Fifinella (horse)
| Fifinella | |
|---|---|
Fifinella, 1916
|
|
| Sire | Polymelus |
| Grandsire | Cyllene |
| Dam | Silver Fowl |
| Damsire | Wildfowler |
| Sex | Mare |
| Foaled | 1913 |
| Country | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland |
| Colour | Chestnut |
| Breeder | Sir Edward Hulton |
| Owner | Sir Edward Hulton |
| Trainer | Dick Dawson |
| Record | 7: 4-2-1 |
| Earnings | £5,937 |
| Major wins | |
|
Cheveley Park Stakes (1915) New Derby (1916) New Oaks (1916) |
|
| Awards | |
| Unofficial British Champion Two-Year-Old (1915) | |
| Last updated on 23 October 2011 | |
Fifinella (1913–1931) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare. In a career that lasted from 1915 until 1917 she ran seven times and won four races. She was the highest-rated British two-year-old of either sex in 1915 and went on to greater success the following season. As a three-year-old in 1916 she won the Derby and Oaks both of which were run that year at Newmarket. She was the sixth and most recent filly to win the Derby.
Fifinella a chestnut filly with a narrow white blaze and two white socks, was bred by her owner, the publisher Edward Hulton. She was sired by Polymelus out of the mare, Silver Fowl. Polymelus was a highly successful racehorse who won the Champion Stakes and the Cambridgeshire in 1906 before going on to be a five time Champion Sire and, through his son Phalaris, the male-line ancestor of most modern thoroughbreds. Silver Fowl was a highly successful broodmare who produced ten other winners including Silver Tag (Cambridgeshire), Silvern (Coronation Cup) and Tai-Yang (Jockey Club Stakes).
Fifinella was sent into training at Newmarket, Suffolk, with Richard C. Dawson who at that time was Hulton's private trainer. Or so the "official" story has stated for over fifty years. The truth is slightly different. Hulton had several trainers over the years but they were always public. After the retirement of Richard Wootton he kept some horses with Wootton's sons but the bulk went to Dawson at Whatcombe. At the end of the 1916 season Hulton and Dawson parted company and Fifinella and the rest of the Hulton string left Whatcombe and went briefly to Billy Walters at Newmarket. Walters tried without much success to bring Fifinella to the racecourse throughout 1917 though she managed to run third to Phalaris in a little plate at Newmarket on 14 September. For what it's worth Dawson himself was briefly based at Newmarket in 1918 but this was long after Fifinella's time. She was not an easy or pleasant filly to train, being described by Dawson as "catty and peevish".
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