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Besting two rivals at the wire, Storm Changer captures a New York Stallion Stakes at Aqueduct Race Track April 13, a win that gave sire Name Changer his first black-type winner. 

The 3-year-old gelding utilized a ground-saving trip that culminated with jockey Jayden Ironeyes taking him along the rail for the neck win. They Call Me Moose paid $12.40 for a $2 win ticket in the six-furlong contest.

The legacy of Mid-Atlantic-based owner and breeder R. Larry Johnson lived on April 13 when his star homebred turf sprinter, Future Is Now, gutted out a victory in the $270,850 Giant's Causeway Stakes (G3T) at Keeneland.

Kenny Troutt has accomplished every goal he set in 2000, when he started WinStar Farm with former partner Bill Casner. But for the Texas-based owner/breeder, there is still more to accomplish.

ReRun Thoroughbred Adoption and After the Finish Line's Triple Crown Moneigh Auction runs April 20-27. The original Moneighs were painted by stallions and broodmares that have raced in and/or won the Triple Crown races.

Plans call for Mystik Dan to once again enter the starting gate on Kentucky Derby Day, but this time it will be at Oaklawn Park in the $200,000 Lake Ouachita Stakes May 3.

According to agent Jay Burtis, jockey Forest Boyce is in a lot of pain, but nothing is broken after her mount in Laurel Park's opening race April 13 dislodged her and fell on top of her during the post parade.

The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training, the bellwether auction of the juvenile sales season, begins its four-day run Tuesday and continues through Friday with bidding beginning each day at 10:30 a.m.

“We are hoping to capitalize on the momentum that we had at our March sale,” said OBS Director of Sales Tod Wojciechowski. “There are an awful lot of good horses on the grounds. There is a lot of activity on the grounds right now. We are looking forward to a good sale.”

The 2024 renewal of the Spring sale set highwater marks for average and median, with 630 horses selling by the close of business on the auction's final day for a gross of $81,994,000, an average of $130,149 and median of $70,000. Both records improved on figures set just the year.

“We kind of keep our heads down and just try not to focus on records,” Wojciechowski said of the potential for new records in 2025. “But I do think the catalogue stacks up very well. I am always amazed at how the consignors outdo themselves every year with the quality of horses that they bring. We have a good representation of young sires, proven sires, so it's a very good catalogue.”

The juvenile sales season began last month with the OBS March sale, a longtime select sale which was making its 10th appearance on the calendar as an open sale. During its decade as an open sale, the March auction seemed at times to be eclipsed by its April counterpart, but this year's strong renewal produced seven million-dollar-plus juveniles, including an OBS record $3-million colt. The Spring sale, which had five seven-figure juveniles in 2022 and three in 2023, produced just one, a $1.9-million daughter of Tiz the Law, in 2024.

Rather than seeing the two sales as competitors, Wojciechowski sees them as complementary.

“The pendulum has swung a little bit back to March, but I don't think it's to the detriment of April,” he said. “This is the one sale that, if you are going to go to a 2-year-old sale, this is where everybody comes. I think April has really grown and evolved and matured into a market mainstay.”

As bidding opens at the April sale, consignors seem resigned to seeing a familiar polarity in the marketplace.

“More of the same,” consignor Tom McCrocklin said when asked for his expectations for the April market. “I might have guys lined up at my table wanting horses $200,000+, and I don't have one guy there asking if I have one for $40,000. They just aren't here. I didn't see them in March anyway. I don't know where they've gone, but they are not in numbers at the 2-year-old sales.”

Another concern for the middle market this coming week in Ocala is the volatility in the stock markets.

“Certainly you would rather not see all that stuff coming out,” Wojciechowski said of the uncertainty in the global economy. “I will tell you that there is a ton of international interest here looking at horses. And if you look back at March, the stock market wasn't at its peak and we had just had all of the decoupling stuff come out and there was certainly some not so nice things in the news during that sale. But people put their blinkers on and they bought horses.”

During last week's under-tack preview for the Spring sale, 27 juveniles shared the fastest furlong time of :9 4/5, while six posted the co-fastest quarter-mile time of :20 2/5.

“We got very fortunate with the weather last week,” Wojciechowski said. “Any bad weather seemed to hit us overnight. It didn't interrupt any of our days and conditions were fairly consistent. We had a pretty substantial wind on Monday and we caught a headwind yesterday starting about mid-morning and then gradually increasing during the day. It wasn't as brutal as what we experienced in March, but it certainly had an effect and I think the buyers recognize that.”

Hips one through 302 will be offered during Tuesday's first session of the auction, followed by hips 303 through 604 on Wednesday, hips 605 through 906 on Thursday and hips 907 through 1207 on Friday.

The post ‘A Market Mainstay:’ OBS Spring Sale Begins Tuesday appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Storm Changer and Jose Gomez emerge between rivals to win the Park Avenue division of the New York Stallion Series Sunday at Aqueduct

Peter Kazamias’ homebred Storm Changer, one of 13 foals from the first crop of Name Changer, came between rivals in the lane to upset Sunday’s $200,000 Park Avenue division of the New York Stallion Series Stakes at Aqueduct.

Jose Gomez rode the filly, making her first start for trainer Carlos Martin after previously running for the suspended Dimitrios Synnefias. Dismissed at 12-1 in the field of eight reduced by the scratches of Fedupwiththefed and Lazy Y Legacy, Storm Changer improved to 2-for-5 with the victory.

