Newsletter

Torquator Tasso again “Galloper of the Year”

Torquator Tasso, the horse with the distinctive blaze, grazes between black cows at the Auenquelle stud farm in Rödinghausen, North Rhine-Westphalia. A new career has begun for the six-year-old thoroughbred. Last autumn he went from the racing stable to the stud in order to pass on his genes in the future.

“He moves well in his new profession, he does his job well,” says Karl-Dieter Ellerbracke, co-owner of Auenquelle. He covers more than 100 mares from England, France, Ireland and Germany in his first season, the first foals are expected at the beginning of next year. The stud fee is 20,000 euros per jump. “For me, Torquator Tasso is the epitome of German thoroughbred breeding: He was never injured, has the toughness, stamina and a lot of speed,” says Ellerbracke. “That’s why he should definitely stay in Germany.”

It is an important signal for the small domestic thoroughbred breed to keep such an exceptional horse in the country. The winner of the 100th Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, probably the most important horse race in the world, would not have lacked international marketing opportunities in 2021. Torquator Tasso has now been voted “Galopper of the Year” for the third time in a row. He received almost 52 percent of the votes, second place went to Derby winner Sammarco with 30 percent, and Tasso’s half-brother, Tünnes, came third with 18 percent.

Costs: 24,000 euros – prize money: 4.22 million euros

In the history of the oldest public poll in German sport, which has existed since 1957, only the gallop legends Orofino and Acatenango have managed to do so. Last year, the really big win was missing, but Torquator Tasso underlined this with third place in Paris and second place in the so-called “summer arc”, the King George VI. & Queen Elizabeth II. Stakes at Ascot, England, again his world class. Added to this was success in the Grand Hansa Prize and second place in the Grand Prix of Baden, which increased his winnings to unprecedented heights for Germany. With more than 4.22 million euros in prize money, he is the most profitable galloper of all time, while Torquator Tasso only cost 24,000 euros as a yearling at the auction in Baden-Baden.

Breeder was the Dutchman Paul Vandenberg, who paired his mare Tijuana with the former Schlenderhan Derby winner Adlerflug. In 16 races, Torquator Tasso was successful six times and placed seven times. In his ten starts at the highest level – at Group I level – he has never been worse than third. “He gave us unforgettable moments in Paris and Ascot,” says Marcel Weiß, who trained “Tassolino”, as he was affectionately known at the stables in Mülheim an der Ruhr. “His election proves the large fan base he has in Germany.”

A former fan was also jockey Rene Piechulek, who mostly rode Torquator Tasso. He won four times with it and steered it to victory in Paris. “I told the trainer after his debut that he had a lot of potential and that I would like to continue riding him.” Piechulek will remain primarily employed with Steinberg in Munich this year, but he is also the successor to Bauyrzhan Murzabayev at the stables of champion trainer Peter Schiergen in Cologne. Sammarco, with whom Piechulek won the Grand Dallmayr Prize (Group I) in Munich last year, and Tünnes are being prepared there.

Born in Kazakhstan, Murzabayev, who came to Germany from the Czech Republic, is taking the next step in his career. After becoming German champion jockey four times in a row, he is now moving to André Fabre’s stable in Chantilly. The 77-year-old Frenchman is considered one of the greats in his field and has trained an arc winner eight times alone, most recently triumphing in 2019 with the German-owned Waldgeist.

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Trending