Cherimoya was bred and owned by South African mining magnate William Broderick Cloete, who was killed in 1915 during the sinking of Lusitania.

He was named Matt Byrnes (after a noted horse trainer) in the United States[7] and raced with some success.

A few days before her anticipated first start at Sandown in the National Breeders' Produce Stakes, Cherimoya cut one of her fetlock joints after an exercise session when she was startled by a bird and fell over "a heap of stones" used for mending a nearby road.

Cherimoya held a good position from the start of the race, taking the lead a quarter of a mile from the finish and winning easily by three lengths over the betting favourite Tootles.

[6] Cherimoya was an unanticipated winner, factoring at 20 to 1 odds in the betting pools, and her win reportedly left "the spectators too dumbfounded to cheer.

[13] Cherimoya was entered in the St. James Stakes at Kempton Park held in August, but did not run in the race.

The proprietors of the Wickliffe Stud, American turfmen James C. Corrigan and Price McKinney, were interested in purchasing Cherimoya but their bid via cablegram for the mare was delayed.