Bellatrix Star makes a remarkable return to racing

[Blaird]

Wish the connections and the horse all the best.

From Just Horse Racing website.

It is a small miracle that Bellatrix Star is back racing in the first place. Anything beyond that is going to be a bonus.

The Mark Walker trained mare has not raced for a year to the day … she was last in action on November 29, 2024 … but she is now set to take her place in the Listed Doveton Stakes at Caulfield on Saturday.

It was in January when Bellatrix suffered a potentially career threatening injury when she reared up when walking back to her stable, fell over, and fractured vertebrae in her neck. In that instant it seemed that her career had also come crashing down with her. If nothing else, it had certainly been brought to an abrupt halt.

And what a career it had been up until then.

In a hot run of form prior in her four starts prior to that last run … from September 24 until November 2 … Bellatrix Star claimed a hat-trick of wins, taking out all of the Listed Cap D’Antibes, the Group 3 Champagne Stakes and the Group 2 Schillaci Stakes … before gaining a fine, very notable Group 1 runner-up finish behind Switzerland in the Coolmore Stud Stakes.

She then finished unplaced in that November 29 run in the VCR Classic as she came to the end of her preparation.

Sitting on a career record of five wins from eleven starts and prize-money earnings of just shy of $1 million, in an instant, Bellatrix Star’s future had gone from being very bright to being, at best, very much in doubt.

In time, X-Rays taken have shown that the injury has healed … much to the surprise of the Te Akau team, who were then able to plot and plan a return route to the track for the four-year-old daughter of Star Witness.

But they are not getting ahead of themselves.

“We’ve been pretty level-headed the whole way through about where we are going to get to so, provided she has a smooth week at home, this weekend is exciting, although we’re just trying to keep a lid on it at the moment,” Te Akau Racing’s assistant trainer Ben Gleeson told Racing.com.

“We’ve still got no idea whether she is going to come back the same horse, but she ran through the line last Thursday in her trial and that gave us enough inclination that she’s got plenty of zest for racing.”

Bellatrix Star will jump from the number one barrier with Mark Zahre in the saddle. Both of those are plus factors … the 60kg she has been set to carry, not so much. The mare will be giving away a weight advantage of between 2kg and 6kg to all but one of her rivals.

But the biggest positive of all is that Bellatrix Star is back with her connections maintaining a very down-to-earth, realistic approach in terms of any expectations as indicated by Fortuna principal John Galvin’s words when speaking to Racing.com.

“We’ll have to wait and see what we get, but she’s fit and talented, and it’s a dream come true to see her return to racing.”

[chiknsmack]

In late March/early April the consensus of the owners was that she owed us nothing and so retirement was logical. She was tentatively nommed for the MM Broodmare sale. A couple of weeks later she was in an odd in-between position where you wouldn't say she was broodmare sound (so she was pulled from consideration for the sale) but at the same time she was healing so well that she might make it back to the track. That brought about a change of plans.

She did a couple of weeks on the walker (after having not left her box since the injury) and then was supposed to go to a small yard at a spelling property for a month before further xrays and (if the all clear was given) turnout into a larger paddock for another month or two, followed by some dressage training before returning to the stable. Unfortunately she then picked up a stubborn virus which sent her to the hospital and took the best part of a month to get over. The good news was that the xrays taken when she left the clinic were so good you'd hardly know she'd been injured.

She spent most of August doing the dressage training (the first time anyone had been on her back in a long time), then returned to the stable at Cranbourne in early September. Her schedule of jumpouts/trials got shuffled around a bit due to the Melbourne weather so she only has one of each - both over 800m - under her belt; not ideal when she's heading into a listed race with 60kg after more than a year off. But win, lose, or draw, hopefully she gets around safe and sound and can go for a little freshen-up ahead of an autumn campaign. She still owes us nothing, so if she's happy I'm happy.

[Insider]

Chiknsmack, what was the actual injury, because the recovery regimen prescribed, is exactly what our trotting filly Suttle is working through now?

Good luck today. 

[chiknsmack]

She fractured the top front part of her C4 vertebra where it overlaps with C3.

[nomates]

3 hours ago, chiknsmack said:

She fractured the top front part of her C4 vertebra where it overlaps with C3.

Mate I hope she just comes through this first run for you healthy and well .

[Insider]

5 hours ago, chiknsmack said:

She fractured the top front part of her C4 vertebra where it overlaps with C3.

Thanks Chiknsmark, that miles from where I suspected the fracture would have been.

Ours was on a rear fetlock but away from the joint cartridge, thankfully.

Good luck in 40 minutes, I will be watching.

[Farnarkler]

Well that went well eh? ......Poor mare, she can't talk you know, you have to read her, Hello Mark?

[Blaird]

41 minutes ago, Farnarkler said:

Well that went well eh? ......Poor mare, she can't talk you know, you have to read her, Hello Mark?

