Despite initially difficult weather conditions, the managing director of the Munich Racing Club, Sascha Multerer, was very satisfied with the unusual Saturday race day: “The attendance was very good and we learned again that every race has to be won first.” Multerer was referring to the 18 Grad E-BIKE Center Munich race over 2,000m: After Lajoscha withdrew, only two horses competed, with the four-year-old Aff un zo, group winner in Dortmund last year, as the clear favorite.
However, the stallion was coming back from a year-long injury break and Ashton took advantage of this on the outsider Wonderful Starlet: “The only chance I had was to go at a high pace up front and hope that the opponent would sense the break on this ground at some point,” said the Manchester United fan. Three euros were available for a one-euro stake on the victory of the four-year-old mare trained by Michael Figge.
Ashton for the Galoppclub Deutschland
Ashton then won the Zweirad-Center Stadler race over 2,000m with the three-year-old Madamchen (2.2:1), who is trained by Stefan Richter in Dresden. The biggest celebrations for Ashton came after the ALFA Group Prize, a handicap III over 1,400m. He won on the five-year-old gelding Domenico (9.2:1) owned by the Galoppclub Süddeutschland, a very strong group of owners. The club wants to offer insights into “the fascination of galloping” in order to “actively participate in galloping for little money”. Domenico’s trainer is Werner Glanz in Riem.
Every year the galloping club also awards the honorary prize “Monsun” – named after the internationally most successful German stallion of all time. Today, the Munich-based jockey Rene Piechulek, who recently rode his 500th winner and who won Europe’s most important race, the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, last year with Torquator Tasso, was awarded the prize. “It’s been a long road to get here,” said Piechulek. “The Arc victory has opened many doors and I’m getting more opportunities.”
Piechulek also won “his” race today. He narrowly beat Wales in the MIG Fund race over 1,400m on the two-year-old mare Muskoka (trainer Henk Grewe). The odds of winning were 2.1:1. The Abendzeitung prize, a handicap II over 2,800m with prize money of 10,000 euros, was won by Andrasch Starke, also an Arc winner, on the five-year-old Orihime (4.9:1). For trainer Christian von der Recke, it was the 1,600th victory in his illustrious career. Eleven of them were contributed by Orihime alone.
Three victories for the amateurs
The Luimex races for the Bavarian Amateur Championship were won by Anna Lena Weidler on Angel Park (4.5:1) trained by Richter over 2,000m and Janina Boysen on Picnic En Ville (5.8:1) trained by Frank Fuhrmann over 1,600m. Amateur Konstantin Philipp won against the professionals in the Häusler Automobile race over 2,200m with the big outsider Moon Love (27.3:1), who is trained by Karoly Kerekes in Riem.
The next race day in Riem is on Sunday, November 6, with the Bavarian Grand Prix, the last Group I race of the season.
