Unique Bella

2nd-GP, $89K, Msw, 3yo, f, 7f, 12:38 p.m. ET. Whisper Hill homebred TAP MY BELLE (Tapit) makes her first start for trainer Ralph Nicks. The gray is out GI Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic heroine Unrivaled Belle (Unbridled's Song), who was bred and raced by Gary Seidler and Peter Vegso. Initially, she was purchased by Brushwood Stable for $2.8 million as the fourth highest price at the 2011 Keeneland November Sale. Five years later at the same auction, Whisper Hill made the mare the sales topper when Mandy Pope took her...

4th-Tampa Bay Downs, $32,000, Msw, 12-31, 2yo, f, 1m 40y, 1:42.46, ft, 6 1/2 lengths. WHOCOULDASKFORMO (f, 2, Uncle Mo--Midnight Belle, by Bernardini), third in her seven-furlong Aqueduct debut Dec. 1, ran to her 1-5 favoritism after shipping south to Tampa and picking up the added distance. Racing behind most of the field through a mild half in :49.17, she began to pick up the bridle with a rally into the far turn and swept to the front past Princess Aleska (Lord Nelson). The class of the field to the...

Snapping a six-race slide and returning to the winner's enclosure for the first-time since his GII Gotham S. win in the spring, Raise Cain (c, 3, Violence--Lemon Belle, by Lemon Drop Kid) nipped Dr. Venkman (Ghostzapper) in the shadow of the wire to score in the Perryville S. The aforementioned GI Kentucky Derby prep race has been his only victory in 2023, and in pairing with a nose runner-up effort in the GIII Indiana Derby July 8 to familiar foe GSW & MGISP Verifying (Justify), has been the only time...

It's a summer of firsts for Don Alberto. In June, the international operation owned by Liliana Solari and her son Carlos Heller celebrated the first Grade I winner in the United States bred by their American base when Arcangelo (Arrogate) scored in a historic edition of the GI Belmont S. Now, they are preparing to send 50 homebreds to the Keeneland September Sale. The contingent is led by an Into Mischief colt out of champion racemare Unique Bella (Tapit) who will be the first of their prized mare's progeny to...

Perhaps it is called the Hopeful Stakes because that's the most anyone can ever be with a Thoroughbred. But if nearly any purchaser at Keeneland over the next couple of weeks would like to be contesting that race, a year from now, then one consignor might give them not just hope but something closer to confidence. Okay, so a trifecta for Eaton Sales graduates in the Saratoga Grade I last year featured only the winner, Forte (Violence), from the 2021 Keeneland September Sale. Runner-up Gulfport (Uncle Mo) and third Blazing...

1st-SAR, $136K, Msw, 2yo, 1 1/16mT, 1:10 p.m. Purchased by St. Elias Stable, Repole Stable and breeder LNJ Foxwoods for $875,000 as a Keeneland September yearling, Tireless (Not This Time) will take on two turns in his first career start over the grass. Trained by Todd Pletcher and ridden by Irad Ortiz, Jr., the dark bay colt's dam Kitty Union (Union Rags) was purchased by Rosilyn Polan at the 2021 Keeneland November Sale for $160,000 carrying a colt by Improbable. His third dam Tizso (Cee's Tizzy) produced GI Haskell Invitational...

Though he didn't debut until April of his 3-year-old year, Arrogate (Unbridled's Song) proved worth the wait, coming in third in his debut before unleashing an onslaught of victories that culminated in early 2017's last-to-first performance in the G1 Dubai World Cup. A $560,000 Keeneland September yearling, Arrogate earned his 'TDN Rising Star' tag with a wire-to-wire effort at Santa Anita June 6. He won twice more in allowance/optional claiming company before his coming-out party in the GI Travers S. where he defeated a loaded field--MGISP American Freedom (Pulpit), 2017...

One of the highlights of Book 1 of the Keeneland September Sale each year is the opportunity to view and purchase the first foals out of some of the top racemares in recent years. This year is no exception with six such offerings available in Book 1. Below we feature six yearlings who are the first foals out of Grade I-winning mares, such as two-time champion Unique Bella (Tapit).   IT TIZ WELL - War Front colt (Hip 15) It Tiz Well won five of her 10 starts and was...

Vanishing Point (Tapit), a full-brother to two-time Eclipse Award and three-time Grade I winner Unique Bella, was very green, but very good in his racecourse debut Sunday afternoon at Sapporo Racecourse, leading every step of the way en route to a seven-length tally. The mount of perennial leading jockey Christophe Lemaire, the son of GI Breeders' Cup Ladies' Distaff heroine Unrivaled Belle (Unbridled's Song) jumped alertly from the widest gate in the field of seven and was switching back and forth across his leads while establishing the front passing under...

It's a toss-up, really, as to who made the bigger splash in 2017--the Don Alberto Corporation itself, or their superstar filly Unique Bella (Tapit). Three years ago, Don Alberto Corporation continued their traditional annual shopping spree at the fall breeding stock sales, spending a combined $8.3 million at Keeneland and Fasig-Tipton, plus an additional $3.35 million in partnership purchases at the Keeneland November Sale. Meanwhile, their $400,000 2015 Keeneland September purchase Unique Bella shone bright as a 3-year-old with four consecutive graded stakes wins and a later victory in the...

In the front field of Timber Town Stables along Lexington's Leestown Road, a quiet gray grazes contentedly while keeping a close eye on her two-month-old foal napping nearby. The mare takes a step towards you when approached, but the foal remains in a deep slumber, her four limbs stretched out in all different directions as she enjoys the afternoon sunlight. She opens her eyes slowly when you speak, begrudgingly making her way onto her nimble legs only when coaxed While she enjoys the care-free life of a newborn now, the...

Elizabeth 'Betty' Ranney Moran, who raced the likes of 1985 GI Belmont S. winner Creme Fraiche (Rich Cream) and bred the likes of champion Unique Bella and Hard Spun, passed away peacefully at her home in Malvern, Pennsylvania, Thursday, Jan. 23. She was 89 years old. "She was probably the most generous person I've ever met, not to just write a check, but ring a bell for the Salvation Army in downtown Philly. She was a tough, enthusiastic, hard-driving woman and we will all miss her very much," said Eaton...