Keeneland January: Grade 1 winner Unbridled Belle to Japanese interests for $400,000

Grade 1 winner Unbridled Belle was secured by Masashi Yoshida’s Oiwake Farm for $400,000 on Monday morning at the Keeneland January horses of all ages sale, and will be sent to Japan to continue her broodmare career.

The 11-year-old Broken Vow mare, who was offered in foal to Bernardini, was consigned as agent by Hill ‘n’ Dale Sales Agency.

Unbridled Belle, a stakes winner at 3, blossomed as an older mare, capturing the Grade 1 Beldame Stakes and Grade 2 Delaware Handicap, the latter by 7 ¾ lengths, in 2007. The field she defeated in the Beldame included eventual Eclipse Award champion Ginger Punch and multiple Grade 1 winner Balance. Unbridled Belle also finished second in the Grade 1 Personal Ensign Stakes.

The mare went on to win the following season’s Grade 3 Obeah Stakes and finished third behind Ginger Punch in the Grade 1 Personal Ensign. As a 6-year-old in 2009, she again won the Obeah, captured the Grade 3 Turnback the Alarm Handicap, and was second in the Beldame. She concluded her career with earnings of $1,909,823.

“She had a fantastic record,” said Taro Iseki, speaking for Oiwake Farm. “We have a lot of sons [and grandsons] of Sunday Silence in Japan like Deep Impact and Ofevre that are quite good to breed big mares [to]. That’s why we try to buy these mares.”

Unbridled Belle was purchased for $900,000 by SF Bloodstock out of the Hill ‘n’ Dale consignment at the 2010 Fasig-Tipton November sale. At the time, she was carrying her first foal, the Medaglia d’Oro filly Love d’Oro. The filly was purchased for $105,000 by Crone Stud Farms at the 2010 Keeneland September yearling sale; sent to Ireland, she has not yet started.

Unbridled Belle is also the dam of a 2-year-old Distorted Humor filly.

Out of the stakes-winning Silver Buck mare Little Bold Belle, Unbridled Belle is a half sister to stakes winner Stones River and to New York Jessica, dam of stakes placed Broken Trick. Little Bold Belle is a full sister to Grade 3 winner Classic Endeavor, and a half to stakes winner B.B. Best.