2017 Gelding by Aeroplane (GB) ex Bella Sofia (GB)

A home-bred four-year-old gelding by Aeroplane out of the winning mare Bella Sofia is offered for sale.

The sire Aeroplane was a very talented performer who won six times and finished Listed-placed on his way to attaining a career-high rating of 105. A son of the renowned stallion-maker Danehill Dancer - think Masterscraftsman, Choisir, Fast Company, Jeremy et al - he retired to Eisenfarn Stud in South Wales and has produced two winners from just four runners to date.

His filly Flight To Nowhere was the winner of a Chepstow handicap hurdle in March 2018, whilst his son Pick's Flight finished a close second in a warm Catterick bumper in February 2020 prior to winning at Dusseldorf.

Clearly the sire is a potent producer and his pairing with Bella Sofia promises plenty.

That is because the mare was a flat winner on the racecourse as a three-year-old in Italy, and was considered good enough to run in Listed company when transferred to Ireland later on. Her only previous progeny to have raced, Paddy's Orient, was placed over hurdles in Ireland, whilst her half-sister Blanc Des Blancs was placed at the highest level over hurdles in Italy.

Indeed, further study of this pedigree confirms its enduring quality. Bella Sofia is out of a half-sister to the multiple Godolphin Group-race winner Annus Mirabilis, whilst descendants of the next generation of the family include 1,000 Guineas heroine Billesdon Brook and the brilliant Champion Hurdle winner Annie Power.

It is also worth dwelling briefly on the record of Bella Sofia's sire Linamix in the broodmare sire division. An outstanding sire in his own right, his daughters have produced countless Group/Grade-1 winners under both codes, such as Muhaarar, Blue Bunting, Vazirabad, Diakali, Peace And Co and Souffleur - to name just a few.

With such a compelling pedigree backing up his obvious physical attributes, it is clear that this youngster has a very bright future. The horse is unbroken but has been well-handled from birth, is in excellent physical condition and is very amenable to being box driven, the horsewalker and farrier work etc.

He is based at Eisenfarn Stud in Carmarthenshire, South Wales, which is just five miles away from Ffos Las racecourse.

Eisenfarn is currently on the lookout for new broodmares.