IT is not long since German horses won the Arc, the King George, the Melbourne Cup and other top races around the world. These performers, Danedream, Novellist, Protectionist, were not only German-bred but also trained in Germany and usually running in the colours of German owners.

The 2019 season seems however, far removed from those successes, the form of the best German races has not worked out well and a large proportion of those races were won by foreign raiders.

The year started badly when the first five Group 2 races, all in May, went abroad – two to France, with French King, trained by Henri-Alex Pantall for a Qatari owner, winning the Carl Jaspers-Preis in Cologne, and The Revenant, trained by Francis-Henri Graffard, taking the Badener Meile.

Both of the Guineas races went to Britain, with the colts’ version going to Richard Hannon’s Fox Champion, with Mark Johnston’s Arctic Sound runner-up, and Johnston then took the fillies’ race with Main Edition. And the top staying race, the Oleander-Rennen, sponsored by Luke Comer, was won by the Irish raider Raa Atoll, owned and trained by the sponsor himself, with Willie Mullins’ Thomas Hobson in second to complete an Irish straight forecast.

Classic trials

In the meantime, the three-year-olds were swinging into action. The first major classic trial, in Munich, was won by Django Freeman, trained in Cologne by Henk Grewe, but mainly Australian-owned. However, there was a strong word for a colt trained by Andreas Wöhler – Laccario, an Ittlingen homebred who won his first four races of 2019 in promising style – including the main Derby trial, the Union-Rennen, beating Django Freemen by a comfortable two and a half lengths, and then the Deutsches Derby itself, with Django Freeman again runner-up, Accon, winner of the Baden-Baden Derby trial, in third, and Quest The Moon, a Group 3 winner in France, fourth.

This all looked very positive, but subsequent results were very disappointing. Main Edition won a small listed race in Redcar, but was outclassed in better company, while the colts who finished one-two in the local 2000 Guineas have not won since. Nor has Laccario, who was a well-beaten third in the Grosser Preis von Baden and then beaten in a photo-finish in the Preis der Deutschen Einheit. He was not disgraced but one was still hoping for better.

Django Freeman was sent, as planned, to Australia, but has not yet run following the removal of a chip. Accon and Quest The Moon have also failed to win since, and in fact hardly any of the runners in the German Derby have made much impact.

It is a similar story with the Preis der Diana (Oaks), won by Gestüt Brümmerhof’s homebred Diamanta, who was soon after retired following a setback. Third-placed Durance has since run a good race when runner-up in the E.P. Taylor Stakes in Canada, and Darius Racing’s Donjah, sixth at Düsseldorf, was runner-up in the Grosser Preis von Baden and then won an Italian Group 2 very easily. However, the form otherwise has taken a few knocks.

Foreign raiders

The Derby and Diana are two of Germany’s seven Group 1 races. The other five, all for three-year-olds and up, all went to foreign raiders, the first time this has ever happened.

First, David Menuisier’s Australian-owned Danceteria won the Grosser Dallmayr-Preis over 10 furlongs in Munich; on his only other start he finished last in the Cox Plate. French King followed up his earlier Cologne victory by winning a similar race at Hamburg and the Group 1 Grosser Preis von Berlin.

Godolphin’s Ghaiyyath scored a spectacular success in Germany’s most prestigious event, the Grosser Preis von Baden, beating Donjah and Laccario by 14 lengths. He and French King then both ran in the Arc, finishing much nearer last than first.

Admittedly, the very soft ground would not have suited them – it was good to firm almost all summer long in Germany – but this was still a blow to the German form.

Cologne’s Preis von Europa was then won by Roger Charlton’s Aspetar (well-beaten in the Hong Kong Vase), while the Grosser Preis von Bayern went to the Hungarian-trained Nancho, probably the best horse currently trained in Eastern and Central Europe, but even so another blow. Some of the better German three-year-olds will be in training in 2020, and Laccario, Quest The Moon and the filly Donjah look good prospects for 2020, but it must be hoped that the new classic crop will do much better than this year.