Steven Venosa, consignor of the sales topper at OBS April (Ben Baugh)
By Ben Baugh
Ocala continues its legacy as the best place to break and train a horse globally, as nine horses sold for $1 million or more at the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company’s 2025 Spring 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale.
Each session of the four-day auction saw a horse bring $1 million or more, but it was the sale’s second session that saw six horses sell for more than $1 million that resonated deeply showcasing the power of the 2-year-old sales and the strength of the Thoroughbred industry.
However, the sales topper came the last day of the auction, with Spendthrift, West Point Thoroughbreds and St. Elias Stables going to $1.5 million for a colt by Classic winner Tiz the Law, a Louisiana-bred colt that worked 10 flat during the breeze show. SGV Thoroughbreds Steven Venosa, consigned the Tiz the Law colt.
“He was a special horse from the time he came off the van. I remember him walking off the van, he exuded class, big, strong, a good mover. He had a lot of confidence about him,” said Venosa. “A magnificent looking horse. There was something about him that he knew he was the dude. He had a presence, just the way he walked off the van as a yearling into the barn. He knew this was his time.”
The colt’s dam Georgian Dancer was stakes placed, but it was under his second dam Rivermaid Dancer, who produced full siblings who were stakes winners, River Maid, the 2016 Sovereign Award-winning female spring champion, and Race for Gold, who won the 2010 Deputy Minister Stakes.
New topper at #OBSApril! Hip 1094, a son of @coolmoreamerica stallion Tiz the Law, sells to the partnership of @westpointtbred @spendthriftfarm and St. Elias for $1.5M from the consignment of Steven Venosa of S G V Thoroughbreds. pic.twitter.com/Aupdx1UrRi
— OBSSales (@OBSSales) April 18, 2025
Venosa had sold the horse with the previous highest price, during the sale’s second session, setting the ceiling at $1.45 million, a son of the 2017 Horse of the Year Gun Runner.
“When he came in, physically he had all the tools, and when we broke him, he was so easy to break, just a great mind, great disposition, and those are the horses from early on that when they start, they differentiate themselves from just an ordinary horse,” said Venosa. “Then when we finally put him on the track, he just went out there because everything was so easy for him. In a short period of time, he separated himself form the herd. He was a very forward horse. He was willing to do whatever we threw at him. Those are usually the good horses. The primary thing was that he was sound. He never had any setback during the year, that’s important that you’re able to continue on with them. He just really enjoyed what he did every day.”
The colt’s dam Vanquished is a half-sister to Take Over Target, who won the 2016 Longines Dixie Stakes (Gr, 2) and stakes winner Ladies Privilege.
“He’s a Gun Runner, with that pedigree, there’s not many with that type of pedigree coming into a 2-year-old sale, you’re kind of excited about it,” said Venosa. “But at the end of the day, they have to show up. Coming in here, we were confident that he would perform, but until you lead them up there and turn them loose, you just never know, and he showed up in a big way.”
This day certainly ended with a bang! Hip 601, a son of @Three_Chimneys sire Gun Runner, consigned by S G V Thoroughbreds, sells for $1.45 million to Kerri Radcliffe for Memo Racing. pic.twitter.com/cKozbFzdIO
— OBSSales (@OBSSales) April 16, 2025
A humble man, Venosa was quick to credit his team for his success at the sale, where he finished as the fifth leading consignor.
“I have a tremendous team,” said Venosa. “It’s not only me, they also take the credit. I can’t do what I do if I don’t have them on my side. I have the best staff there is. We’re all extremely happy. Good horses show up. They were both great horses, I think they separated themselves from the rest of the bunch here, and they were rewarded in the sales ring. You have the best eyes on the sales grounds looking over these horses, going through the horses all week. They showed up.”
The veteran consignor came up under the tutelage of his stepfather, the legendary James J. Crupi, where he was an assistant trainer, before venturing out on his own.
“J.J. hsd a lot to do with this week, don’t let anybody tell you any different,” said Venosa. “He’s looking down. Every time I go to the sale, I go to the cemetery, and tell him to keep an eye on me, especially Easter week. It’s because of him, and he’s definitely looking down on me this week helping me through this.”
The OBS Spring Sale was also the swan song for 2-year-old consignor Eddie Woods, who is retiring, and barn 11 at OBS won’t be the same without his presence on the grounds. But he couldn’t have left on a higher note, finishing as the sale’s second leading consignor, and having the sales topper for the auction’s third session. A son of the 2010 2-year-old champion sold for $1.3 million, and was purchased by Marquee Bloodstock, agent.
The colt’s dam, Cacciatora, was the champion 2-year-old filly in Venezuela, and the depth of the bloodlines doesn’t stop there, as his fourth dam was Tricky Elaine, the producer of the 1997 Horse of the Year Favorite Trick.
“The Uncle Mo was a very straightforward horse, classy acting, easy to be around, did all his stuff real well, he was quick from the first time we worked him, and you know just a nice quality horse,” said Woods. “He sold really well. They’re not making Uncle Mo’s anymore, that didn’t hurt, and he comes from a good crop. He’s been a quiet horse all his life, laid back.”
