The market strength that helped produce record results for the 2025 Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company 2-year-old auctions is expected to continue when the OBS October Yearling Sale holds its two-day exercise this week.
A total of 507 horses, including 48 supplemental entries, have been catalogued for the sale taking place Oct. 7-8. The Oct. 7 sale session will offer Hips 1-230, plus supplements Hips 231 – 258, with the Oct. 8 session selling Hips 301-530 along with supplements Hips 531-551. Sessions begin at noon ET each day. The full catalogue can be viewed online at obssales.com.
The OBS October Sale aims to build off the momentum generated during a banner juvenile auction season which saw the OBS March sale post year-to-year gains in gross and average – including selling Brant, a son of Gun Runner, for a record $3 million – the April sale finish with a record average, and the June sale yield records for both average and median.
The impact of the 100 percent bonus depreciation, which passed earlier this year and allows buyers to write off the upfront cost of a horse in its first year, is credited with helping to further bolster already robust commercial results. With pinhookers also eager to restock, the OBS October Sale is poised to add to the run of strong numbers in the yearling marketplace.
“We’re all anticipating a good sale, and it looks like a lot of people are coming into town,” said Francis Vanlangendonck of Summerfield Sales. “A lot of people did not get horses bought and I’ve had a lot of phone calls from people wondering what I had. (The pinhookers) will be here looking and picking out the better ones. It going to be a good market for the horses that vet well and have good conformation.
“I think (the bonus depreciation) it obviously doesn’t affect the pinhookers but for the people who are racing, it means a lot,” Vanlangendonck continued. “And these guys who have sold pieces of stallions and have successful racehorses, they’re going to pour it right back in because that’s what they do. That’s what makes this work out so well.”
Since 2024, OBS October Sale graduates won 53 stakes races and 15 graded stakes races including Grade 1 winner Trikari, who was purchased by Amerman Racing for the Ordonez Thoroughbreds consignment at the 2022 October auction. Other notable October graduates included Grade 1 winner Speed Boat Beach, graded/group winners Mystic Lake, Crimson Advocate, Bentornato, Kathleen O, Desert Dawn, Kinza, and Visually.
Mystic Lake, a 10-time stakes winner with earnings of more than $1.4 million, was also named the 2024 Florida Bred Horse of the Year. She was sold by Summerfield at the 2022 October Yearling Sale.
The October sale will be streamed live via the OBS website as well as the DRF, TDN, BloodHorse, Pastthewire, and Hipismo.net websites. This year’s OBS October Sale will also feature Spanish-language coverage provided by Carlos Morales of Agentes 305.
OBS will again offer online bidding during the October sale. Buyers may go to the OBS website and register to gain bidding approval, then access the OBS Bidding Screen with their credentials. For complete information on registration and online bidding please go to the OBS website: obs-internet-bidding.
The iPad version of the catalog can be accessed via the equineline Sales Catalog App. The App allows users to download and view the catalog, receive updates and results, record notes and provides innovative search, sort, and rating capability. For more information and downloads go to: equineline.com.
Sales results will be available on the OBS website, updated frequently during each session of the Sale. In addition, the latest news regarding OBS graduates, sales schedules, nominations, credit requests, travel information and other news relevant to OBS consignors and customers is also available. E-mail should be addressed to obs@obssales.com.
Current information about OBS sales, consignors and graduates is now also available via social media sites Facebook and “X”.