The arduous five month journey she and the other Dubai bound South African horses took was via Mauritius and England.

Hauptfleisch said, “She took the travel and the quarantine very well and Mike (De Kock) said she is doing well in Dubai. The plan is for her to follow the same route that Shea Shea took. She will have a prep run at the end of January. She will then run on Super Saturday on March 7 and on World Cup night. After that she will go back to England and be aimed at Royal Ascot and other top sprints.”

The races Shea Shea took in were The Dubai Excellence Stakes, followed by Super Saturday’s Listed Meydan Sprint and World Cup night’s Gr 1 Al Quoz Sprint. All of these races are over 1000m on turf. In England he then ran in the Gr 1 King’s Stand Stakes over 1000m at Royal Ascot, the Gr 1 July Cup over 1200m at Newmarket, and the Gr 1 Nunthorpe over 1000m at York.

Hauptfleisch raced Via Africa’s mother, the Qui Danzig mare Bump ‘N Grind, with Noordhoek Beach-based trainer Mike Stewart and she won three races over 1000m. However, she does not have a strong female line on paper and Hauptfleisch consequently bought out his racing partners for breeding purposes. His father Gren owned a share in Var and the rest is history.

The now five-year-old Via Africa, who is part-owned by Albert Boshoff, won three Gr 1s under the care of KZN’s current champion trainer Duncan Howells. She was unlucky to not be named Equus three-year-old Champion Filly, but won the Equus Champion Sprinter Award last season.

Her siblings have not fared well to date and three to have raced have only won one race between them, and that was courtesy of her full-sister Imbolc.

However, Hauptfleisch has a share in Elusive Fort and Bump ‘N Grinds two foals by this stallion give reason for hope. The first of them a Howells-trained colt called Al Wahed gives Hauptfleisch “goose flesh” on looks alone and has had two promising starts, a 3,15 length third to the promising Dreamuponadream and a six length second to the top class Generalissimo, both over 1200m. The second of them is a two-year-old filly who looks remarkably alike Via Africa and she is also with Howells.

Bump ‘N Grind currently has a robust foal by Oratorio and is in foal again to Var.

One characteristic of her foals according to Hauptfleisch is that they all eat up every scrap which is always a bonus for a trainer.

Hauptfleisch and Bishoff were at Scottsville to watch the Howells-trained Spectrum gelding Zestful running in the Gold Circle Witness KZN Summer Challenge and their journey from Cape Town proved worthwhile as the horse won the race in commanding style despite carrying topweight.

Picture: Via Africa (Liesl King)

The Milnerton trainer said: “He was shaken up after the Green Point and I wasn’t quite happy with his off-fore joint. I spoke to Fred Crabbia and we are going to geld him. We will then throw him out before bringing him back for the Durban season.”

Studs are apparently queuing up for stable companion Capetown Noir after last week’s decision to retire the Cape Guineas, Cape Derby and Queen’s Plate winner.

Kannemeyer said: “The injury that caused him to be scratched from the Champions Cup (bruising on the near-fore tendon) flared up again and quite a few people are keen to stand him.

“He was a brilliant miler and a magnificent individual as well as being one of the most intelligent horses that I have had anything to do with.

“He also has great presence and just to watch him walking round gave me goose pimples.”

The Australian-bred grey boosted her reputation sky-high when she totally outclassed the opposition in the Avontuur Estate Cape Fillies Guineas at Kenilworth on Saturday and her famous globe-trotting trainer is intent on the world stage with his latest star.

Mike de Kock, winning his third Cape Fillies Guineas, said: “I will talk to Angus Gold (racing manager for owner Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum) but the Met is definitely in our thinking and it might be her last start here if she is exported.

“I don’t see any need for her to run again before that but, if I do run her, it will be in Jo’burg. We will definitely export her eventually because I believe she is well capable of winning a Group 1 abroad.”

Saturday’s race was robbed of a lot of its significance when second favourite Cold As Ice plunged through the pens, giving Bernard Fayd’Herbe a nasty fall and galloping the full mile of the race. A bitterly disappointed Joey Ramsden felt he had no choice but to withdraw her while De Kock sympathised: “To get to the start in a Group 1 and not get a run is gut-wrenching and I’m gutted for Joey, Finchy and the boys. It took a bit of a shine off the race.”

Fayd’Herbe, who sprained his neck and was stood down for the rest of the day, saw it coming and believes it should have been avoided.

He explained: “She played up and I called to the starter for them to let me out. They didn’t and she broke through the gate.”

Anthony Delpech is still haunted by the ghost of Igugu’s defeat by Ebony Flyer four years ago and he disclosed afterwards that this lay at the heart of his decision-making.

He said: “Igugu got all lost round here and I rode her too confidently – I didn’t get aggressive early enough – and that’s why I rode Majmu the way I did. I wouldn’t have gone clear at the 500m otherwise.

“I also pulled the trigger early because my pacemaker was coming in on me and I wasn’t sure that he knew I was there. She will be better when I can chase a couple home and I think she wants further.”

