Strength at the Top as $1.35-Million Corniche Colt Leads OBS March Opener

[Wandering Eyes]

by Jessica Martini & Christina Bossinakis

OCALA, FL – With brisk activity at the top of the market, the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's March Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training opened Tuesday with a lively day of trade topped by a $1.35-million son of Corniche. The colt was one of three to bring seven figures during the session. The entire 2025 March sale produced seven million-dollar juveniles.

“Certainly an excellent day,” said OBS president Tom Ventura. “We had a lot of activity in the barns during the week and expected that to translate in the auction ring, and it did. Hopefully, we can keep that going for the next two days. Everybody here is working hard trying to find a good horse and the sales results have shown that. You don't want to predict too much moving forward, we've got one day down and two to go. But very happy so far.”

During the session, 142 juveniles sold for $22,969,500. The average of $161,757 was up 19.0% from last year's opening session, while the median was up 5.8% to $90,000. Both the average and the median were up from the cumulative 2025 figures of $152,351 and $70,000, respectively. With 62 horses reported not sold, the buy-back rate was 30.4%.

“The market is very strong,” Legion Bloodstock's Kristian Vilante said after signing for the session topper, who was consigned by Pick View. “This is not the first horse we've tried to buy [Tuesday], but was the first horse we actually got to buy. The market is very strong and there is high demand for quality horses.”

The OBS March sale continues through Thursday with sessions beginning each day at 11 a.m.

Legion Extends to $1.35M for Corniche Colt

With Tuesday's opening session of the OBS March Sale in Ocala already in full swing, hip 95, a colt by Corniche, drew a $1.35-million final bid from Legion Bloodstock. It was the sole purchase by the operation on Day 1.

During last Wednesday's breeze session, the top-priced juvenile of Tuesday's session breezed a quarter mile in :21 flat.

“We were trying to not leave here without him, we were hoping he wouldn't cost quite that much but that's what you have to pay for horses like that,” said Legion's Kristian Vilante, who signed the ticket.

Consigned by Pick View LLC, the May 8 foal is out of Canadian champion 3-year-old filly Leigh Court (Grand Slam), who was purchased by Speedway Stables for $1.1 million in 2014.

Kristian Villante | OBS/Photos by Z

“He's a beautiful colt, his dad was a champion,” said Vilante. “We've been following him since January. We saw him in January at Joe Pickerell's farm. He's been a standout all year.”

The Speedway-bred colt was secured by Pick View for $275,000 at last season's Keeneland's September Sale.

“Joe had to pay a lot for him as a yearling and we are fortunate that we have some clients that are willing to step up and try and buy a horse that might be a [Kentucky] Derby kind of colt.”

According to Vilante, the colt will head to Travis Durr Training Center in South Carolina for his early preparation.

“He'll eventually go to Whit Beckman,” added Vilante. “We'll let Travis play around and determine when it's time to move him on to Whit.”

Vilante explained that the colt's future trainer was equally high on the colt prior to the purchase.

“Whit actually came down here last month and he fell in love with this colt just like we all have,” he said. “He was here again [Tuesday] morning to see him.”

Hip 95 | OBS/VidHorse

Represented by his first crop of juveniles, 2021 champion 2-year-old colt Corniche stands at Ashford Stud.

“We bought a couple Corniches as yearlings and they're on Travis's farm and he loves them so far,” said Vilante. “We tried to buy a filly earlier in the day by Corniche. I think he stamps them, he's just putting out a beautiful horse. He should make it.”

Pick View sold three juveniles for a total of $1,390,000 on Tuesday.

“I have two [Corniches] and they're both awesome,” said Pickerell. “They love to train, they're sound and they seem to thrive off the work. That's something that separates good horses from great horses and he seems to thrive. Everything we've thrown at him, he's taken it in stride and loves to work. Loves to perform. I feel like he's a horse who is going to have some big things coming.” —@CBossTDN

Marquee, Morplay Team for Nyquist Colt

Ramiro Restrepo of Marquee Bloodstock and Cam Dulgar of Morplay Racing partnered up to acquire a colt by Nyquist (hip 88) for $1.2 million during the first session of the OBS March sale Tuesday.

