The English page - Dallmayr winner follows Benbatl to Australia

It was generally expected that one of the three U.K.-trained runners would win last Sunday´s Group One Grosser Dallmayr-Preis at Munich, Germany´s best ten furlongs race. Saeed bin Suroor´s Benbatl (Dubawi) and Ed Walker´s Stormy Antarctic (Stormy Atlantic) had finished first and second last year, and this time Stormy Antarctic was back to try and go one better. He was accompanied by David Menusier´s Danceteria (Redoute´s Choice) and Mark Johnston´s Matterhorn (Raven´s Pass), who had met earlier in the season in the Brigadier Gerard Stakes at Sandown; Matterhorn had come out on top then, but Danceteria had showed improved form afterwards, winning La Coupe at Longchamp and then running fourth to Enable in the Eclipse Stakes. As Enable had won the King George the previous day at Ascot, a fact of which all racegoers were aware, he looked the likeliest of the foreign raiders. The German defense was headed by three runners owned by Stall Salzburg and trained locally by Sarah Steinberg, of whom Quest The Moon (Sea The Moon) seemed the best; her had been a good fourth three weeks earlier in the German Derby, in a race which was not run to suit him, but he had a hard race then and had reportedly had a break afterwards.

The ground had turned unexpectedly soft; it had been well watered during the previous week´s heatwave, but the weather had changed and there were heavy downpours on Saturday and another one an hour before the race. Despite that, the race was run at a good pace, with Matterhorn leading from the Salzburg pacemaker Runnymede (Dansili). Stormy Antarctic and Quest the Moon were both prominent, while Jamie Spencer was content to ride a waiting race on Danceteria. Quest The Moon moved briefly into the lead as they reached the straight and the frontrunners dropped out, but Danceteria had gradually improved his position and it could soon be seen that he was going best of all. He mastered Quest The Moon a furlong and a half out and had no problem is seeing off the late challenge of Wai Key Star (Soldier Hollow), the Salzburg second string, who finished a clear second. Quest The Moon, despite tiring in the closing stages, kept on for third and Alounak (Camelot) ran a good race in fourth, suggesting he is coming back to the form which had for a short time seen him as favourite for the 2018 German Derby. Stormy Antarctic was disappointing, and although said to prefer soft ground, is perhaps better over a shorter trip.

It was an extremely convincing performance by Danceteria, who was gelded after not running up to expectations at two. He has shown amazing improvement since, winning four races last year and going from strength this season. “He has improved from race to race,” said his trainer David Menusier, “and will improve further.” An Australian Bloodstock syndicate bought into him in May and now own him outright. That, as well as the fact that he is by the recently deceased Redoute´s Choice, a champion racehorse and sire in Australia, strongly suggests that his future lies down under, and Menusier stated clearly that the Cox Plate is his main target, with one prep race before. He certainly won here in good style, and was probably value for much more than the official winning distance of one and a quarter lengths. Wai Key Star, a six-year-old entire and wearing first time blinkers, ran his best ever race in second place;  the handicapper has put him up three pounds to GAG 96 (=international 112) as a result, though he was briefly rated higher at three. The winner remains on 97.5 (=115), his Eclipse Stakes rating, while Quest The Moon and Alounak also remain unchanged, although probably capable of more.

This was undoubtedly a good race, the best run in Germany this season, and the first four will be followed with great interest next time out. This of course applies particularly to the winner. His predecessor Benbatl went to Australia after his Munich success, won the Group One Ladbrokes Stakes there and was the runner-up to Winx (Street Cry) in the Cox Plate.  He was rated much higher than Danceteria, but this is still a good omen, especially as Winx won´t be around this time.

The action now moves to the Rhineland where the 161^st Henkel Preis der Diana at Düsseldorf is the big race of the weekend. This Group One for 3yo fillies is the German Oaks and is the second most valuable race of the year, after the German Derby, and like that race, the runners in the racecard are listed in handicap order. In theory therefore they should finish 1-2-3-4, which almost happened in the Derby. But that race seemed much more clear cut, whereas the Diana looks wide open and almost any of the runners could win. There seems to be no outstanding candidate, and the winners (and some of the placed horses) of the main trials are all in the line-up. The two top-rated fillies are Gestüt Röttgen´s homebred Akribie (Reliable Man), winner of the Hoppegarten trial, and Gestüt Ebbesloh´s homebred Durance (Champs Elysees), winner of the trials at Düsseldorf and Hamburg; she was trained in France last year and has had to be supplemented, as she was not originally entered.

Shining Pass (Raven´s Pass) was behind that pair in the trials, but represented the Derby winning team of trainer Andreas Wöhler and jockey Eduardo Pedroza, both of whom have an excellent record in this race. Skyful Sea (Sea The Stars) was a good runner-up in the Derby trial at Baden-Baden, but flopped when taking on good older horses at Hamburg, This is arguable easier and she is a half-sister to 2012 winner Salomina (Lomitas), also trained by Peter Schiergen, another who has done well here, but whose Durance is possibly his main hope. Akribie´s trainer Markus Klug has two more runners, Satomi (Teofilo) and Diamanta (Maxios), both of whom ran well enough in the trials to suggest they also have a chance here. Jean-Pierre Carvalho, who trained the 2018 winner, is also double handed, with the Schlenderhan homebreds Ismene (Tertullian) and Mythica (Adlerflug). Düsseldorf is a good track for front-runners and Naida (Reiable Man), who likes to bowl along in front and was only just caught last time by Ismene, could be very dangerous given her favourable draw.

However the really interesting one is Donjah (Teofilo), who looked a great prospect last year when easily winning both her starts against highly-rated colts. An ambitious programme was announced for this season, including both the German Derby and Preis der Diana, but after a setback she now makes her seasonal debut. Bred by Gestüt Karlshof, she was a 100,000 euros BBAG yearling; she was originally named Detonation, but Darius Racing, her new owners, give all their horses Persian names. She is the dark horse here, but her trainer Henk Grewe is currently in great form and leading the German statistics. She could certainly be the best horse in the race and on pedigree seems certain to stay the trip.

David Conolly-Smith