Watch 📺 Champion mare Bella Nipotina sells for $4.2million at Inglis Chairman’s sale

Champion mare Bella Nipotina has sold for $4.2million to one of her part owners Michael Christian from Longwood Thoroughbred Farm at the Inglis Chairman’s sale.

BELLA NIPOTINA (Lot 35) sells for $4.2 million dollars!!! This incredible mare from @cmaherracing draft sells to Longwood Thoroughbred Farm!
Wow, what a great result! #InglisChairmans pic.twitter.com/5MgW6C3uIg

— Inglis (@inglis_sales) May 8, 2025

Michael Christian could not bear to part with his horse of the lifetime, Bella Nipotina, and on Thursday night set a new Chairman’s Sale record to prove how much she means to him and his family.

The Longwood Thoroughbreds operator paid $4.2 million for the Ciaron Maher-trained daughter of Pride Of Dubai, who was the glamour lot of this year’s Inglis sale.

That price tag eclipsed the $3.6m paid for Nimalee two years ago as the most expensive lot in Chairman’s Sale history.

Christian bred Bella Nipotina, who is out of the Star Witness mare Bella Orfana, and was a part-owner throughout her racing career, but she was put up for sale to gain a true evaluation of her worth and Christian was relieved to be taking her back home.

“It’s been an incredible journey that she’s led us on and it’s a great thrill to be able to bring her home where it all started,” he said.

“She was bred on the farm and achieved what she’s achieved, so to be able to bring her back is fantastic.

“It was always going to be tough to secure her, there were some serious people involved, and I just feel very proud that we’ve been able to secure her. (I’m) very excited to get her home.”

As a part-owner of Bella Nipotina, Christian recoups some of what he paid for the mare and should be able to call on plenty of ammunition from her racing career to make up the shortfall.

From 57 starts, Bella Nipotina won 11 races, four of them at Group 1 level, including last year’s $20 million The Everest, in which she became the first mare or filly to win the world’s richest sprint.

The seven-year-old also logged 26 minor placings and finished with career earnings of $22,757,624.

Christian was reluctant to put too much thought into which stallion Bella Nipotina would be best-suited to before securing her, but is excited about devising mating plans for years to come.

“It feels like a bit of a full stop in a way because her racing is finished, but it’s a whole new chapter now,” he said.

“We’re looking forward to the next 10 years, 12 years maybe, who knows, and hopefully in that time we can produce some beautiful horses and have a lot more fun.”