The Ocala Breeders' Sales October Yearling Sale concluded Oct. 8 with gains seen across the board. A total of 309 horses changed hands during the two-day sale for gross receipts of $7,267,700, including private sales—a 27% increase on last year's gross of $5,724,600, from 297 head sold. The average price was $23,520, with a median of $15,000, up 22% and 50%, respectively. The RNA rate was 26%, representing the 106 horses who failed to meet their reserve.
A colt by first-crop yearling sire Jackie's Warrior consigned as Hip 482 topped the final day of the October sale when selling to Arroyo Bloodstock for $180,000.
"Donato Lanni set me aside this year and he said 'Nelson, stick to buying good horses and make that type of name.' So that's what we're trying to do," Nelson Arroyo said. "We're trying to go after what I really believe in.
"I loved the horse. He has a lot of substance to him," said Arroyo, who operates his bloodstock operation along with his son Elijah. "He has all the right parts. To me, he was my favorite horse of the sale. I told my guys we might have to pay the most but thank God, we got him for less than what we thought. His page of course (is outstanding), but his physical and his mind is what got me."
Hip 482 is the son of 2021 champion male sprinter Jackie's Warrior and out of graded stakes-winning Broken Vow mare Broken Dreams. She is the dam of four winners including multiple graded stakes winner Caribou Club. The colt was bred and consigned by Glen Hill Farm.
Arroyo said the plan for the colt is to bring him back next spring for the OBS March Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training.
"It's a good family and he's a nice colt," Tom Proctor, who trained Broken Dreams and heads up the Glen Hill consignment, said of the Jackie's Warrior colt. "I think the family goes back (to Glen Hill) about seven to eight dams. He's a big, good-looking colt who is well balanced. I hope Nelson does well with him."
Glen Hill Farm consigned another homebred in Hip 506, a colt by Army Mule who brought $125,000 from Breeze Easy. The colt is out of the multiple graded stakes winner Closeout, who is a full sister to graded stakes winner Capital Request, stakes winner Bricks and Ivy, and stakes-placed Family Foundation and Final Discount.
Hip 549 was the highest-priced filly of the day selling for $100,000 to Mustang Farms from the Sennebec South Farm consignment. The daughter of leading freshman sire Yaupon is out of the Into Mischief mare Champagne Girl, who is a half sister to the grade 1-placed stakes winner Light the City.
"She's a classy filly and she's never put a foot wrong since she's been here," said Sandi Dorr of Sennebec South. "She's everything you would want in a beautiful filly: great body, moves really well. She's hard to pick apart. I'm happy for the opportunity to sell her."
First-crop yearling sire Roadster , the grade 1-winning son of Quality Road who stands at Ocala Stud, was well received by the Florida market; a colt of his (Hip 480) brought $120,000 from Sean S. Perl Bloodstock from the Blue Sapphire Stables consignment. He was bred in Florida by Diana Flores and Jorge Diaz.
Another Florida-bred Roadster yearling—Whole Lotta Rosie, consigned as Hip 319—was the second-highest-priced filly of the day when selling for $80,000 to Champion Equine. The filly is out of the stakes-producing mare Shotdowninflames, and was bred by Castle Gate Farm and consigned by Abbie Road Farm, agent.
Kaizen Sales sold 34 head for a total of $1,133,000 to be the sale's leading consignor; and West Coast Equine was the leading buyer with 13 purchases totaling $287,000.
