Obs April Sale Opens Tuesday
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TUESDAY, APRIL 24, 2018 THE TDN DERBY TOP 20 OBS APRIL SALE by T.D. Thornton OPENS TUESDAY We=re now inside the two-week mark for the May 5 GI Kentucky Derby and big jumps in the prep-race pecking order have given way to behind-the-scenes strategizing, final workout intrigue, and the intensity of big-race anticipation. Two Derby spots opened up Monday morning based on the dual news that Quip (Distorted Humor) has been withdrawn from Derby consideration to instead aim for the GI Preakness S. and that the British-based Gronkowski (Lonhro {Aus}) is dealing with a minor infection that has taken him out of the Derby. Please note that the TDN Top 20 rankings below are independent from the ARoad to the Derby@ points leaderboard that Churchill Downs will use to determine starting berths; that list can be accessed here. Cont. p6 (click here) Hip 382 works at OBS | Tibor & Judit Photography by Jessica Martini IN TDN EUROPE TODAY The Ocala Breeders= Sales Company=s April Spring Sale of THE WEEKLY WRAP 2-Year-Olds kicks off its four-day run Tuesday with the first of Emma Berry has the latest Weekly Wrap, with all of the 1,222 catalogued juveniles slated to stride through the sales ring notable racing action from the past week inside. Click or tap at 10:30 a.m. The stature of the April sale has exploded in recent here to go straight to TDN Europe. years, with records set at each of the last five renewals of the auction. For the second year in a row, the 2017 sale set records for average and median and had its highest gross in history. The auction, which had two million-dollar sales prior to 2017, had three juveniles top the seven-figure mark, including the $2.45- million topper by Tiznow. AYou don=t expect to be able to set a record every year, we just hope to stay in the same level where we are,@ said OBS Director of Sales Tod Wojciechowski. AI don=t know that it=s reasonable to say you should set a new record every year you=re selling. But we are confident in the quality of the horses that are here this year.@ The OBS March sale kicked off the juvenile sales season last month and the results showed a continued polarization in the marketplace, with plenty of competition for the top lots, but interest seeming to fall precipitously beyond those perceived quality offerings. Wojciechowski hopes the evolution of the April sale and its 1222-strong >something-for-everyone= catalogue, will lead to a broader buying bench this week in Central Florida. Cont. p3 859.873.1717 Curlin – Dawn Raid, by Vindication WinStarFarm.com $30,000 S&N PUBLISHER & CEO Sue Morris Finley @suefinley [email protected] V.P., INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS Gary King @garykingTDN [email protected] EDITORIAL [email protected] Editor-in-Chief Jessica Martini @JessMartiniTDN Managing Editor Alan Carasso @EquinealTDN Tuesday, April 24, 2018 Senior Editor Steve Sherack @SteveSherackTDN Racing Editor Brian DiDonato @BDiDonatoTDN News and Features Editor Ben Massam @BMassamTDN Associate Editors Christie DeBernardis @CDeBernardisTDN Joe Bianca @JBiancaTDN Assistant Editor Bobby Klatt ADVERTISING [email protected] Director of Advertising Alycia Borer Advertising Manager Lia Best Advertising Designer Amanda Crelin Advertising Assistants Rainy days and Mondays. Prepared for the weather, Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Alexa Reisfield Rachel McCaffrey Lukas and his pony Starbuck greet a wet, windy Monday morning at Churchill Downs. See where his trainee Bravazo (Awesome Again) ranks in T.D. Thornton’s TDN Derby Photo Editor/Dir. of Distribution Sarah K. Andrew @SarahKAndrew Top 20 starting on page 6. | Horsephotos [email protected] Social Media Strategist Justina Severni QUIP OUT OF DERBY, AIMS FOR PREAKNESS 4 WinStar Farm, China Horse Club International and SF Racing’s Director of Customer Service ‘TDN Rising Star’ Quip (Distorted Humor) will pass on running Vicki Forbes [email protected] in the GI Kentucky Derby and will instead point for the GI Preakness S., trainer Rodolphe Brisset confirmed to TDN. Marketing Manager Alayna Cullen @AlaynaCullen GRONKOWSKI HAS INFECTION, OUT OF DERBY Director of Information Technology 5 Ray Villa The second Derby defection of the day, Phoenix Thoroughbreds’ [email protected] Gronkowski (Lonhro {Aus}) will miss the First Saturday in May with a minor infection, less than a week after his NFL star Bookkeeper Terry May namesake bought into him. [email protected] WORLDWIDE INFORMATION OAKLAWN POSTS DOUBLE-DIGIT HANDLE INCREASE International Editor 14 Kelsey Riley @kelseynrileyTDN Owing largely