BBAG

Gestut Karlshof homebred Straight (Ger) (Zarak {Fr}--Seductive {Ger}, by Henrythenavigator) was back among familiar foe in Sunday's G2 Sparkasse KolnBonn-188th Union-Rennen, Germany's premier G1 Deutsches Derby trial, at Cologne and delivered a powerful performance to garner the 11-furlong feature by daylight. Straight was steadied in rear from flagfall and was detached from his rivals through halfway. Tanking forward once into the home straight, the 46-5 chance quickened impressively to gain control entering the final furlong and powered clear of his rivals to hit the line with a five-length buffer back...

Juvenile filly Salon Starlet (Ger) (Saxon Warrior {Jpn}) (lot 39), a half-sister to 2022 G1 German Derby hero Sammarco (Ire) (Camelot {GB}), brought a bid of €72,000 from Florent Fonteyne to top the BBAG August Online Sale. The pair are out of the stakes-placed Saloon Sold (Ger) (Soldier Hollow {GB}), herself out of a half-sister to three black-type winners. ITC Bloodstock snapped up winning Swedish-trained mares Uchchaihshravas (Ire) (Cotai Glory {GB}) (lot 12), from the family of G1 Racing Post Trophy runner-up Van Der Neer (GB) (Dutch Art {GB}), and...

The catalogue for the BBAG Yearling Sale is now online. Featuring 224 yearlings--38 of which are full- or half-siblings to group winners--one of the most intriguing lots is an Areion (Ger) half-brother to this year's G1 Deutsches Derby hero Sammarco (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) as lot 157 from Gestut Park Wiedingen. Three other lots are full- or half-siblings to Group 1 winners, with lot 58, a Gestut Fahrhof-consigned Frankel (GB) half-brother to Potemkin (Ger) (New Approach {Ire}); lot 134 is a full-brother to G1 German Oaks heroine Diamanta (Ger) (Maxios {GB})...

Last term's G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe hero Torquator Tasso (Ger) (Adlerflug {Ger}--Tijuana {Ger}, by Toylsome {GB}) could manage only sixth when contesting Baden-Baden's May 29 G2 Grosser Preis der Badischen Wirtschaft on seasonal return last time and bounced back in style to claim a second straight edition of Saturday's G2 wettstar.de Grosser Hansa-Preis at Hamburg. The 13-10 favourite raced third passing the judge first time and remained in that slot for the most part. Sent forward on the turn to go second into the home straight, he drifted...

Gestut Park Wiedingen's homebred 3-year-old colt Sammarco (Ire) (Camelot {GB}--Saloon Sold {Ger}, by Soldier Hollow {GB}) outpointed subsequent sales-race winner Alaska Tiger (Ire) (Maxios {GB}) by a neck when annexing his Oct. 30 debut over 7 1/2 furlongs at Halle in his lone juvenile start and came back this term to finish second behind subsequent G2 Prix Hocquart third Lavello (Ire) (Zarak {Fr}) in Munich's May 1 G3 Bavarian Classic last time. The April-foaled bay enjoyed considerable support as the 14-5 second favourite for Monday's G2 Sparkasse KolnBonn - 187th...

Friday's BBAG Mixed Breeze-Up Sale featured 89 lots, and it was the 2021 G3 Kalkmann Fruhjahrs-Meile hero Zavaro (Ger) (Areion {Ger}) (lot 64) who took top honours at €52,000. Knocked down to Stall Villa Medici, he was a member of the Gestut Ohlerweiherhof draft. From the extended family of Group 1 winners Intense Focus (Giant's Causeway) and Skitter Scatter (Scat Daddy), the 5-year-old was most recently seen running second in Thursday's G2 Kronimus Badener Meile. Second on the buyers' sheets was the Gestut Brummerhof-consigned Promised (Ire) (Lope de Vega {Ire})...

BBAG's Spring Auction catalogue is now online. Conducted as part of the three-day spring race meeting from May 26-29, the sale will feature 69 lots on May 27. There are 27 2-year-olds set to go through the ring, as well as 39 racehorses aged three years and above, a pair of broodmares and one yearling. Iffezheim Racecourse will host the breezers, which will take place at 9:30 a.m. one day prior to the sale on May 26. Bidding will begin at 11 a.m. on May 27.

The inaugural BBAG Christmas Online Sale will begin on Nov. 26 and bidding will close on Nov. 28. Horses of all ages are permitted for the auction which is identical in format to the spring online auction, BBAG announced on Monday. Horses do not have to travel to the sales ring in Iffezheim. Videos and photos of lots will be available in the online catalogue after publication. The deadline to register is Friday, Nov. 18. For more information, please visit the BBAG website.

We head towards a weekend featuring the final British Classic of 2021, the Arc Trials and Irish Champions Weekend with the last week having offered plenty of food for thought across Europe. Torquator Tasso (Ger) paid a posthumous tribute to his champion sire Adlerflug (Ger) by adding victory in the G1 Grosser Preis von Baden to his 2020 win in the G1 Grosser Preis von Berlin. Second in last year's Deutsches Derby to another son of Adlerflug, the recently retired In Swoop (Ire), the 4-year-old beat this year's Derby winner...

SANKT WENDEL, Germany--Among the current batch of second-crop stallions in Europe, only two thus far have sired a Group 1 winner. The all-conquering Mehmas (Ire), last season's record-breaking champion freshman, has two, while the other name on the list may be less familiar to those outside Germany. Isafahan (Ger) (Lord Of England {Ger}), bred by his trainer Andreas Wohler, won the G1 Deutsches Derby of 2016, and five years later his first-crop Sisfahan (Fr), also chestnut and bearing the same green and pink colours of Darius Racing, emulated his father...

Recent Group 3 winner Adrian (Ger) (Reliable Man {GB}) was the top-priced lot at €110,000 at the BBAG's first August horses in training sale, which was incorporated to target horses with high levels of form and entries in Baden-Baden's feature meeting that runs from Aug. 29 to Sept. 1. Adrian (lot 2), a 4-year-old entire, was picked up by Tom Malone. Trained thus far by Henk Grewe for Gestut Auenquelle, Adrian was a listed winner last year at three going 2200 metres and has won two black-type races this year,...

The BBAG has released the catalogue for its new horses-in-training sale on Aug. 20. The sale was created to attract horses with high-level form and with entries in Baden-Baden's feature meeting that runs Aug. 29 to Sept. 5. Among the top draws of the 34 catalogued are 4-year-old colt Adrian (Ger) (Reliable Man {GB}), winner of the G3 Furstenberg-Rennen over a mile and a half on July 18; 5-year-old gelding Bristano (GB) (Dansili {GB}), a mile-and-a-half Group 3 winner last year who is placed at listed level in 2021; Only...