An ownership change on David McDuffee's champion homebred Bella Bellini has been announced following the recent news of the five-year-old trotting mare's retirement from racing.
The 2022 Dan Patch Trotter of the Year is headed to Cameo Hills Farm to begin her broodmare career. McDuffee and Cameo Hills Farm will share ownership of Bella Bellini, who retired with lifetime earnings of $2,255,123 along with 21 victories and a record of 1:49.4.
The daughter of Bar Hopping was the 2021 Dan Patch Three-Year-Old Trotting Filly of the Year and her victories included the Hambletonian Oaks, Breeders Crown, Pennsylvania Sire Stakes final and Matron Stakes. Bella Bellini returned in 2022, as a four-year-old, and she beat the boys in the Hambletonian Maturity and the Caesars Trotting Classic. She also won the Breeders Crown, TVG Series final, the Graduate Series final and the Six Pack Mares Open Trot.
Bella Bellini hails from one of the strongest families in trotting.
Her dam Bella Dolce 3,1:54.2s, earned $753,133, winning 15 races at two and three, including the Champlain, Robert Stewart, Oakville, Canadian Breeders Championship, Simcoe and Goldsmith Maid elimination, and was second in the Casual Breeze and Kentucky Filly futurity elimination.
Her second dam Pizza Dolce 3,1:52.4, earned $668,824 and was the Dan Patch Two-Year-Old Trotting Filly of the Year in 2002. She won the Goldsmith Maid, Matron, Lexington Breeders, Bluegrass, Kentucky Sires Stakes final, Kentucky Filly Futurity and elimination of the Hambletonian Oaks. She also produced Miss Paris 3,1:54.2f ($869,923).
Bond 3,1:51.4f in 2023, with earnings of $668,665 already, is out of a sister to Bella Bellini.
Tentative plans are to breed Bella Bellini to Walner or Chapter Seven in 2024.
She joins a trotting broodmare band that already includes Check Me Out, Venerable, You Ato Dream, Hey Blondie, Brickhouse Babe, Delilah Hanover, Mazzarati, Whose Blues, Bluebird Dove, Check Out Trixie (the dam of the 2022 Jim Doherty winner Instagram Model) and two Muscle Hill daughters of the great Bee A Magician.
(With files from Cameo Hills Farm)