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Melody Belle, a classy daughter of the late sire Commands, began her four-year-old campaign with impact at Te Rapa on Saturday.
Lining up in the G2 Lisa Chittick Foxbridge Plate (1200m) for the 13th start of her career, Melody Belle defeated a strong weight-for-age field to record her sixth win and fifth at stakes level.
Melody Belle was $57,500 NZB Premier Sale purchase by Te Akau’s David Elis in 2016 and found fame as the winner of the 2017 Karaka Million 2YO,She followed her 2017 Karaka Million heroics with victories in the G1 Manawatu Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m) at Awapuni and the G2 BRC Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m) in Brisbane. She was voted New Zealand’s champion two-year-old of 2016-17.
In January Melody Belle became the first Karaka Million winner to return to the twilight Ellerslie meeting and win again when a dominant winner of the G3 Mongolian Khan Trophy (1200m).Saturday’s Foxbridge Plate victory boosted her career earnings past $986,000 – more than 17 times her purchase price.
Runner-up Julius was a $44,000 purchase at the 2013 Select Sale. He has now had 12 starts for seven wins, five placings and more than $221,000 in stakes.Melody Belle is the only foal to race out of the winning mare Meleka Belle (Iffraaj) who is a half-sister to the stakes-placed Desert Rain (Honor Grades), Tsarina Belle (Stravinsky), Housemaster (Housebuster) and Kiwinksy (Stravinsky).
David Ellis purchased a half-sister to Melody Belle by Not A Single Doubt for NZ$900,000 at this year’s NZ Bloodstock Karaka Yearling Sale.Meleke Belle has a yearling filly by Tavistock and is due to foal to the same stallion this year.