Bella Ballerina to Fair Grounds Oaks

Bella Ballerina will make her next start on March 21 in the Fair Grounds Oaks.

And why wouldn’t she?

After toying – unless that’s too strong a word – with running in the Ashland Stakes two weeks later at Keeneland, owner-breeder Godolphin and trainer Brendan Walsh have settled on the Fair Grounds Oaks as a final prep for the Kentucky Oaks, Walsh said over the weekend.

This pattern already bore fruit for Bella Ballerina’s connections. In 2023, her half-sister Pretty Mischievous won the Rachel Alexandra at Fair Grounds, then finished second in the Fair Grounds Oaks before hitting a peak and capturing the Kentucky Oaks.

Bella Ballerina, unbeaten after three starts, scored a narrow victory Feb. 14 in the Rachel Alexandra, her first start since winning the Golden Rod Stakes on Nov. 29 at Churchill Downs. Passed in upper stretch by Luv Your Neighbor, Bella Ballerina and jockey Tyler Gaffalione came back along the fence to win by a half-length, earning a career-best 84 Beyer Speed Figure. Pretty Mischievous got an 87 in her Rachel Alexandra but had raced about a month earlier in the Untapable at Fair Grounds.

Gaffalione said Bella Ballerina, fresh and eager, tried to take off with him after turning onto the backstretch, and the filly figures to settle better in her second out this year. Walsh had one further observation regarding the race and one assertion pertaining to Bella Ballerina’s future: Gaffalione did not ask the filly for everything she had through the homestretch, and Bella Ballerina will stay the 1 1/8 miles of the Oaks.

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