Woods who has conditioned Classic winners, Breeders’ Cup winners and countless stakes winners, was pleased with the results of his final sale.
We have our first 7-figure baby today at #OBSApril! Hip 833, a son of the late Uncle Mo, brings $1.3 million from the consignment of the man himself @eddiewoods2yos. pic.twitter.com/HT2yS7AWAo
— OBSSales (@OBSSales) April 17, 2025
“It’s a great way to end,” said Woods. “It beats crawling out on your hands and knees. It’s good to finish up strong. That was always the plan.”
Among the graduates that have come out of Woods’ program include, Horse of the Year Authentic, Classic winners Big Brown and National Treasure, Eclipse Award winners Lady Eli, Left Bank, Midnight Lute, Regal Glory, Whitmore and Citizen Bull. He also broke and trained this year’s Kentucky Oaks favorite, the undefeated Brad Cox charge, Godolphin’s Good Cheer.
However, one filly foaled in 1993, played an important part in Woods career, the athlete campaigned by Jack Kent Cooke won seven stakes race, and at one point six consecutive starts, and showcased her versatility by winning on the dirt and turf, winning the Miesque Stakes (Gr. 3) and Green River Stakes as a juvenile. But it was during her sophomore campaign that she cemented her place in history, winning the Santa Ysabel Stakes, Las Virgenes Stakes (Gr. 1), Santa Anita Oaks (Gr. 1), the Honeymoon Handicap (Gr. 3) and the Del Mar Invitational Oaks (Gr. 1).
“We’ve been lucky. We’ve had good horses, almost from the get-go. The first crop of horses that we ever had, there were three Grade One winners in there, when we were training for Elmendorf Farm, Antespend was the best one. It’s nice to have nice horses. It’s nice to work with quality horses all the time. It makes the day a lot shorter.”
It will be a time of transition for Woods, but he intends to remain active, and will be placing an emphasis on other things,
“We have all kinds of stuff to do,” said Woods. “We’re going to help some people, do some looking for some people, consulting, traveling, act like a normal person. We’ll partner up with people, here and there and just dabble along.”
SGV Thoroughbreds wasn’t the only consignor to sell two seven figure horses, Raul Reyes’ Kings Equine accomplished the feat on the same day, the sale’s second session, with the sale’s leading buyer, Mahmud Mouni purchasing both horses, a Tiz the Law colt that sold for $1.050.000, but it was the Into Mischief colt that brought $1.4 million, the second highest price of the sale’s second session that resonated powerfully throughout the sales grounds, with the colt being a full brother to multiple stakes winner Taraz. The Into Mischief’s second dam is the stakes winner Jibe.
"We had high expectations all year for him. He proved that he was a nice horse, and we knew he was going to be special." Raul Reyes of @kingsequineinc after selling Hip No. 416 for $1.4M at #OBSApril.
— OBSSales (@OBSSales) April 16, 2025
(OBS/VidHorse Photo) pic.twitter.com/Y0Y4e52H2s
“He comes from a nice family,” said Reyes. “I think the horse has a good chance to become one of the best horses this year. He did everything right He’s very professional. A very serious horse, and that helps a lot.”
The April 16, 2025, session was something that most consignors hope for, but very few get to experience, with the horses bringing a substantial return.
“My wife was excited about the two-million-dollar horses,” said Reyes. “It’s been a very good sale for everyone else too.”
Tom McCrocklin also eclipsed the seven-figure mark by selling a Tiz the Law colt for $1,150,000, with Donato Lanni signing the ticket for Zedan Racing during the auction’s second session. The colt’s dam Taboo is the producer of stakes winner Let My People Go.
“We bought that colt at Saratoga for $150,000, and we’ve had luck with that mare Taboo, we had previously bought a filly, named Der Lu,” said McCrocklin. “We loved Tiz the Law. We had success with that mare before. We brought him to Ocala, broke him and prepared him for the sale. He acted like a very nice horse the whole time. The horse never had a bad day. He’s just one of these gifts you get every now and then when you buy a nice horse.”
However, the Tiz the Law colt allowed McCrocklin to keep his streak alive of having a horse sell for $1 million for nine consecutive years.
“My wife was kind of rolling her eyes, shaking her head, but when he went up to the ring, I was like, ‘Well, this is it. This is my last shot,’” said McCrocklin. “It’s just a little personal thing that I take pride in. We all have something that’s important to us. It’s not about the money, really, it’s not. When people say, ‘it’s not about the money.’ It’s about the money. For us, it’s more about the streak. It’s like a hitting streak in baseball. The guy goes into the ninth inning with a no-hitter. It’s something on the scorecard of the work that we put in.”
Three other horses brought $1 million or more; a Yaupon colt consigned by de Meric Sales, the sale’s leading consignor, sold for $1.3 million; a Nyquist colt consigned by Harris Training Center brought $1,050,000 and a Tapit colt consigned by Top Line Sales, LLC, the sales fourth leading consignor, paced the opening session, selling for $1 million.