“We are working together to find ourselves a big horse,” Restrepo said after signing the ticket on the juvenile, who was consigned by Wavertree Stables.

Both of the new partners have experience on the Kentucky Derby trail. Marquee graduate Mage (Good Magic) wore the roses in 2023 and The Puma (Essential Quality) is on the road to Louisville after his win in the GIII Tampa Bay Derby Saturday. Morplay's No More Time (Not This Time) was second in the 2024 Tampa Bay Derby.

Cam Dulgar | OBS/VidHorse

“No More Time made it to the Derby. He unfortunately ended up getting injured, but we got hooked,” Dulgar said. “The success we've seen with [2025 Eclipse champion female sprinter] Shisospicy (Mitole) has us extremely excited to pick up this colt and hopefully experience something similar. Right now, we are Derby Dreaming and just happy to hopefully have gotten a good horse.”

Hip 88, purchased by Ange Bloodstock for $170,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale, worked a furlong in :9 4/5 during last week's under-tack preview. He is out of La Extrana Dama (Arg) (Catcher in the Rye {Ire}), a champion older mare in Argentina.

“He stood out on paper,” Restrepo said. “I love the Argentinian sturdiness. Obviously there are a couple champions in there. And Nyquist, what a season he had last year and the year before that. He stands above a lot of horses in this catalogue with that sire power. That's what we were chasing.”

Hip 88 | OBS/VidHorse

Just a few hips after acquiring the seven-figure juvenile, Morplay was back in action as sellers offering their homebred colt by Yaupon (hip 92). The bay, out of La Urbana (Into Mischief), sold for $100,000 to Sean S. Perl Bloodstock.

“This is our second crop of homebreds,” Dulgar said. “We sold a McKinzie out of the mare last year and this is her second foal. We have only two broodmares, so we are light on the broodmare side. We have run both of our mares and because of their physicals, it just made sense to keep them.”

Asked if Morplay would be looking to increase its broodmare band, Dulgar said, “We'll leave it up to the boss man [Rich Mendez].” —@JessMartiniTDN

Drain the Clock Colt Delivers

Juveniles from the first crop of Drain the Clock made plenty of noise on the OBS track during last week's under-tack preview and the Gainesway stallion was equally quick out of the blocks in the sales ring at OBS Tuesday when bloodstock agent Pedro Lanz went to $1.1 million to acquire a colt (hip 132) from the de Meric Sales consignment. Lanz, who was bidding on behalf of the Saudi-based KAS Stable, said the juvenile would stay in the U.S. and would be trained by Brad Cox.

Hip 132 | OBS/VidHorse

“His horses are fast and can sustain speed, they gallop out very fast,” Lanz said of the juveniles by Drain the Clock he saw work last week. “They are athletes. Incredible athletes. When you see them, they are sharp. And I think they can go the distance. I think this horse's stride is very long and they sustained their speed. So I think they can go long.”

Hip 132 is out of the unraced Making a Point (Freud) and worked a furlong last week in :9 4/5.

Lanz admitted he was prepared for the colt's seven-figure price tag.

“In the morning before the sale, I didn't think he would bring that much, but after what I saw–I tried to buy a filly by Nashville and I couldn't, I told Prince Abdullah we have to go very strong to get him,” Lanz said. “I told him, 'If you want this horse we have to fight.'”

Pedro Lanz | OBS/Photos by Z

The de Merics purchased the colt for $145,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton New York-bred Yearlings Sale.

“He's been a nice horse all year,” Tristan de Meric said. “We've always liked him a lot. He's done everything right.”

Drain the Clock, winner of the 2021 GI Woody Stephens Stakes, had bullet workers on three of the four days of the under-tack preview for the March sale.

