Trainer William Haggas took the wraps off a promising Shadwell homebred at Newbury last Friday in the shape of the Kingman filly Fakhama.
She made her debut in a 1400m race for unraced three-year-old fillies and after travelling strongly, was ridden clear in the closing stages to score by just over two lengths.
2014 Avontuur Cape Fillies Guineas winner Majmu
However, what added a touch of intrigue to her sparkling victory is the fact that her dam is a former Mike de Kock-trained Gr1 winner, the star filly Majmu.
Owned by the late Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, this grey daughter of Redoute’s Choice went undefeated in three starts at two. She first showed the cut of her jib in stakes company by claiming the Listed Ruffian Stakes on debut, followed up in the Gr3 Pretty Polly Stakes and made it three out of three when destroying her rivals by almost nine lengths in the Gr2 SA Fillies Nursery.
Notwithstanding the lack of a Gr1 success, that flawless hat-trick was good enough to earn her an Equus award as the country’s Champion Juvenile Filly.
Majmu duly filled in that blank when she travelled to Cape Town for the Avontuur Gr1 Cape Fillies Guineas, which she won in majestic fashion, coming home two and a half length clear of none other than future multiple Gr1 winner Inara.
Four months later, she added a second Gr1 success when she outclassed her field in the Empress Club Stakes and found only the colt Wylie Hall superior in the Gr1 President’s Champions Challenge.
It was always a given that Majmu would be exported, and she left our shores a dual Gr1 winner of six races, all at stakes level, whilst finishing off the board just once, that when unplaced in her final race, the Gr1 Vodacom Durban July.
But back to Fakhama. The filly is her illustrious dam’s second winner from four runners, the first being the Dubawi gelding Mujtaba, who has won five of eight starts.
One swallow does not make a summer and only time will tell if Fakhama has what it takes, but the manner in which she despatched her rivals, gives the impression that she will not stop here.
As for Majmu, she is due to foal an own sibling to Fakhama this spring.
