Paul Sharp

by Jessica Martini & Stefanie Grimm OCALA, FL - The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training rushed across the finish line with a lively session of bidding Friday and concluded its four-day run in Central Florida with a new sales record average and median and a gross just off last year's highwater mark. "It certainly felt like it picked up here at the end of the four-day stretch," said OBS Director of Sales Tod Wojciechowski. "It felt good. We were bumping up against a record [gross...

6th-Santa Anita, $65,500, Msw, 3-23, 3, 4,/5yo, f/m, 6f, 1:11.59, ft, 3 lengths. IN THEORY (f, 3, Mendelssohn--Lady Hansen {SP}, by Hansen) was sent right out for the early lead under Juan Hernandez and took control from She's No Angel (Street Sense) through a :21.89 opening quarter. As that rival faded, the 1-2 favorite pulled away handily and turned for home alone on the lead, cruising under a hand ride to win under wraps by three lengths over Queen of Naples (Hard Spun). An $800,000 2-year-old buy out of the...

by Jessica Martini & Christina Bossinakis LEXINGTON, KY - Three Witches (Into Mischief) provided the highlight of a workaday Book 2 section of the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale when selling for $1.7 million Friday in Lexington. Book 2 opened with a uneven session Thursday at Keeneland, but activity was more consistent throughout Friday's Book 2 finale. "It was a solid day of trade," said Keeneland's Vice President of Sales Tony Lacy. "From start to finish, it felt a little more consistent and healthy today. Yesterday was a little bumpy,...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y--As part of his wife Audrey's birthday celebration Thursday, Martin Schwartz took her to the winner's enclosure after the opener at Saratoga Race Course. They know the space well, but It was their first visit there in four years. The Schwartzes walked their 2-year-old filly Gold Lightning (Bolt d'Oro) in from the track after she won the 1 1/16-mile turf maiden by 2 1/4 lengths. She reached the wire on the inner turf course 1:45.93 and paid $31.40. Under jockey Manny Franco, Gold Lightning delivered a solid off-the-pace...

The TDN sat down with bloodstock agent Liz Crow for this fourth offering in a series presented in cooperation with the Consignors and Breeders Association (CBA). Through conversations with buyers and sellers, the series looks to contribute to the discussion on radiograph findings and their impact on racetrack success. Bloodstock agent Liz Crow, who has an ever-expanding list of accomplished sales purchases, as well as a burgeoning book of pinhook successes with partner Paul Sharp, admits there are subtle distinctions between buying to race versus buying for resale. "There are...

TIMONIUM, MD - The opening session of the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale got off to a tepid start at the Maryland State Fairgrounds Monday morning, but momentum built throughout a session which ultimately produced figures ahead of the auction's record-setting 2022 renewal. "It was a strong start to the sale," Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning, Jr. said at the close of business Monday. "There was significant increase in average price compared to the first day and the overall sale last year. It was certainly an acceptable...

A filly by Mendelssohn (hip 245) brought a final bid of $800,000 from Peter Fluor of Speedway Stables during Monday's first session of the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale. The gray, who is out of stakes-placed Lady Hansen (Hansen), was consigned by Paul Sharp. Sharp purchased the filly as part of his pinhooking partnership with Liz Crow for $125,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale. It was the second big purchase of the afternoon for Speedway, which also went to $500,000 to acquire a colt by Not This...

by Jessica Martini & Christina Bossinakis OCALA, FL-The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training reached its halfway mark Wednesday with a familiar name at the top of the sheets as Amr Zedan paid a session-topping $900,000 for a son of Frosted as figures kept largely on par with the auction's record-setting 2022 renewal. Through two sessions of the four-day auction, 351 juveniles have sold for $45,886,000. The average is down 6.3% from the end-of-day figure from a year ago and the median is down 6.7% to...

A filly by Adios Charlie earned the bullet for the fastest quarter-mile breeze during Monday's opening session of the under-tack show ahead of next week's Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's June 2-Year-Olds Sale. Bred and consigned by Ocala Stud, hip 116 completed her quarter-mile drill in :21 flat shortly after the show started Monday morning. The bay filly is out stakes placed Miss Melinda (Malibu Moon). Nine juveniles shared the fastest furlong time of :10 flat: a colt by Astern (Aus) (hip 2, video), consigned by Fast Horses; a colt by...

TIMONIUM, MD - The Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale got off to a strong start Monday in Timonium as it looks to follow up on a record-setting 2021 renewal. "It was a very solid opening session to the sale," said Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning. "There was diverse bidding activity literally from buyers all around the world participating today. This has become a really solid marketplace where you can sell a quality horse, you can sell a state-bred horse. There was lots of activity at really all price ranges." A...

Paul Sharp thought he had a good group of 2-year-olds at his farm over the winter and those trainees are proving the Ocala horseman right with a string of five maiden winners in the last five days, plus two graded stakes placings at Del Mar and Saratoga. "It always gives us a lot of gratification when these horses go on to win," Sharp said Wednesday, shortly after Ava's Grace (Laoban)'s third-place finish in the GII Adirondack S. at Saratoga. "They can win first or second time out and usually the...

Following the announcement of the cancellation of the Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream sale on Friday afternoon, the atmosphere at the OBS March Sale was tense. Becky Thomas of Sequel Bloodstock made an analogy. "There was a movie years ago with Jim Carrey called the Truman Show, where Jim Carrey did not realize he was actually the subject of a TV series. That's the way I feel. We're going through the motions, but we don't really know if it's real or not." Consignors gathered in the barns following the breeze show, expecting to...