September, the colt worked his eighth in :10.

“We went through all the horses first while we're in the search like everyone else for a good racehorse,” said Flatland's Clay Carnes. “And he checked all of the boxes and stood out as an individual. So we said let's step up to the plate and see what happens.”

HIP 970 in the ring | OBS/VidHorse

The five-member strong Flatlands Racing Stable, who keep about five to ten horses in training with Hartman at a time, circled the colt early as the one they wanted and Carnes noted he fell right into their expected range.

“We had him between $800,000 and $1,000,000 so he was right there. The higher-end horses seem to be selling pretty well.”

Carnes was quick to attribute the purchase to Hartman who selected the horse on behalf of the partnership.

“We looked at everything in the book and had a couple that we really looked at. But he was the one we circled and the one we were going after. This is a horse that Chris picked out and identified.”

The colt was another strong result for de Meric Sales and wound up their third-highest priced sale of the week.

“He's always trained very well,” said Tristan de Meric. “The way he moved, the action and the angles. He always had great angles and moved really well. He's out of a Curlin mare which I loved. You could see some Curlin in him for sure. He always did everything right. We were lucky to have him and it seemed like everyone on the ground was talking about him. So we were very happy to get the result. Best of luck to Chris Hartman.”

Of the price, de Meric added: “It was starting to feel like the horse was going to sell very well with all the activity and vets in the barn on him. But you never expect a horse to sell that well. We're thrilled to be in the right place at the right time.” –@SGrimmTDN

Cortez Racing Pinhooks Justify Colt

Ocala-based pinhooker Alex Cortez enjoyed a successful pinhooking week when a colt by Justify (hip 1030) sold to SG Racing for $250,000 early in Friday's fourth and final session. His Cortez Racing and Sales purchased the colt as a yearling at Keeneland September for $110,000 last year.

“He was super racy,” Cortez said of what initially attracted him to the colt in Kentucky. “He looked really fast. I took a chance and called my brother and my other partner. I said, 'we gotta take a shot' and it worked out.”

Now in his third year of pinhooking, Cortez said he never asked his Justify colt for a thing coming into the sale.

“He's always trained super big in the mornings,” Cortez said. “He always acted perfectly and I never asked him to do too much because he was always giving [his best].”

His biggest sale of the week, Cortez also pinhooked a Tiz the Law filly (hip 819) during Thursday's third session for $150,000 after initially buying her at Keeneland September for $28,000. Of his eight-horse consignment, seven found new homes.

“For me, the most important thing is for [the horses] to go to good homes and go on to do well. To see them performing and doing well in the races is why I started doing this three years ago.”

Of the market, Cortez added: “It's been good to me. I'm always thanking God for all the success.” –@SGrimmTDN

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