“I've been high on Drain the Clock,” de Meric said. “The two we have are both here. They can both run. They both look like they should be early. And looking at the stallion on paper himself, it makes sense for him to have early, fast 2-year-olds.

“I knew this was a nice horse and I am happy all the stars aligned for him. He's a beautiful horse, he vetted clean and did everything right.” —@JessMartiniTDN

One and Done for Loya with $750K Army Mule Colt

Heading into the opening session of the OBS March Sale, many eyes were sure to be on hip 139, a colt by Army Mule that recorded the fastest eighth of the March breezers when producing a blistering :9 3/5 move at OBS last Wednesday.

Hip 139 | OBS/VidHorse

On Tuesday, Cesar Loya had only that one to lead up, but what the pinhooking operation lacked in numbers at the sale, it more than made up for in quality as the Arkansas-bred colt brought $750,000 from Katsumi Yoshida.

“Time doesn't lie. We knew we were sitting on a very fast horse,” admitted Loya, who was sitting in front of his shedrow shortly after the colt's sale.

Bred by Mark Burdette, the March foal sold for a bargain $57,000 at last year's Texas Summer Yearling Sale.

“God bless Texas,” he said with a laugh when asked what his initial thoughts were after the colt's sale. “We were sitting high high high on this horse leading up to the final work here. The work didn't surprise me as much as the sale price.”

In regard to the final price, he added, “It more than exceeded my expectations. Any time you can double or triple your money you are making a good living in any business. But when it's that many times over what you paid, then that really exceeds expectations.”

The colt is out of minor winner Marching Fire (Midnight Lute), who sold for $30,000 at Keeneland November in 2023.

Cesar Loya | OBS/Photos by Z

Loya, who launched his pinhooking operation in 2023, has two more juveniles lined up for the March sale, a filly by American Pharoah (hip 496) who breezed in :10 flat on Friday and colt by Win Win Win (hip 403). The latter worked an eighth in :10 1/5 during last Thursday's breeze session.

“We are a small operation. Me and my wife [Danielle] usually pinhook seven to 10 horses of our own per season,” he said when asked if expansion was in his operation's future. “I'd like to maintain more of a boutique type of consignment. Maybe we'll grow a little bit more but not much. I'd rather remain selective.” —@CBossTDN

Nashville Filly Gets RM Stables Off to a Flyer at OBS Tuesday

Ramon Minguet has been training at Gulfstream Park for the better part of a decade, but decided to make the move to Ocala two years ago. The move paid dividends Tuesday when his RM Stables sold a filly from the first crop of Nashville (hip 71) for $550,000 to William Werner. Minguet had picked up the filly for $45,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale.

“I liked her physical,” Minguet, with his son Gabriel interpreting, said. “She was a very big horse. And I liked her sire.”

Gabriel and Ramon Minguet | Jessica Martini

Of the filly's price last fall, Minguet admitted, “I was very surprised. But she came out very early in the day and there weren't that many people in the sales ring yet.”

The chestnut, out of Kencho (Fusaichi Pegasus), worked a furlong during last week's under-tack show in :9 4/5.

“She has grown exponentially,” Minguet said. “She is very intelligent and does everything very professionally.”

Minguet admitted the sale result Tuesday exceeded his expectations.

“I thought maybe $300,000 or $400,000. So she very much exceeded expectations,” he said.

Hip 71 | OBS/VidHorse

RM Stables had more success with Nashville later in the session when selling a colt (hip 234) for $260,000 to CHC, Inc. and Maverick Racing. The 2-year-old had been purchased by Deivy Ordonez, Abreu Sales, and D&D for $24,000 at Keeneland last September.

RM Stables still has three juveniles to send through the ring at the OBS March sale, but Minguet said his first-out success has him feeling confident.

“I am more at peace and settled now,” he said with a smile. —@JessMartiniTDN

 

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