to record intake on two of its Derby prep cards, [email protected] Oaklawn Park announced an 11% overall handle increase at European Editor its recently-concluded meet. Emma Berry [email protected] Associate International Editor Heather Anderson @HLAndersonTDN Newmarket Bureau, Cafe Racing Sean Cronin & Tom Frary [email protected] 60 Broad Street, Suite 100 Red Bank, NJ 07701 732-747-8060 | 732-747-8955 (fax) www.TheTDN.com TDN HEADLINE NEWS • PAGE 3 OF 15 • THETDN.COM TUESDAY • APRIL 24, 2018 OBS April Preview cont. We see a number of groups from Japan. There are a number of AThere will still be a lot of competition on the top,@ he said. people coming from U.A.E. who will be here because of the ABut I think, if someone is going to attend a 2-year-old sale, April recent success with Rayya and Polar River. The April sale has is usually the one they=ll attend. So we get a better spectrum of evolved into a truly international sale.@ buyers who buy at all levels.@ During the six-session under-tack preview of the April sale, Joe Appelbaum, whose Off the Hook LLC sent out 35 juveniles held last Monday through Saturday, 19 horses set the fastest to work during last week=s under-track preview of the April sale, furlong time of :9 4/5, while four shared the fastest quarter-mile agreed the auction has become the must-attend sale of the time of :20 3/5. Times during the first and fourth sessions of the season. preview were noticeably impacted by strong headwinds. AI think April is the 2-year-old market in the same way that AIt was unfortunate that we had to deal with the headwind on [Keeneland] September is the yearling market,@ Appelbaum said. Monday and Thursday, but we deal with a pretty sophisticated AThe other sales are good and they are significant sales. buyer group,@ Wojciechowski said. APeople have gotten better Obviously, the Fasig Miami sale is important and the other OBS and better at buying racehorses, and in particular buying at sales are important, but this is the guts of the market. This is 2-year-old sales. I know that there seems to be a lot of emphasis everything from $5,000 to $1 million all right here.@ placed on times, but I think what you see from a number of the Graduates of last year=s April sale include GI Kentucky Oaks buyers who consistently buy good horses, that=s not the only contenders Midnight Bisou (Midnight Lute), Wonder Gadot metric they are using. It is only one part of the equation and I (Medaglia d=Oro) and Rayya (Tiz Wonderful). think more and more we see that. I understand that it is an Rayya=s success on the international stage--she won the G3 important metric, but it=s not the only thing they are going on.@ UAE Oaks and was second behind GI Kentucky Derby hopeful During last year=s April sale, 678 juveniles sold for Mendelssohn (Scat Daddy) in the G2 UAE Derby--is just the $60,935,900. The average was $89,876 and the median was sale=s most recent salvo as it continues to attract global interest. $47,500. AThe international status that the April sale has attained is The April sale continues through Friday with sessions truly remarkable,@ Wojciechowski said. AWe see a very strong beginning daily at 10:30 a.m. contingent of Korean owners, trainers and associations here. TDN HEADLINE NEWS • PAGE 4 OF 15 • THETDN.COM TUESDAY • APRIL 24, 2018 QUIP OUT OF DERBY, AIMS FOR PREAKNESS Capturing his first two starts before running seventh in the GII Kentucky Jockey Club S., the WinStar homebred pulled a by Joe Bianca 19-1 upset in the GII Tampa Bay Derby in his 3-year-old debut WinStar Farm, China Horse Club International and SF Racing=s Mar. 10. He followed that up with a second-place run in the graded stakes-winning >TDN Rising Star= Quip (Distorted Humor) GI Arkansas Derby Apr. 14, assuring himself a spot in the will pass on taking a shot at the May 5 Louisville starting gate should his GI Kentucky Derby off of three weeks= connections choose. Instead, they rest and will instead point for a run in will go with the potent one-two the GI Preakness S. two weeks later, punch of undefeated >Rising Star= trainer Rodolphe Brisset confirmed Justify (Scat Daddy) and GI Florida Monday. The story was first reported Derby hero Audible (Into Mischief). by Daily Racing Form. WinStar is also part-owner in GII AI kind of made my mind up Louisiana Derby winner Noble Indy [Sunday],@ Brisset told TDN. AI had a (Take Charge Indy) alongside Repole meeting with all the partners last Stable. Monday and we were giving AThe fact that the ownership has a ourselves until the end of the week couple of other horses in the race before making any decision. We just makes it easier to pass,@ Brisset said.