Horse country news — every discipline, one page
Racing and the new track, show jumping and dressage at WEC and HITS, the OBS sales ring, driving at Live Oak, eventing at the Horse Park, and the land-and-growth fights that decide what Marion County looks like in ten years. Each brief is written here, in our own words, with the original source credited and linked.
Launch edition · November 11, 2026
300+ acres secured for Marion County’s Thoroughbred racetrack
The Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association and Gilligan Racing announced they have secured control of more than 300 acres in Marion County for a new championship-caliber track — dirt and turf courses, a modern grandstand, dining, entertainment, and year-round event space. The project runs on Florida’s only available Thoroughbred permit, held by FTBOA’s nonprofit Ocala Thoroughbred Racing since 2011 and tied by law to Marion County. Partners in Gilligan Racing include billionaire attorney John Morgan and former Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine, with Kentucky Downs co-owner Ron Winchell and gaming executive Marc Falcone on the team.
What has not been announced: the exact location, any casino or gaming component, a budget, or an opening date. The project is in early planning, ahead of county and state approvals. Our Racetrack Tracker follows every verified step and labels every rumor.
OBS publishes its 2027 sale dates
Ocala Breeders’ Sales — the world’s leading seller of two-year-olds in training, headquartered on SW 60th Avenue — has set its 2027 marquee dates: the Winter Mixed Sale on January 26, the March Two-Year-Olds in Training Sale March 9–11, and the Spring Sale April 13–16. A June two-year-old sale and the October Yearling Sale round out the year. OBS sales are free and open to the public, and sale weeks are among the busiest hotel and restaurant weeks in the county.
WEC November Show Series II, dressage, and a $75,000 Saturday Grand Prix
World Equestrian Center’s fall season rolls on this week: November Show Series II (National Hunter / Level 5 Jumper) runs November 11–15, WEC November Dressage runs November 13–15, and the $75,000 Hampton Green Farms National Grand Prix takes over the Grand Arena Saturday night, November 14, at 7 p.m. WEC’s own listings note that most horse shows are free to watch with free parking — still the best free Saturday night in Marion County. Next up on the same grounds: the Arabian Horse Association of Florida’s Holiday Festival, November 25–28.
HITS Post Time Farm: 19 weeks from Thanksgiving to mid-April
HITS has published its full Ocala winter schedule. The season opens with the Holiday Premier November 27–29, continues with the Holiday Classic (December 9–13) and Holiday Festival (December 16–20), then the Post Time Premier weeks January 6–17, and the ten-week Winter Circuit January 20 through the Championship week ending March 28 — with spring shows carrying the grounds to April 18, 2027. HITS counts roughly 17 weeks of competition across four series at its 500-acre Post Time Farm on US 27. Spectators are welcome; admission is free except Sundays, when it is $5.
A new continental championship is coming to Ocala in January
US Equestrian has announced the inaugural FEI Pan American Equestrian Confederation (PAEC) Championship of the Americas for January 21–31, 2027, hosted across two Marion County venues: dressage and jumping at World Equestrian Center, with eventing’s cross-country phase at the Florida Horse Park. The championship runs every four years, which makes its Ocala debut a genuine get for the county — and an early test of how WEC and the Horse Park share a marquee event.
Live Oak International returns March 12–15 with a national championship attached
Live Oak International — the country’s top combined driving and show jumping weekend, held at the 5,000-acre Live Oak Stud west of downtown — runs March 12–15, 2027, drawing an estimated 15,000–20,000 spectators. This edition also carries the 2027 USEF Combined Driving National Championships for advanced four-in-hand, pair, and pony turnouts across the March 9–14 week, per US Equestrian’s championship schedule.
The whole winter season, on one calendar
Between late November and mid-April there is a horse event worth attending in Marion County essentially every week — often three at once. The tourism bureau’s season round-up covers the headline series at WEC, the Florida Horse Park, HITS, and Live Oak; our calendar page puts every verified date in one table with what it costs to watch, and it is where new dates land first.
The Horse Capital’s TV network is on Orlando television now
Horse Capital Television, the Ocala-based streaming network covering all breeds and disciplines in Marion County since 2018, airs a preview hour Saturday mornings on WESH 2 Orlando under a partnership announced in May 2026 — putting Ocala horse country in front of one of Florida’s largest TV markets every week, on top of its Roku, Apple TV, and Fire TV apps. It remains the video incumbent every other local outlet measures itself against; this site’s lane is the written record: news, calendar, and the tracker.