Jamie Kah declared Fretta “a star for the future” after the Northern Hemisphere two-year-old Frankel filly dazzled amidst chaotic scenes at Sandown Lakeside on Wednesday.
Fretta settled fifth on the fence after jumping fairly from the inside barrier in the open-age maiden, but enjoyed more than a slice of luck when co-favourite Choquant was run off the track by wayward leader Wicasa Tankala.
Choquant, ridden by Ethan Brown, settled at the girth of Wicasa Tankala and lost several lengths in the mid-race incident as Fretta slipped underneath runners and found herself in the lead soon after straightening.
The Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr-trained Fretta quickened brilliantly, running her final 200 metres in 11.79 seconds to score by 3.5 lengths as Choquant, trained by Mick Kent, rallied for second.
Fretta with a dominant debut win in the first at Ladbrokes Park 👊@MickPriceRacing @jamieleekah07 pic.twitter.com/Ph9ZjtJ7Zr
— Racing.com (@Racing) December 21, 2022
“I had one sit on this horse in a gallop (last Tuesday) and just loved her. She’s going to a be a star for the future but she’s not quite there yet,” Kah said.
“When she missed the start and didn’t really muster I knew she wouldn’t get over racing, I really wanted to be as close as I could.
“She did muster speed after three furlongs and then it was a very messy race with horses going everywhere and she had to be very mature and experienced to take the run when it was there and she did.
“She hit the front quite soon because of the horses hanging out and she’s had to be brave and strong through the line, and she was.
“She still did a bit wrong and wanted to run out but you can’t be unhappy with that effort. There’s so much improvement there.”
OTI Racing managing director Terry Henderson was trackside to witness the victory, the significance of Fretta winning as a foal born in March 2020 not lost on him.
Fretta’s foaling date ensured that she was born five months later than the youngest of runners in the three-year-old maiden at Sandown Lakeside less than 30 minutes later.
Her dam, Alderry, was a Group 2 winner in South Africa and has produced five winners in South Africa, including South African Derby winner Al Sahem.
The above is an excerpt of Carl Di Iorio’s Racing.com article, which can be read in full here.