No catching Scott’s Bay City Roller in Germany G1

MUNICH Bay City Roller has claimed the final race in the Champions League of thoroughbreds in Germany, the €155,000 (S$233,000) Group 1 Grosser Preis von Bayern (2,400m) at the Riem racecourse on Nov 8, handing British trainer George Scott his second top-level success in Europe.

Based in Newmarket, the young English handler achieved his first Group 1 victory with promising four-year-old Caballo De Mar in the Prix du Cadran (4,000m) over the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe weekend in France on Oct 4.

But he had gone frustratingly close to further European success with Bay City Roller throughout the season.

The son of New Bay had been campaigned extensively in Europe, but was beaten into second in the Group 2 Prix Eugene Adam (2,000m) at Saint-Cloud on June 29, the Group 2 Prix Niel (2,400m) at ParisLongchamp on Sept 7 and the Group 2 Prix Dollar (1,950m) on Oct 4.

The 2024 Group 2 Champagne Stakes (1,400m) winner was at his first Group 1 test in the Grand Prix of Bavaria – as it is known in English – after his last-start fourth in the Group 2 Prix du Conseil de Paris (2,200m) at ParisLongchamp on Oct 19.

Breaking from the inside gate, Bay City Roller (Adrie de Vries) immediately took up the running, leading Ami De Vega (Oliver Wilson), Convergent (William Buick) and 2023 Preis von Bayern victor Junko (Maxime Guyon).

Turning for home, de Vries had Bay City Roller ($47) keep up with the strong gallop, and he responded well, lengthening clear of Tiffany (Luke Morris) to come home by an impressive seven lengths.

German runner Rashford (Jack Mitchell) finished another four lengths behind Tiffany in third.

The English favourite Convergent ran a disappointing race. The runner-up in the 2025 Group 1 German Derby (2,400m) finished only seventh, second to last behind the French visitor Junko.

Bay City Roller’s maiden Group 1 victory marked the first British-trained winner of the race since Group 1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (2,400m) winner Alpinista in 2021.

Scott has won the Group 3 German St Leger (2,800m) with Caballo De Mar at Dortmund on Sept 21 and with Prydwen in 2024, and now adds another major victory in Munich.

“I’m on cloud nine and to win two Group 1s in one year is beyond my wildest dreams. I’m very lucky with the team I have around me,” said Scott to the PA news agency.

“We’ve always thought a huge amount of Bay City Roller, but things just haven’t gone his way and he’s just been either caught out of his ground or the ground hasn’t been soft enough, and he really deserved that.

“He got a superb ride off Adrie, and it was just lovely to see him finish his season like that.

“It’s a big team effort to keep a horse on the go like he has been, and the guys at home have done a great job at reporting back he was in rude health which gave me the confidence to take one more chance with him and run him one more time.

“(Bahrain owner) Shaikh Nasser (of Victorious Forever Stable) just said ‘go for it’ when I suggested it, and that’s typical of his sporting mentality, and I’m just so pleased for all involved.

“He’ll be campaigned at Group 1 level all through next year, but more than anything, we’ll be looking for circumstances which will suit him, some cut in the ground and he’s clearly a horse who enjoys bowling along on the front.

“He’s only going to improve physically, and he’s a very exciting, well-bred colt, and they are very hard to find.”

Said Victorious Forever Stable’s racing manager Billy Jackson-Stops: “Scott did a great job. Now Bay City Roller is going into the winter break. We are planning a larger Group 1 campaign with him next year.”

Scott regularly engages de Vries for rides, whom he considers a world-class jockey. The Dutchman was also aboard Caballo De Mar at his German St Leger’s win.

This season, de Vries rode in Germany from May to October, but with outstanding success. More than one in five rides resulted in a win, and many of them were major victories, the biggest of which came with the three-year-old colt in Grosser Preis von Bayern.

De Vries was already on his way back to his winter quarters in the United Arab Emirates, but he made an exception for Bay City Roller.

“The trainer had a lot of faith in the horse. That’s why I postponed my trip to Dubai,” said de Vries to Deutscher Galopp.

De Vries has also won the 2024 Group 1 Grosser Dallmayr-Preis (2,000m) in Munich atop Calif for the Victorious Forever Stable.

“The racing colors mean a lot to me,” said de Vries. “I believe it was my 10th Group 1 win for Sheikh Nasser – on both English and Arabian thoroughbreds.”
RACING AND SPORTS