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The English page: Classic trials galore

Autor: 

David Conolly-Smith

TurfTimes: 

Ausgabe 465 vom Donnerstag, 27.04.2017

This is the time of year for classic trials, and although the German classics are much later than the equivalent races in England and France, the trials are now in full swing. We had some very interesting races for three-year-olds last weekend with more to come in the next few days.

Top race last Sunday was the Dr. Busch-Memorial at Krefeld, a race which is invariably a good guide to the Mehl-Mülhens-Rennen (German 2,000 Guineas, Cologne, May 21st). In fact the last three German-trained winners of the classic all won this race first. The winner this time was Dragon Lips (Footstepsinthesand), who took the lead early in the straight and kept out of all the trouble behind him. He is homebred by Hans-Dieter Lindemeyer, who breeds under the name Stall Parthenaue and races under the name Stall LIntec. Most of his runners have the word ”Lips” in their name; this is not a reference to his kissing skills, but to his home town of Leipzig.

This was a first group race victory for rookie trainer Andreas Suborics, who took over the Cologne stable of now-retired Andreas Löwe at the beginning of the year. The 45-year-old Austrian-born ex-jockey has certainly made a bright start to his training career. Despite the winning margin of over three lengths, it is not certain that Dragon Lips will confirm the form in the Mehl-Mülhens-Rennen, likely to be his next start. He had a fitness advantage over most of his rivals, having already run this year, and also had the run of the race, while several of those behind him were caught up in the scrimmaging, and got no kind of a clear run at all. However the form is in the book, he has been given a rating of 111 and a Royal Ascot entry to boot. He is now quoted as 5-2 favourite for the Cologne classic.

Behind him, Langtang (Campanologist) kept on well for second without ever looking likely to threaten the winner. However trainer Andreas Wöhler was very satisfied with this performance, as Langtang, a leading fancy for the German Derby, clearly needed the race and equally clearly needs further to show his best form. The unluckiest runner was Colomano (Cacique) in fourth, who had no run at all and did his Derby prospects no harm either. Earlier in the afternoon we saw another Derby prospect in Shanjo (Soldier Hollow), who won a conditions race in excellent style despite conceding three kilos to all his rivals. He is trained, like Colomano, by Markus Klug, who seems to have a very powerful bunch of three-year-olds in his yard this year. Being by champion sire Soldier Hollow out of a Monsun mare, Shanjo is bred along similar lines to the 2012 German Derby winner Pastorius.

Klug also saddled the most impressive filly to win at the meeting, Gestüt Röttgen´s homebred Diaphora (Pivotal), a very easy winner on her debut over the extended mile and clearly of interest in the German 1,000 Guineas, to be run at Düsseldorf on June 18th and which was also won by her dam Diacada (Cadeaux Genereux). It is hard to know what she beat in this maiden race, but she certainly did it in style.

Three-year-old fillies also hold centre stage this Sunday at Düsseldorf, where ten are declared for a listed race over the course and distance of the German 1,000 Guineas. All the leading trainers have entries, with Peter Schiergen saddling three; his stable jockey Andrasch Starke partners Ittlingen´s Sunny Belle (Exceed and Excel), whose maiden win now reads well, as Dragon Lips was easily beaten in second. Klug relies on Röttgen´s Attica (Tai Chi), a CD winner last time, while the favourite is likely to be Wöhler´s Rainbow Royal, unbeaten in three starts last year including an Italian group race.

However the most significant race this weekend is likely to be the Bavarian Classic at Munich on Monday (May Day), almost always one of the best trials for the German Derby. Wöhler won it last year with Darius Racing´s Isfahan (Lord of England), who went on to win the Derby. He now has three of the seven runners: Rustam (Hat Trick), for last year´s winning connections, Nerud, a Bernadini half-brother to King George winner Novellist, and Qatar Racing´s Japanese-bred Warring States (Victoire Pisa). Klug has two irons in the fire – Northsea Star (Sea The Stars) and Kastano, who is by Nathaniel, as is Schiergen´s runner Enjoy Vijay. There were 51 left in the Deutsches Derby, to be run at Hamburg on July 2nd); three trainers, Klug, Wöhler and Schiergen, account for more than half of them. At the moment bookies are going 9-1 the field in ante-post betting, with Klug and Wöhler having almost all the favourites, but the betting will almost certainly have a different look on Monday evening.

David Conolly-Smith

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