Welcome to The Blood-Horse MarketWatch Blog

Roman Ruler was tagged as the top 2009 freshman sire to watch in the February issue of The Blood-Horse MarketWatch. The son of Fusaichi Pegasus rose to the top of our list because the dams of his first crop had collectively produced more 2-year-olds stakes winners than the first books of other freshman sires. You may have read this and thought, Ghostzapper or Afleet Alex deserved the top spot. Well, now you have a forum to make your argument.

The MarketWatch Blog is your place to discuss and debate the meaning behind the statistics and trends identified in the newsletter. We'll also track changes in the commercial market as they unfold. For example, our estimate that the 2-year-olds in training market would be off by 15% at the most is looking pretty bullish right now. The Ocala Breeders' March sale just finished up with a 32.9% decline in average and 30% decline in median. There are still a lot of 2-year-olds to be sold, but now thoughts are shifting toward the yearling market and how much more it will be down.

The most sobering quote from the OBS March sale came from agent John Moynihan:  "These people who are good enough to buy these horses and who love the Thoroughbred business don't have to do this. When tough times hit them somewhere else, they cut back on something they don't necessarily have to have, which a lot of times is their horse operation."