The colt was sired by the Belmont Stakes winner Empire Maker out of the mare Untouched Talent.

[6] Bodemeister did not race as a 2-year-old,[7] but emerged as a 3-year-old to come in second in the 2012 San Felipe Stakes,[8] then win the Arkansas Derby.

[15] The race developed in similar fashion to the Kentucky Derby, with Bodemeister leading until the final 50 yards, when he was caught by I'll Have Another and finished second by a neck.

Bodemeister saw his first winner on May 11, 2016, when gray filly Bode's Dream won a maiden race at Gulfstream Park.

[citation needed] Bodemeister made the news when an unusual white-headed colt with splashed white markings was born on June 5, 2016, later named Southern Phantom.