Indeed it was only in the final furlong that the 30-100 hotpot really came into her own. She seemed to slip into another gear as she strode away and the two-and-a-half-length margin said far more about the way Delpech allowed her to ease than her superiority.

De Kock commented: “The further she goes the better she will be and I thought she won this in facile fashion. She is a tough, strong filly who weighs in excess of 500kg. She is straightforward although fairly temperamental in that she knows what she wants – but I suppose that is typical of most of the female species!”

The surprise packet was 25-1 shot Inara who ran on into second and Mike Bass is now targeting the Maine Chance Paddock Stakes on 10 January.

He said: “She will be comfortable over 1 800m. She is not the most robust filly but she has ability and next season she will come into her own.”

Greg Cheyne made his move on Double Whammy immediately Delpech made his (“she moved up well and stayed on”) but Glen Kotzen was concerned about the way she lost second close home – ”I don’t think she quite gets a mile and she will probably go for a sprint next.”

Vaughan Marshall immediately ruled out suggestions of the Paddock Stakes for Jet Set Go (fourth) and said: “I will take her to Jo’burg and have a crack at the Triple Tiara.”

Picture: Liesl King

Bass said: ”It’s the Diadem on 27 December next and then probably the Cape Flying (24 Jan) but bear in mind I’ve also done the Sceptre (17 Jan) as well in the past!

“This was a good run from Fly By Night. Alboran Sea went for her life and it was a big ask to catch her. But mine was good enough to do it.”

Stable companion Lanner Falcon (fifth) was severely handicapped by a slipping saddle which, to Grant van Niekerk’s consternation, began to go backwards soon after the start

If Alboran Sea is again in opposition on 24 January she won’t risk being the hare a second time as Mike de Kock said: “This is the wrong place to go to the front.”

Darryl Hodgson and Hassen Adams had some compensation for Fairyinthewoods’ recent career-ending injury when Gerrit Schlechter got Dressed In Cotton up on the line in the Val De Ra Southeaster Sprint.

Hodgson said: “Fairyinthewoods (winner of last year’s Southern Cross) damaged her near-fore tendon in her final gallop for this race. I am very disappointed because I feel she would have won again.

“She now goes to stud – Hassen will decide which stallion – while Dressed In Cotton will run in the Diadem although he won’t be as well in as he was here.”

Picture: Fly By Night gets the better of Alboran Sea in the Southern Cross Stakes at Kenilworth yesterday. (Liesl King)

The three-year-old form is still unravelling at this stage of the season, but the Mike de Kock-trained Australian-bred grey could hardly have been more impressive and brought back memories of the champion trainer’s best ever horse, the mighty Horse Chestnut, when accelerating away from the field in effortless fashion in the closing stages to win by 2,5 lengths under Anthony Delpech.

Her starting odds shortened to 3/10 after Cold As Ice had burst through the stalls, dislodging her jockey and galloping to the parade ring.

Majmu broke well and was initially in the front before her stablemate Ataab, who was a bit slowly away, rounded her and set the good pace that would best suit her. Delpech took Majmu to the front quite early in the straight as he had to squeeze through a gap between Ataab and the rail. However, he then gave her a breather until the 400m mark.

In the meantime the new second favourite, the Glen Kotzen-trained Double Whammy, had produced a fine turn of foot from midfield and was going like a freight train on the rail, while the Mike Bass-trained Inara was also making a strong forward move. However, just when an upset looked possible, Majmu was given more rein and simply accelerated away from the danger. Inaara finished second, narrowly ahead of Double Whammy, and Jet Set Go was next best.

De Kock’s first words were one of sympathy for the connections of Cold As Ice, but he went on to confirm that Majmu would be staying on in Cape Town.

Gr 1 Races like the Maine Chance Paddock Stakes, the Klawervlei Majorca and even the J &B Met will be possibilities for this exciting filly. After yesterday’s win she already has one leg of the Wilgerbosdrift Triple Tiara under her belt and looks a virtual certainty to become the new darling of the South African turf.

Earlier, the Gr 1 Mercury Sprint winner, the Mike Bass-trained Fly By Night, showed her class by winning the Gr 2 Tony Taberer Southern Cross Stakes over 1000m. The ever improving five-year-old Jet Master mare tracked the Gr 1 Allan Robertson winner, the De Kock-trained Alboran Sea, before producing a telling late run under Bernard Fayd’Herbe to catch the latter in the shadow of the post and win by 0,5 lengths. The merit of the performance of both horses was illustrated by the gap of 6,25 lengths between them and the rest of a quality field, which was headed by Savannah Song. Alboran Sea was backed in to 11/10 favourite and Fly By Night started at 3/1.

The Listed Val De Ra Southeaster Sprint over 1100m was won by the Darry Hodgson-trained six-year-old gelding Dressed In Cotton under Gerrit Schlechter, despite being 2kg under sufferance. The Justin Snaith-trained favourite Daring Dave overtook the pacesetter and second favourite Captain Of All close to home and looked the winner, but was caught on the line by Dressed In Cotton, while another outsider, Villa Del Largo, got up to dead-heat with his stablemate for second.

 Picture: Majmu and Anthony Delpech (Liesl King)