IRISH-bred Architecture, runner–up in both the Oaks at Epsom and the Irish Oaks at the Curragh, was all the rage for the German version, the Group 1 Henkel- Preis der Diana at Düsseldorf last Sunday.

The daughter of Zoffany had been supplemented by Newmarket trainer Hugo Palmer for €50,000 earlier in the week.

The fact that the stable was in excellent form, plus her own impressive record and her clear top rating in the race, as well as the booking of Frankie Dettori, meant she started as the hot favourite at even money in the field of 16.

However, she failed to fire on this occasion and could only finish third behind two German homebreds – Gestüt Wittekindshof’s Serienholde, who claimed the top honours, and Gestüt Fährhof’s Sarandia. The pair had the race to themselves in the final furlong.

Architecture, despite being hampered on the first bend, was well placed coming into the straight and had every chance, but as Dettori reported “she ran flat”.

After a busy summer, she had also run at Royal Ascot, this was possibly one race too many and Palmer said afterwards that she would now have a break and that he hoped to bring her back for the valuable fillies and mares race at Ascot in mid-October.

She’s Gina, one of seven runners trained by Markus Klug, set off at a decent pace in front and led into the straight from Sarandia, with Architecture in third on the inside. Sarandia went on just under two furlongs out and briefly looked the likely winner, but Serienholde could soon be seen going ominously well in the centre of the track and could be called as the winner from some distance, although she only went by Sarandia in the final 100 yards.

The winning margin was half a length, with Architecture just hanging on for third place from the fast-finishing Kasalla, the best of Klug’s seven runners, and the Irish-bred Parvaneh, who finished really well on the outside.

TACTICS

Serienholde is trained by Andreas Wöhler, who was winning this classic for the third year in succession and fourth time overall, and was confidently ridden by his stable jockey Eduardo (Eddie) Pedroza, who was taking the race for the third time in four years.

“I thought about the tactics for the race in the bathtub on Friday evening,” Eddie revealed.

“I came to the conclusion that Frankie and Andrasch (Starke on Sarandia) were the two I had to beat, and that is how it worked out.”

The winner is a daughter of Soldier Hollow, now firmly established as one of the leading stallions in Germany, with good prospects of being champion sire this season. He stands at Gestüt Auenquelle for a fee listed as “private”, but is still the property of Helmut von Finck (Gestüt Park Wiedingen), who raced him for his successful career when he was trained by Peter Schiergen.

Soldier Hollow is also sire of Dschingis Secret and Wai Key Star, both bred by Park Wiedingen, who finished third and fourth in last month’s German Derby. The winner of that race, Darius Racing’s Isfahan, was trained by Andreas Wöhler. However, the result is still not final as the owner of the third horse lodged an objection, which is still to be decided following a second appeal.

Both Serienholde and Sarandia are members of the hugely successful “S” family tracing back to Gestüt Schlenderhan’s famous mare Schwarzgold, who has had a huge influence on postwar German breeding. The Alpenkönig mare Salesiana is the fourth dam of the Diana winner and third dam of the runner-up. Schwarzgold, who won the 1940 German Derby by a distance, is the fourth dam of Salesiana.

The handicapper has given her classic-winning descendant a provisional rating of 113. Serienholde, who finished both her two-year-old starts in second place, is now unbeaten in three starts this season and could possibly go next for the Grosser Preis von Baden.