Bella Corazon shines at Rosehill

Bella Corazon rewarded her connections with a deserved Saturday victory at Rosehill, producing a determined performance in the Shift4 Sydney Sweep Handicap (1300m) and providing our stable apprentice Mollie Fitzgerald with her first metropolitan double.
 
A consistent performer throughout her career, Bella Corazon has continued to build on her strong form this preparation and arrived at Rosehill off an encouraging first-up effort at Scone. After gaining a start in the race following scratchings on Saturday morning, the mare made the most of her opportunity.
 
Her victory was made even more special by the presence of Fitzgerald in the saddle. The apprentice rides Bella Corazon regularly in her trackwork and was called upon at short notice to take the ride.
 
"I'm so happy for Mollie," Annabel said. "She rides this horse every day.
 
"When she got a run in the race after scratchings this morning, I rang Mollie and asked her 'how's your weight this morning. Can you ride at 52 (kilos)?'"
 
Fitzgerald initially hesitated before learning she would be partnering one of her stable favourites.
 
"Annabel asked me to ride her at 52 so half an hour of skipping in a bit of swear gear and it's all been worth it," she said. "A massive thank you to Annabel and Rob and the entire team. They are massive supporters."
 
Jumping cleanly and settling prominently, Bella Corazon travelled strongly throughout before showing plenty of determination in the closing stages to hold off the fast-finishing Ticklebelly by a short-head. South Australian visitor Swiftie Harriet finished a further 1¼ lengths away in third.
 
Archibald felt Bella Corazon's clean getaway was a key factor in the result.
 
"The good thing with Mollie is she's really good at getting them out of the gates as that has been this horse's nemesis," Archibald said.
 
"She ran really well at Scone first-up, rattling home in quick time off one trial and the form out of that race has been solid, so we came here with some level of confidence today.
 
"Once she did jump, those confidence levels rose and it's nice for this mare to get a Saturday win.
 
"I also think there's more to come, she's been going really well at home."
 
The victory was a well-deserved metropolitan breakthrough for Bella Corazon, whose consistency and recent form suggested a result like this was not far away. With confidence now high and further improvement expected, the mare looks capable of adding to her record in the coming weeks.