I wouldn't read too much into that race. It may be a case of top weight, not raced in over a year, running on inferior ground down on the inside. Jockey may not have persevered over the final stages. It's always a good thing to wait a few days and see how they come through it. Fingers crossed she does .

[Insider]

41 minutes ago, Farnarkler said:

Well that went well eh? ......Poor mare, she can't talk you know, you have to read her, Hello Mark?

For God's sake, I totally disagree.

She was keen, traveled well in the bridle, took the inside which was obviously off, given that everything was out wide and blew out. And why wouldn't she after so long out and a soft build up, which I am sure has taken place?

One of us is right and one of us are wrong, well at least in our differing opinions  

[nomates]

It will be interesting to see what comes out from that run . She was along way off them at the line . I know she only had a couple of soft trials but she's a G1 performing mare and if she was mine I would be concerned .

Big diff between trial speed and race pressure , especially Aus sprinting speed , that will find out any issue . 

 

[Farnarkler]

When a mare of her calibre is beaten like that, they are trying to tell you something, she had the easiest run when they fanned and left the fence, she was gone as soon as they straightened and it wasn't the strongest lot either.

I'd bet you Jaimie would pull the plug, absolutely.

[chiknsmack]

I'm on the fence and can see both sides. She had plenty of reasons to possibly not perform, but she went from on the bridle to off the bridle to gone very quickly. And when mares decide they've had enough they've had enough.

She'll go for the planned 10-day freshen up and go from there. The broodmare sales aren't until April and May, so there's no need to rush any decisions.

[Leggy]

Bellatrix Star Underwent a veterinary examination upon arrival, having not raced since November 2024 and a fracture to the upper neck, and was passed suitable to race. Bounded as the start was effected and slow to begin. Rider Mark Zahra could offer no explanation for the performance. A post-race veterinary examination did not reveal any significant findings. Stewards will follow up with the stable.

[Insider]

7 hours ago, chiknsmack said:

I'm on the fence and can see both sides. She had plenty of reasons to possibly not perform, but she went from on the bridle to off the bridle to gone very quickly. And when mares decide they've had enough they've had enough.

She'll go for the planned 10-day freshen up and go from there. The broodmare sales aren't until April and May, so there's no need to rush any decisions.

Your last sentence is very interesting.  If she was mine, I would be keeping her in the stable to monitor her demina, her every move, responses etc to see if I could detect even the slightest thing. You won't see those things in a paddock. 

I've got an open mind too, and yes some mares do say, enough is enough, even when there's nothing wrong.

Good luck with her. 

[scooby3051]

13 hours ago, chiknsmack said:

I'm on the fence and can see both sides. She had plenty of reasons to possibly not perform, but she went from on the bridle to off the bridle to gone very quickly. And when mares decide they've had enough they've had enough.

She'll go for the planned 10-day freshen up and go from there. The broodmare sales aren't until April and May, so there's no need to rush any decisions.

To me its like when we heal from a break of any kind we always tend to self consciously look after it...I am sure horses do the same too.

[Blaird]

trotted up lame left front Sunday morning. She was xrayed Tues 2nd Dec and xray showed a significant chip in her Left Fore fetlock, so a surgical removal is planned

@chiknsmack - hope you don't mind me posting this update

Lara Antipova is racing Sunday at Te Aroha, for an $18500 maiden race it's look like a pretty good little field.

[Maximus]

On 11/30/2025 at 6:38 AM, Insider said:

Your last sentence is very interesting.  If she was mine, I would be keeping her in the stable to monitor her demina, her every move, responses etc to see if I could detect even the slightest thing. You won't see those things in a paddock. 

I've got an open mind too, and yes some mares do say, enough is enough, even when there's nothing wrong.

Good luck with her. 

where oh where is Miss Jools? LOL

[scooby3051]

Just now, Blaird said:

trotted up lame left front Sunday morning. She was xrayed Tues 2nd Dec and xray showed a significant chip in her Left Fore fetlock, so a surgical removal is planned

@chiknsmack - hope you don't mind me posting this update

Lara Antipova is racing Sunday at Te Aroha, for an $18500 maiden race it's look like a pretty good little field.

Hope she can get her deserved retirement...she's been through alot...but nothing to do with me...if she was mine thats what would be happening.

[chiknsmack]

16 hours ago, Blaird said:

trotted up lame left front Sunday morning. She was xrayed Tues 2nd Dec and xray showed a significant chip in her Left Fore fetlock, so a surgical removal is planned

@chiknsmack - hope you don't mind me posting this update

You're good. I'm reticent to share too much in general, but I saw John put that in the monthly stable update and it's not a state secret or anything.

She's going for surgery today to remove the chip. The prognosis for a return to racing per the vet is "very good", so the plan at this stage is to give her a couple of jumpouts/trials in the autumn and see how she goes. If she doesn't come up in the trials she'll be sold on the Gold Coast at the end of May, but if she goes alright there's no reason she can't race on.