Frankel filly Ajayeb catches the eye with Deauville win

Frankel looks set to have an exciting prospect for this year's French Oaks after his daughter Ajayeb got off the mark in fine fashion in the Prix du Val de Reuil at Deauville on Thursday.

The Jean-Claude Rouget-trained three-year-old has had two previous starts and was last seen finishing a close second in a fillies maiden at Toulouse in mid-November. She showed further improvement on Thursday when hitting the front in the closing stages and pulled clear to beat Fira by one and a quarter lengths.

A homebred for Al Shaqab, Ajayeb is the second foal and first winner produced by the Dynaformer mare Harmonious. Trained by John Shirreffs, Harmonious excelled as a three-year-old to land the American Oaks and the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Stakes.

While she did not register a win at four, Harmonius was a valuable broodmare prospect when going under the hammer at the 2012 Keeneland November Sale where she was snapped up by Mandore International Agency for $2.8 million.

Having joined the Al Shaqab broodmare band, her first covering yielded the ill-fated Dubawi colt Fayyadh, her second foal is Ajayeb, and in 2016 she produced a filly by Coolmore heavyweight Galileo.

Ajayeb currently has entries in the Prix Saint-Alary and the Prix de Diane and if she continues her rapid improvement, she could very well turn out to be a very exciting prospect for all involved with the daughter of Frankel.

If you liked this, you might like:

Persuasive visits Frankel as foaling season steps up at Cheveley Park Stud

Frankel my dear, I do give a damn!