Venezuelan native Mario Bencomo, 38, opened the doors to his New Horizons Farm in 2016 and began selling horses in 2020 while slowly adding horses at the Ocala, Fla., operation. This year at the Ocala Breeders' March Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training, New Horizons Bloodstock brings a draft of eight horses to be offered March 12-14 after showing in Barn 18. In between sets, Bencomo took time to speak to BloodHorse about his operation and hopes for this year.
BloodHorse: How did you get into horses, and services are offered at New Horizons Farm?
Mario Bencomo: I got involved with horses in Ocala, Fla., initially because of the real estate available. Little by little, I was getting more involved with the horses and the Thoroughbred industry.
The farm has a five-eighths track, which works well for getting horses started. I have a little bit of everything on the farm, and I have a small breeding operation of 12 mares with a total of 63 horses on the farm. Three horses I am offering here at OBS are homebreds for New Horizons, so it is special to be here as a breeder.
I do both breaking and training at the farm and yearling prep.
BH: Do you only breed to sell, or do you retain a few to race?
MB: It's an opportunity situation. Sometimes, it's the right time to sell a horse and make a little money. Sometimes, it's best to keep them and let them mature a bit. It's a hard business; you have to know when to move a horse and when they need a bit more time.
BH: Here at the OBS March Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training, New Horizons has five horses it bred heading through the ring, three of which you are consigning. What do you think of this group?
MB: I sold two fillies (I bred) last year during the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Select Yearling Sale: a Tiz the Law filly (Hip 149) out of Cryptobullet, which Larry Mejias purchased for $90,000, and a Caracaro (Hip 783) filly out of Turlington, which III Beauty's Thoroughbreds purchased for $21,000. (Paramount Sales, agent, consigned both fillies in Kentucky. Golden Rock Thoroughbreds will consign the filly out of Cryptobullet at OBS. After this interview, the Turlington filly was listed as an out.)
The other three are selling from my draft and include Hip 56, a filly by Mendelssohn out of Bello Porte, who breezed on the first day with the strong headwind in :10 2/5. Hip 718, a lovely Laoban filly out of Strike Red, who breezed on Saturday in :10 1/5, and Hip 763, a City of Light colt out of Timeslot, is a nice individual with an excellent pedigree. The City of Light covered an eighth-mile in :10 4/5. They are all nice horses, and I stand behind them.
I am selling two other horses, not homebreds: a very nice Volatile filly who worked in :10 1/5 (Hip 119) and an Improbable colt (Hip 162) who struggled with the wind and worked in :10 4/5 on Wednesday. Both breeze videos are excellent, and the rider did a good job. I don't put too much pressure on them; if it's a sprinting horse, it will be fast, and they will show it.
BH: Which other sales will you consign to this year?
MB: I will have four horses for the OBS April Sale and likely a few for the June Sale. I have gone to the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale for the past three years; some horses favor the dirt track up there.
BH: How do you think the market will fare this year?
MB: In March and April, we are going to be OK, but normally, during an election year, the sales can be a little cold.
BH: What is something, in your eyes, that is important for the industry's future?
MB: This business needs newcomers to continue to grow. It has shrunk for the past 20-30 years, which is a bit concerning.
