Global Campaign

by Jessica Martini & Stefanie Grimm OCALA, FL - While it took some time to find its stride, the first session of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training gained momentum throughout the day and concluded with figures in line with the first session of its record-setting 2023 renewal. "I thought it was a good day," said OBS Director of Sales Tod Wojciechowski. "A good horse sells well and I thought we had a lot of nice horses today. Holding true to last year, that's a...

Today we'll consider some of the sires standing between $10,001 and $19,999. For a long time, I called this the Lookin At Lucky zone. But don't worry, we won't be deploring his neglect yet again: he's staying in Chile, where they evidently appreciate him rather more. Plenty of horses in this bracket have recently relinquished their brief window of commercial opportunity, and are now hanging around to discover whether they might join the very small group whose first runners generate a fresh vogue. Even with the newcomers out of the...

Under his Quarter Pole Enterprises banner, noted yearling-to-juvenile reseller Eddie Woods signed for the two top horses during Wednesday's second and final session of the OBS October Sale in Central Florida. The veteran horseman paid $250,000 for a colt by promising young sire Mitole about a third of the way through the session and hung around to the bitter end, when he gave $150,000 for a colt from the first crop of Global Campaign (Curlin). The topper was the most-expensive at the October Sale since 2018, when a colt by...

1st-KD, $150K, Msw, 2yo, 1mT, 1:30 p.m. ROCKETEIGHTYEIGHT (Into Mischief), a homebred for Frank Fletcher Racing, debuts for Riley Mott Sunday at Kentucky Downs. His dam is a half to the dam of successful young sire Bolt d'Oro (Medaglia d'Oro) along with GISW Global Campaign (Curlin) and SW/MGSP Sonic Mule (Distorted Humor). Under his third dam is MGISW Zensational (Unbridled's Song) and MGSW/GISP Departing (War Front). Making his second start, Hanalei Bay (Into Mischief) was a $500,000 yearling who just missed when debuted over the Colonial Downs turf Aug. 3....

6th-Kentucky Downs, $255,000, Alw, 8-31, (R), 2yo, 6 1/2fT, 1:16.87, fm, 1/2 length. COIN MINER (c, 2, Cloud Computing--Require, by Blame) finished well down the center of the course on Ellis debut July 30 to miss by a neck in third and was given a 10-1 chance to graduate in this colts' division of the Keeneland Sales allowance, restricted to horses bought or led out unsold at Keeneland September last year. Settled slightly ahead of mid-division as they raced down the hill and onto the turn, Coin Miner was held...

6th-Ellis, $70,000, Msw, 7-31, 2yo, f, 6f, 1:11.17, ft, 7 3/4 lengths. CONDON CANDY (f, 2, Unified--Sweetness 'n Light, by Distorted Humor) broke well enough to go on and set the pace from two off the rail, drawing away from her rivals at the three furlong marker. Widening her advantage while being kept to her task, Condon Candy made the margin 7 3/4 lengths over Regal Humor (Kantharos), who would come on from midpack to claim second after bouncing off runners at the break. A half-sister to Stormy Sky (Sky...

While no singular superstar emerged from this class numbering just 60, the top-to-bottom quality separates this class from its counterparts. MGISW Guarana (Ghostzapper) was the only 'TDN Rising Star' to win multiple Grade I events in 2019. She posted three consecutive victories that year, going straight from her maiden-breaking score at Keeneland to the GI Acorn S., where she defeated GI Kentucky Oaks winner Serengeti Empress (Alternation) and future Eclipse champion Ce Ce (Elusive Quality), and then to Saratoga's GI Coaching Club American Oaks. Second only to GISW Street Band...

A short yearling from the first crop of GI Woodward S. winner Global Campaign (Curlin) (hip 485) topped the open session of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's Winter Mixed Sale Wednesday when selling to Machmer Hall for $80,000. Bred in Florida by Dominque Damico and consigned by Fly By, the dark bay colt is out of Im a Dixie Diva (Henny Hughes), a half-sister to multiple Grade I winner Mor Spirit (Eskendereya). During Wednesday's open session of the two-day auction, 182 horses sold for $2,064,200. The average was $11,342 and...

It's not like you just add water. For the very possibility of reaping the ultimate harvest with Instant Coffee (Bolt d'Oro), on the first Saturday in May, has only been able to take root because the ending of even the longest stories, in this game, can always prove the start of a new chapter. Having already demonstrated an aptitude for the Churchill surface in winning the GII Kentucky Jockey Club S., Instant Coffee resumes the Derby trail in the GIII Lecomte S. at the Fair Grounds on Saturday. And while...

The stallions we assess today find themselves at the first major crossroads of their new career. Poor fellows, they're still a long way from having the chance to demonstrate whether they can actually produce runners. But that seems a pretty incidental consideration in the current marketplace, which has created a self-fulfilling cycle. Like it or not, stallions nowadays do indeed have their best chance of producing a good one from their first crop, as these typically emerge from the biggest and best books they will ever get. That, in turn,...

The top six sellers at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic December Mixed and Horses of Racing Age Sale Tuesday were all racehorses, led by the 3-year-old gelding Radical Right (First Samurai) (Hip 281), who brought $260,000 from Tom Kagele. The Richard Shultz homebred is a three-time winner and entered the sale off a second in the City of Laurel S. Nov. 26 for trainer Dale Capuano. He was consigned by Northview Stallion Station. Trainer Mike Maker was very active, purchasing four racehorses, including the second highest-priced offering Heldish (Great Notion) (Hip 243),...

As we saw in the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff, if there's anything more exciting than a duel to the wire, it's the intrusion of a third nose. And that's pretty much the way a remarkable contest for the freshman sires' title is playing out entering the stretch. The first thing to stress is that it really shouldn't matter which of the stallions involved happens to bank the critical extra cents to claim the crown. That won't be how the marketing teams of their respective farms are viewing things, naturally, but...