Gallop race - Outsider Palladium wins 155th German Gallop Derby
The outsider Palladium won the 155th German Galopp-Derby with a prize money of 650,000 Euro. In the race, the three-year-old stallion, ridden by jockey Thore Hammer-Hansen (24), defeated Borna with Andrasch Starke in the saddle and Augustus with Michal Abik by a head length in Hamburg-Horn after 2400 meters. "I have been waiting for this moment my whole life," said jockey Hammer-Hansen with tears in his eyes. "I am overwhelmed and infinitely proud." In one of the most thrilling finishes in Derby history, Palladium led with a neck advantage over Borna, while Augustus was only a head behind. The favorite Narrativo finished 14th out of 18 starters.
Second Derby win for the trainer
Palladium belongs to the ownership group Liberty Racing, which last year produced the Derby winner Fantastic Moon. The stallion from the stud farm Fährhof brought trainer Henk Grewe from Cologne his second Derby win in 2021, after Sisfahan.
Palladium cost 80,000 Euro as a yearling and earned 390,000 Euro for his ownership group. This includes more than 20 shareholders, among them organizer Lars-Wilhelm Baumgarten and Michael Vesper, president of the German Galop and formerly the deputy minister-president in North Rhine-Westphalia.
After securing their second Derby victory in Germany, trainer Henk Grewe and Liberty Racing's stallion Palladium celebrated by galloping through the streets of Hamburg. With the triumphant victory in the 155th German Galopp-Derby, Palladium demonstrated his potential as a top-tier racing horse, following in the footsteps of their previous Derby champion, Fantastic Moon. Despite the hectic celebration, jockey Thore Hammer-Hansen couldn't help but think about the day he first purchased a horse from Germany's famous Fährhof stud farm for as little as 80,000 Euro.