Storm Changer finished second two starts back in the 7-furlong East View Stakes February 8 at Aqueduct and a distant fifth last time in the 1-mile Maddie May Stakes March 7 at Aqueduct. Martin admitted he didn’t do much to get the filly ready for the 6 ½-furlong Park Avenue.

“Jose, we’ve had some luck together with Patricia Ann and some other horses. He always tries hard for us,” Martin said. “He had worked her the other day, she went an easy half in :49 (April 5 on the Belmont Park training track). She came in great shape from Dimitrios, we didn’t want to re-invent the wheel too much. I thought cutting her back would be pretty good for her.”

Howling Wind hustled to the lead ahead of 9-5 favorite Bam’s Bliss Kiss early and led that foe through the opening quarter in :22.40 over the muddy and sealed surface. Bam’s Bliss Kiss inched up within a half-length of the leader midway around the turn, just ahead of Forever to Go and Decree and Declare through the half in :46.37.

Gomez kept Storm Changer in the clear on the outside in fifth around the bend.

“I wasn’t worried,” Gomez said. “That was the game plan; just save some ground and everything has seemed to be running well in the middle of the racetrack.”

Dylan Davis took another route aboard Disco Star, coming up the inside approaching the stretch and took the lead turning for home. Gomez countered that move on the outside while Eric Cancel did similar Princess Mischief even wider out from the rail.

Storm Changer emerged from the three-way battle for the lead inside the sixteenth pole to win by a half-length over Princess Mischief, who nosed out Disco Star for the runner-up spot. Decree and Declare, Howling Wind, Bam’s Bliss Kiss, Royal Event and Forever to Go completed the field. Storm Changer won in 1:18.39.

“She ran great first time out [to win on debut in November],” Gomez said. “Last time I rode her [two starts back in the East View], it might have been a bit long for her, but Bernieandtherose is a pretty decent horse. After that they gave her to Mr. Martin and from then she’s been a different type of horse. She’s a lot more calm.”

Storm Changer picked up $110,000 to boost her bankroll to $183,750.

Grade 3 winner Name Changer, a 12-year-old son of Uncle Mo out of the Northern Afleet mare Cash’s Girl, stands for $2,500 at Kaz Hill Farm in Middletown. The sire of 29 foals of racing age, including a group of 16 current 2-year-olds, Name Changer finished third on the New York freshman sire list in 2024 thanks to two winners from five starters.

Storm Changer is the sixth foal out of the unraced Stormy Atlantic mare Stormin Sistas, who was purchased in foal to classic winner Palace Malice for $27,000 at the 2019 Keeneland November breeding stock sale.

Stormin Sistas is the dam of seven-time winner Atlantic Princess, three-time winning New York-bred Kaz Palace and the 4-year-old New York-bred Bank Heist filly Stormin Heist. Kaz Hill Farm also bred Storm Changer’s full brother, the 2-year-old Name Changer colt Hurricane Kaz, out of Stormin Sistas.

The post Name Changer filly Storm Changer upsets NYSS Park Avenue appeared first on New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. News.

Set to return to England after her April 12 victory in the Jenny Wiley Stakes (G1T) at Keeneland, Choisya could return to America this summer to run at Saratoga Race Course.

Embroidery got through some traffic in the stretch to win the Oka Sho (Japanese One Thousand Guineas-G1) April 13 at Hanshin Racecourse, the first leg of the Japanese filly Triple Crown.

Via Sistina signed off a dominant 12 months in Australia by collecting a remarkable seventh group 1 of the season, and eighth overall, in the 2,000-meter (about 1 1/4-mile) Queen Elizabeth Stakes (G1) April 12.

San Siro has never raced at Keeneland in his 10-race career, but if he takes after his sire, Classic Empire, who won his only Keeneland start, the Brendan Walsh-trained gelding could be successful there April 19 in the $350,000 Ben Ali Stakes (G3).

Luring in accomplished graded stakes-winning fillies Just F Y I, Candied, and Tarifa, the $350,000 Doubledogdare Stakes (G3) drew a field worthy of a grade 1 April 18 at Keeneland.

Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races canceled its April 12 card after the first race over a sloppy track. Riders decided in the interests of safety to not continue with the card.

An Irish-bred bay colt by No Nay Never breezed a quarter in :20 2/5 to post the fastest time at the distance during the final session of the Ocala Breeders' Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training.

Bettors made Booth the 2-5 favorite in the $500,000 Count Fleet Sprint Handicap (G3) April 12 at Oaklawn Park. The progressive 4-year-old colt got the job done, but it was a little harder than the odds suggested.

Quickly recovering from a sluggish start, Thorpedo Anna tracked the early pace, took over, and left her foes behind in rolling to a comfortable victory in the $1.25 million Apple Blossom Handicap (G1) April 12 at Oaklawn Park.

East Avenue is not the only graded stakes-winning colt in the Brendan Walsh barn. Also in that class is Gosger, who won the April 12 Lexington Stakes (G3) at Keeneland.

Rabbah Bloodstock's Choisya scored her first grade 1 win under a tactical, ground-saving ride from Luis Saez in the Jenny Wiley Stakes (G1T) but had to survive a rider's objection from Flavien Prat on runner-up Excellent Truth April 12 at Keeneland.