LEAP INTO THE BIG TIME FOR 15-STRONG SYNDICATE

Features | 10th October 2024

The 15 owners of star filly Tamfana are hoping to round off a momentous season with victory in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot on British Champions’ Day.

She will line up in the Qipco-sponsored mile showpiece on Saturday 19th October after gaining her first win at Group 1 level in the mile Sun Chariot Stakes at Newmarket.

The Quantum Leap Racing syndicate will be out in force, just as they were for her two-length defeat of multiple Group 1 heroine Inspiral on the Rowley Mile.

“She seems fine after her latest race and as long as she works nicely at home she will go to Ascot,” confirms Eamonn O’Connor, who runs Quantum Leap Racing. “We’re expecting another big turn-out as she’s very well supported. We had 23 owners and guests at Newmarket and, as you can imagine, the celebrations were wonderful.”

“We do have a few international options but are keen to run on Champions’ Day. The Breeders Cup sprang to mind but we’re not sure Del Mar would suit her and didn’t want to pursue any plans as an after-thought. The QEII has been a plan for a while now so we’re happy to target that.”

Eamonn, who set up Quantum Leap seven years ago, also confirms that David Menuisier’s three-year-old, who won the Group 3 Atalanta Stakes at Sandown en route to Newmarket, will be kept in training next year.

“It’s great news for everyone involved in the filly, who has just got better and better. Her trainer and the jockeys who have ridden her all agree she’s open to even more improvement, which is pretty exciting given that she’s now up to a rating of 118,” he adds.

“Tamfana has not only developed into a special racehorse but has a great mind so she’s straightforward to deal with when she goes to the races.”

“We’ve had a lot of interest in her but racing her again next year was always more important to us than selling her. She’s given her owners so many fantastic days out and we’re already looking forward to the possibilities next season will bring.”

Quantum Leap’s pride and joy will be campaigned at a mile and possibly 10 furlongs in 2025, with The Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot her prime mid-season target. “If we step up in trip, the Group 1 Nassau Stakes could be an option, along with the Juddmonte International,” adds Eamonn.

A cheap purchase by Jeremy Brummitt at 20,000 euros as a yearling, the daughter of Soldier Hollow won a Group 3 in France as a two-year-old before making the frame in the English 1,000 Guineas and the French Oaks this season.

Her latest success under Irish champion Colin Keane took Tamfana’s win record to four from nine and her career earnings soaring past the £400,000 mark.

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