Henkel 161st Preis der Diana (Group 1)

IT was clear from the outset that last Sunday’s Group 1 Henkel 161st Preis der Diana (German Oaks) was wide open, so one should not necessarily be surprised that it was in the end won by a 24.5/2 shot with a 17/1 shot runner-up.

It was a very messy affair, and if the race were to be rerun 10 times it is quite possible that we would have 10 different winners. There were in fact less than seven lengths at the line between the winner and the last-placed finisher.

This should in no way detract from the winner, Diamanta, who is owned and bred by Gestüt Brümmerhof, trained by Markus Klug and was ridden by Maxim Pecheur; for both trainer and jockey it was a first success in this classic. It was also a first major success for the sire Maxios, who stands at Gestüt Fährhof.

Diamanta won entirely on merit and was clearly the best horse on the day, but she had the run of the race, which is more than can be said of several of her rivals.

The trouble began right at the start when fourth favourite Ismene stumbled and sent jockey Filip Minarik flying; no real damage done, and Minarik will captain the European team in today’s Shergar Cup at Ascot, but Ismene continued to race with the field, and in fact soon took up the running and then led most of the way, causing problems for the other jockeys.

It was her stable companion Mythica who instead found herself in front, and she led into the straight with Diamanta, well drawn on the inside close up, and the favourite Durance, who had been supplemented at a cost of €50,000, improving her position rapidly on the outside and switching to the inside rail early in the straight.

Durance looked briefly like winning at that stage, but Diamanta was going ominously well just behind her and asserted over a furlong out to score by one and three-quarters lengths. It was very close for the places, with the grey Naida finishing well to go second close home, while Durance just held on for third from the fast-finishing Satomi.

Akribie and Donjah, the second and third favourites, were not far away in fifth and sixth. Donjah in particular, having her first race of the season after various minor setbacks, ran well after being forced to race wide and is certainly better than her final placing suggests.

It was a great result for Markus Klug, none of whose previous 17 runners in the race had managed to be placed. This time, along with the winner Diamanta, Satomi and Akribie took fourth and fifth places, but Klug himself admitted that Diamanta, who had run unaccountably badly on her previous start but had decent form before that, was the filly he expected least to win.

For owner-breeder Gestüt Brümmerhof this victory was certainly sweet compensation after their supposed main hope Anna Pivola had to be scratched five days before the race with a career-ending injury.

The handicapper has taken the result at face value and raised Diamanta by 15lbs to GAG 95 (=international 110). It will be interesting to see where she goes next. The leading contenders here are almost certain to meet again, most probably in Baden-Baden at the end of this month. The current pecking order is by no means set in stone.