Bellafina captures Desert Stormer Stakes as Prat wins six on card

Bellafina had everything in her favor when she recorded her seventh career stakes win in Sunday’s Grade 3 Desert Stormer Stakes at Santa Anita.

She was even part of a small piece of Santa Anita history, too.

Bellafina was ridden by Flavien Prat, who had a career-best six wins on the program. Bellafina was the fifth in that sequence. Prat, 27, is the 14th rider to win at least six races on a card in Santa Anita history. Laffit Pincay Jr. won a record seven races on a day in 1987.

While things went ideally for Bellafina in the Desert Stormer, recent events were not as kind. Bellafina finished a well-beaten fourth in the Carousel Stakes at Oaklawn Park last month, unable to overcome a slow start.

In the $101,000 Desert Stormer Stakes for fillies and mares at six furlongs, Desert Stormer inherited a perfect trip when Fighting Mad and Artistic Diva zoomed through an opening quarter-mile in 21.38 seconds.

“It went as we thought,” winning trainer Simon Callaghan said. “I thought there would be strong fractions in front of us. It was ideal.”

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Prat kept Bellafina in third on the backstretch before guiding the 4-year-old filly into contention on the turn. Bellafina took the lead in the final furlong and finished a length in front of 42-1 Hang a Star.

Bellafina ran six furlongs in 1:09.85 and earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 92.

“This is pretty cool,” Prat told Santa Anita publicity. “She broke well and she put me in a good spot. We had those two fillies as a target.

“At the quarter pole, we angled out and she did the rest.”

Fighting Mad finished third, but was disqualified and placed fourth for interfering with Mother Mother shortly after the start. Fighting Mad, who started from the rail, drifted out and into Mother Mother’s path in the opening furlong. Mother Mother stumbled, but quickly recovered.

Mother Mother and Fighting Mad are trained by Bob Baffert. Artistic Diva finished fifth, followed by Tomlin and First Star.

The Desert Stormer Stakes was Bellafina’s first stakes win in more than 13 months, since the Grade 1 Santa Anita Oaks in April 2019. In six subsequent starts, Bellafina’s best results were second-place finishes in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint here in November and a second in the Grade 1 La Brea Stakes for 3-year-old fillies a month later.

“It was nice to get her back in the winner’s circle,” Callaghan said.

The Carousel Stakes was Bellafina’s first start of 2020. Owned by Kaleem Shah and the Coolmore syndicate and trained by Simon Callaghan, Bellafina has won 7 of 15 starts and earned $1,512,975.