May 1st is a day steeped in tradition – also for the Munich Racing Club. On this day, the first important trial of the year for the German Derby takes place at the Munich-Riem racecourse. The “Blue Ribbon” in Hamburg, open only to three-year-old horses, remains the pinnacle of German horse racing. The Wettstar.de Bavarian Classic over 2,000 meters has proven to be an increasingly important milestone in the search for the next Derby winner.

This has also been internationally recognized, as the race’s status was raised from Group III to Group II by the responsible European committee. This comes with an increase in prize money to €70,000, of which the winner receives €40,000.

“Later Derby winners like Lucky Speed, Isfahan, and Fantastic Moon have won this race or used it as preparation for their season,” says Michael Motschmann, chairman of the Munich Racing Club, describing the quality of the race. And this year, he himself has a great prospect on the starting grid: Together with Darius Racing, Motschmann owns the still-undefeated colt Gostam, who catapulted himself to the top of his age group last year with three wins, two of them at Group 3 level. He is trained by Andreas Wöhler near Gütersloh.

Waladares

Lommi, trained by Henk Grewe, is also a Group winner. He won the prestigious Herzog von Ratibor-Rennen in Krefeld at the end of last year. Peter Schiergen has two horses in contention: Abachi and Guevara. Waladares, trained locally by Sarah Steinberg, was added to the race after his victory in Berlin-Hoppegarten at the beginning of April. His superior fitness compared to the favorite trio of Gostam, Lommi, and Abachi, all of whom are making their season debuts, could lead to an upset. A total of seven horses are running.

First start at 1:30 pm

The Wettstar.de Bavarian Classic is, of course, the highlight of the second Riem race day of the still young season, starting at 4 p.m. In total, the Munich Racing Club offers eight exciting races, with the starting gates opening at 1:30 p.m. for the MIG Fund Opening Race for three-year-old maiden horses over 2,000 meters.

The second sporting highlight is the ALR Treuhand GmbH Grand Prix, a €20,000 handicap race (Class I), also over 2,000 meters, for three-year-old and older horses. This race will feature a duel between Cologne-based champion trainer Schiergen and the Riem training center. Schiergen has two starts in the eight-horse field; the rest have a short journey to the event.

“We are looking forward to a great group race day on the May Day holiday,” says racing club manager Sascha Multerer. “We have strong betting offers with the V4 and the four-horse bet. Entertainment for children is also provided, as well as an attractive range of food and drink.”

All races and starters can be found here:
https://www.deutscher-galopp.de/gr/renntage/37580369