Final Fling S. (SAf-G3) (8/7)
The first Graded race of the new season was turned into something of a one way rout when A Daughters Legacy galloped away with the Final Fling Stakes for fillies and mares over 1800m at Kenilworth on Saturday. Now aged five, A Daughters Legacy had finished second in the corresponding event twelve months earlier and is something of a winter specialist, having come into Saturday’s contest on the back of three successive victories, one of them at Listed level.
A Daughters Legacy went off as the 7/2 second favourite in a field of 15 behind Sunbed, who was the 3/1 market leader. Gay Fortuna was the 6/1 third choice, but there was not a great deal of interest shown in any of the others which included the newly turned four-year-olds Field Flower and Comebackanddance, who were in fact jointly the best weighted runners in this WFA event.
A Daughters Legacy was partnered for the first time by visiting Gauteng rider Derreck David, who had her perfectly poised in third early on as sole three-year-old Soutini ensured a decent pace by opening up a lead of some four or five lengths. Final Approach raced closest to the pacesetter, with New Forest just behind the leaders as Sunbed was held up in the pack.
Soutini was already starting to tire as heads turned for home, when she raced a little wide and soon faded. Final Approach came forward to lead briefly, but A Daughters Legacy was starting to home in and was clearly travelling too strongly for any of her rivals. She hit the front inside the final furlong and stretched away with considerable style to win by four lengths from Splinter, who ran on stoutly to just deny her stable companion Final Approach of second place in the final strides. Mystery Dame stayed on to be a further 1.5 lengths away in fourth, but very few ever got into the race. Sunbed finished a never dangerous sixth, while last season’s Cape Fillies Guineas winner Field Flower continues to be in the doldrums and finished second last despite some hope that the much softer going here might improve her performance.
Five-year-old A Daughters Legacy is a daughter of Windrush and is part owned by her trainer Riaan van Reenen, who did so much to put Windrush’s name on the map through the exploits of the subsequently exported Diana’s Choice. She is the fifth foal and fifth winner of Elliodor mare Mississippi Masala, who never raced but whose third foal Utah Hoo-ha is the dam of well performed Captain Scott. A Daughters Legacy’s second dam Breyani was both the champion two-year-old and champion three-year-old filly of her generation, winning four times at Gr 1 level, so there is plenty of pedigree for the Final Fling winner to take to stud.
Bred by Lionel Cohen’s Odessa Stud, A Daughters Legacy was acquired for R90 000 at the 2007 National Two Year Old Sale and has won six of her 22 starts for earnings of R426 400.
Kenilworth, South Africa, August 7, R150.000, 1800m, turf, good, 1.55.83 (CR 1.48.98).
A DAUGHTERS LEGACY (SAF), 60.0, b m 5, Windrush - Mississippi Masala (SAF) by Elliodor (FR). Owner R van Reenen, G D R Eveleigh, F J Louw, O P W Rosslind & C S Swart; breeder D Cohen & sons (SAF); trainer R van Reenen; jockey D David (R93.750)
Splinter (SAF), 60.0, b m 5, Casey Tibbs (IRE) - Northern Broadway (SAF) by Northern Guest
Final Approach (SAF), 59.0, b f 4, Jet Master (SAF) - Treasure Teft (SAF) by Goldmark (SAF)
Margins: 4, sh hd, 1½
Also ran: Mystery Dame (SAF) 60.0, Desert Mirage (SAF) 60.0, Sunbed (SAF) 59.0, Alma Guerreira (BRZ) 60.0, Gay Fortuna (SAF) 60.0, Lassiter (SAF) 60.0, Comebackanddance (SAF) 59.0, Thecatcanrun (AUS) 59.0, Joyful Dancer (SAF) 60.0, Soutini (SAF) 50.0, Field Flower (SAF) 59.0, New Forest (SAF) 60.0