THOUGH all the subsequent races were abandoned, thanks to the deluge of rain, the Group 1 Preis der Diana-German Oaks was run, and the result was a major triumph for the Lanwades-based Sea The Moon (Sea The Stars).

Himself a hugely impressive classic winner when he ran away with the Group 1 Deutsches (German) Derby, Sea The Moon was responsible on this occasion for the first three fillies home, Muskova, Kassada and Sea The Lady. The latter pair are both out of mares by Soldier Hollow (In The Wings).

Bred by Antje and Lars-Wilhelm Baumgarten, Muskova was sold as a yearling at the BBAG September Yearling Sale for €80,000, and on September 1st her half-sister by Reliable Man (Dalakhani) will be offered for sale from Gestüt Ohlerweiherhof. The progressive Muskova is now winner of four of her six starts, being placed on the other occasions, and she also won the Listed Henkel-Stutenpreis and the Group 3 Hamburger Stuten Meile.

This latest win took Muskova’s winnings to more than €350,000, and she is the third winner from three runners out of the unraced Morning Mist (Peintre Celebre). Hopefully her breeders will have better luck this year with the Reliable Man yearling, as last year they retained the now two-year-old Master Of Light (Adlerflug) when bidding reached €130,000 for the colt.

Classic success is nothing new for this female line, as Morning Mist is a half-sister to Brametot (Rajsaman). Six years ago he was a dual classic winner, successful in both the Group 1 Poule d’Essai des Poulains-French 2000 Guineas and the Group 1 Prix du Jockey Club-French Derby.

Gets better

The family gets better as you go back, and Brametot’s winning dam, Morning Light (Law Society), was a half-sister to the hugely influential three-time Group 1 winner Monsun (Konigsstuhl). He was the best of six winners from Mosella (Surumu), and she was a stakes winner in what was then known as West Germany, back in the late eighties.

Also descending from Mosella, through her winning daughter Morning Queen (Konigsstuhl), are the likes of Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf winner Aunt Pearl (Lope De Vega), Group 1 Prix du Cadran heroine Molly Malone (Lomitas), pattern winner and Group 1 runner-up Wekeela (Hurricane Run), and Group 2 winner and Group 1-placed, Morgan Le Faye (Shamardal).

Muskova’s classic victory is the second this year for her sire Sea The Moon, as his son Fantastic Moon followed in the footsteps of his sire, and he too captured the Group 1 Deutsches (German) Derby. Muskova and Fantastic Moon join Caulfield Cup winner Durston and Royal Ascot’s Coronation Stakes winner Alpine Star as Group 1 winners by Sea The Moon, and the last two are members of the stallion’s first couple of crops.

Reputation

Sea The Moon’s reputation as a sire grows year on year, and 2023 is possibly his best to date. He already has five group winners to his credit this year, Muskova being one of 29 stakes winners he has sired in his first five crops, and 15 of these have been successful in pattern races. The stallion’s owners have always priced him well, and few stallions can claim to have never faced a decrease in their fee after nine seasons at stud. That is certain to continue in 2024.

Toughness and soundness are admirable traits of the progeny of Sea The Moon, and, even at this early stage of his career, his limited number of runners under National Hunt rules have also yielded a Grade 1 winner, and many others who have shown their class. Commercially, it is the performances of his flat runners that counts, and his tally of stakes horses on the level has passed the 50 mark in 2023.