After posting on X that he had purchased 2-year-old Bellacose, John Stewart of Resolute Racing confirmed Aug. 17 that he had purchased a 75% share of the Audible filly for an undisclosed price.
"I had posted on (X) that I'd pay a commission if people find a horse they thought I should buy and hooked me up with the owners," said Stewart. "I wasn't at Saratoga for her race, but I heard about her run, and I watched the race, and she was really impressive."
According to his social media post, Stewart paid $30,000 to the X follower who arranged the introduction with Bellacose's connections.
The dark bay or brown filly turned in an eye-catching debut at Saratoga Race Course July 17, winning a maiden special weight for New York-breds by 10 3/4 lengths. She had sold as a weanling for $33,000 at the 2022 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Fall Mixed Sale, consigned by Saratoga Glen Farm and selling to A L D. She was purchased from the Paramount Sales consignment at the 2023 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Fall Yearling Sale for $82,000, going to Jeremiah Englehart's JCE Racing.
Bellacose was bred in New York by Beals Racing Stable and Saratoga Glen Farm. She's out of the unraced Uncle Mo mare Little Bullet.
"As her name implies, Little Bullet's not the biggest mare," said Saratoga Glen's Dan Barraclough. "Audible definitely added some size and substance, and the broodmare sire of Audible has always been kind of a favorite of mine."
That sire, Gilded Time, was a Florida-bred near-millionaire, winning $975,980 and three graded stakes races, including the 1992 Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1), and he was voted the champion 2-year-old colt of 1992. He sired grade/group 1 winners in the United States, Argentina, Australia, and Brazil, and his daughter Getback Time is the dam of Shaman Ghost , a multiple grade 1 winner that retired with earnings of $3.8 million.
"We've done a lot of analysis around Audible, and we hadn't owned any yet," said Stewart. "We watched her work, and we thought she looked really good and moved really well. We think that she has the capacity to win a graded stakes race."
Until the private purchase, Bellacose was owned by Christopher T. Dunn, Blue Tarp Racing, Chris Mara, Greyhound Stables, Nicholas Sgroi, Arthur Sgroi, Jonathan M. Sacks, and Corrin Genovese. Stewart was unsure whether all those partners remained in the ownership group, and the filly will run in Resolute Racing's silks.
"About 80% of our horses are primarily turf horses," said Stewart, "but we do want to compete on dirt, even with fillies. We thought that she looked like a horse that fit what our program is. We only want to run horses with the ability to win in stakes races."
For the time being, the filly will remain in Englehart's barn. She is the first horse that Englehart will train for Stewart.
Following the maiden win, Englehart said that Bellacose would likely be pointed to the Seeking the Ante Stakes for New York-breds Aug. 25. Following this purchase, that plan might be changed.
"We'll enter her in that, but we might bypass it," said Stewart, declining to say whether the Spinaway Stakes (G1) Aug. 31 at Saratoga would be the alternative target.
