The English page - New boys in town

Well first things first, and as this is our first article of 2025, I would like to welcome all our readers back and I hope they enjoy our weekly piece here on the English page of Turf Times. Although the sand track in Dortmund is keeping German racing active at this time of the year in this issue I would like to concentrate on the Breeding Industry in Germany and especially its new stallions for 2025. Of course the breeding season kicks off on February 15th and so it's a suitable time to take the opportunity to have a peek at the breeding side and to introduce the new kids on the block. 

German breeding still is very influencial in the modern day. thoroughbred, Toughness, durability good-bone, clear minded are all traits standing to German mares. Staying rather than speed is perhaps its biggest commodity. Stallions also, though unfortunately in the last the last couple of years we have lost two very good ones in Adlerflug and just last year Soldier Hollow. Just glancing through some of the sales catalogues especially the Irish jump scene and you'll find where German racehorses or stallions that have stood for awhile here in Germany like In Swoop, Maxios, Night Wish or Jukebox Jury are enjoying fruitful times there .

Back to Germany, and even though we have yearly a smaller band of broodmares to be covered and a declining number of foals born yearly, it is somewhat interesting that we have approximately 35 Stallions standing here and four new boys to boot. Torquator Tasso standing at 

Gestut Auenquelle demands the highest fee at 20,000 € which is still very reasonable for an Arc winner and a three time German Horse of the year winner. The three time Group 1 winning Adlerflug son has his third season covering and covered 81 mares เก้ 2024. His progeny will be eagerly awaited in the sales ring. Another Arc winner Waldgeist returned to the German sheds this year, the 11 year old Gallileo son out of the monsun mare Waldlerche was a Group 1 winner at 2 years, classic placed at 3 and winner of a Prix Ganay and Arc as an older horse. Having stood at Ballylinch Stud in Ireland he is now at Gestut Lünzen for 6000 €, a steal if he works with German mares, and he could just do that because Germany breed for stamina and not the quick buck in the Sales ring. Another Galileo son Japan stands for 9500 € at Gestut Etzean, a

Group 2 winner at 2 years and a dual Group 1 winner at 3 including the Juddmonte International and the Grand Prix de Paris. His offspring sold well at auction and he will have youngster with the biggest trainer's this year. Alson, a son of Areion, was a Group 1 winner at 2 over 7furlongs and placed in a classic, the Emirates Poule d' Essai des Poulains. The five time winner stands in Gestut Fahrhof. 

So lets take a closer look at the newbies for 2025: We have already written above about the return to Germany of Waldgeist so Assistent, Best of Lips and Fantastic Moon are those we will put under the microscope. 

Assistent (2019), a bay son of Sea the Moon out of the Kallisto mare Anna Kalla will stand for 4500 €. He done his racing mostly for Eckhard Sauren and improved throughout his career with his last racecourse performance his best, the winning of the Group 1, Preis von Bayern over 2400 m (1m 4f). He was a very likeable sort, very tough and honest and loved soft and heavy ground managing 7 wins and 8 places from 23 starts. At 3 years he won a Derby Trial before finishing fourth in the Derby itself, a place he also managed in the Preis von Europa that year. At  4 he won two Group 2's,  the Grosser Hansa Preis and the Carl Jaspers-Preis both at 2400 m. He won the Group 3 Badener Herbst Trophy at 5 and deservedly that Group 1 in Munich on his last start. He also has plenty of stamina in his pedigree and will stand at Gestut Röttgen and this mother line is all Röttgen right back to Anna Thea and Sternkonig. If his progeny inherit his toughness and durability they will win races as even though he wasn't the biggest horse, he sure was gutsy. 

Best of Lips (2018) joins the ranks as a son of The Gurkha (Galileo) out out of a Silver Frost mare. He will be based for 4.500 Euro at Gestüt Etzan. He ran from 2 years through to 6 and had 33 racecourse appearances. He won Germany's top race for juveniles the Preis des Winterfavoriten Group 3 and another of the same category the Dr Busch Memorial before finishing third in the Mehl Mülhens Rennen the German 2000 Guineas. He also took Germanys main Derby Trial that year the Group 2 Union Rennen over 2200m (1m3f).  As a 4 year old he ran group placed in Germany, France and Italy. As a 5 year old he took the Group 3, Gran Premio di Milano over a mile and a quarter.

Another horse that improved with age, his 6 year old season was his best. He won the Group 3 Furstenberg Rennen in Germany over 2400m (1m4f), the Premio Ambrosiano Group 3 in Italy over 2000m (1m2f) and went on to take the Stockholm Cup International Group 3 over 2400m. Best of Lips was another good tough horse and well travelled and when he got his race condition and top of the ground he was a good horse. His pedigree is interesting. His Silver Frost mother landed Group races including the French Classic, the Poule d'Essai des Poulains. There is also a lot of American blood on the dam's side probably why he himself liked good ground. 

Last of the four new boys is Fantastic Moon (2020) by Sea the Moon out of the Jukebox Jury mare Frangipani. His back pedigree includes influences like Sea the Stars, Urban Sea, Monsun, Montjeu, and Lomitas. Bred by Graf and Gräfin Stauffenberg he raced for the Liberty Racing Syndicate 2021 and will stand at Gestut Ebbesloh for a 9000 € fee. Fantastic Moon ran 14 times from 2 to 4 years and was Germany's Horse of the Year in 2023. He was another winner of Germany's top 2 year old race, the Preis des Winterfavoriten Group 3.  At three he won the Derby Trial in Baden Baden Gr 3 over 2000m (1m 2f) before going on to follow in his father's footstep and run out an emphatic Derby winner in  Hamburg. A Derby winner that went on to add the Grossen Preis von Baden over 2400m(1m 4f) Group 1 at 4 and 

showed just how useful he was. He also took the Prix Niel, Group 2 in France and finished second 2023 and 24 in the Grosser-Dallmayr-Preis - Bayerisches Zuchtrennen. His race record for a German horse speaks for itself and he won from 1600m (1m) to 2400m (1m4f) and Group races at 2, 3 and 4 years. He was also a publics favorite so it will be interesting how breeders take to him. 

So all in all the four new boys are Interesting and with Japan, Alson, Torquator Tasso, Best Solution, Counterattack, Isfahan just to name a few, the breeder has a good selection to choose from at normal price ranges.