2018 Eclipse Awards: Bellafina

Bellafina was so highly regarded when she began her career last summer that jockey Flavien Prat flew from New York to California to ride her in a maiden race at Los Alamitos on July 4.

Even though she finished second, owner Kaleem Shah and trainer Simon Callaghan were undeterred. For her second race, with Prat back aboard, Bellafina started in the Grade 2 Sorrento Stakes for 2-year-old fillies at six furlongs at Del Mar on Aug. 5. Their confidence was rewarded when Bellafina won by 4 1/4 lengths while racing with blinkers for the first time.

“We think this filly is way above average,” Callaghan said in the winner’s circle that day.

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Bellafina won her next two starts, both Grade 1 races in Southern California, before finishing fourth as the 9-5 favorite in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies at Churchill Downs on Nov. 2. For her accomplishments, Bellafina has been nominated for the Eclipse Award as the nation’s outstanding 2-year-old filly of 2018.

Bellafina was unbeatable during the Del Mar summer season and at the start of the Santa Anita autumn meeting. While the Sorrento was a sharp win, Bellafina was even better in the Grade 1 Del Mar Debutante at seven furlongs on Sept. 1, the championship race of the track’s summer meeting for 2-year-old fillies.

After the Sorrento, there was talk about skipping the Grade 1 Debutante for the autumn races at Santa Anita, but Bellafina trained with such enthusiasm in late August that Callaghan planned a start in the $300,000 Del Mar Debutante.

“She’s really maturing,” Callaghan said at the time.

Let go at 2-1 in a field of five, Bellafina disputed the pace throughout and won by 4 1/4 lengths over Mother Mother, a highly regarded filly trained by Bob Baffert.

Bettors had caught on. For the Grade 1 Chandelier Stakes at 1 1/16 miles at Santa Anita on Sept. 29, Bellafina was the 9-10 favorite. This time, the blinkers came off, with Callaghan wanting the filly to be more patient early in her races.

Bellafina responded in her first start around two turns. Prat had Bellafina in second for the first half-mile before the filly took a commanding lead in early stretch, pulling clear to win by 6 1/2 lengths.

For the BC Juvenile Fillies at 1 1/16 miles, Bellafina drew the outside post in a field of 10 and was the 9-5 favorite. She hopped in the air at the start and bumped with Splashy Kisses but recovered to race in third and second through the first six furlongs. On the turn, however, Bellafina faded from contention, finishing 9 1/4 lengths behind race winner Jaywalk. Bellafina had made her final start of the year.

Bellafina lost her first and last starts of a five-race campaign but won the three races in the middle, all in stakes, to rate among the leaders of the division in 2018.

By top sire Quality Road out of a Malibu Moon mare, Bellafina was bred in Kentucky by JSM Equine, LLC, and was sold last March at the Fasog-Tipton Florida 2-year-old sale for $800,000.

– Steve Andersen