The 64th running of the G1 Preis von Europa (2400m) at Cologne on Sunday (27 September) features two international star horses taking on some intriguing German talents.

Newmarket trainer William Haggas is again having a brilliant season, and he sends eight-year-old globetrotter Dubai Honour into action in pursuit of an 11th career victory, four of which have come at a G1 level. Tom Marquand has piloted the winner of more than £5 million to three of those Group 1s and is back in the saddle for the German assignment.

Dubai Honour’s last run in Germany resulted in a closing second to Goliath just over a year ago in the G1 Grosser Preis von Baden (2400m), with Goliath the other star on show and again ridden by regular jockey Christophe Soumillon.

The six-year-old gelding shot to prominence when simply running away with Ascot’s 2024 G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2392m), where he left subsequent G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (2400m) heroine Bluestocking trailing in his wake.

Not always the most predictable, Francis-Henri Graffard-trained Goliath gained a ninth career victory in May’s G2 Grand Prix de Chantilly (2400m). He suffers from stringhalt, a neuromuscular movement disorder, so he is an intriguing sight in the paddock, but it does not prevent him from running very fast when on song. Bred in Germany, he will run in the colours of Baron Philip von Ullmann on Sunday even though his majority owner is American.

Both Dubai Honour and Goliath have competed on all sorts of surface conditions during their illustrious careers, but there is a suspicion that the former may prefer an easier surface than is on offer on Sunday, with Goliath likely to cope with the conditions better.

Trainers Henk Grewe and Andreas Suborics surely have the best chances of keeping the prize at home. Grewe, who has won it twice before, runs Straight, a fascinating contender.

A well-bred six-year-old and still an entire, he has been plagued by allergies and hasn’t been seen this season, but it was in this race in 2024 that he came to within a neck of a shock victory against prolific Rebel’s Romance.

Grewe said of Straight: “He comes off an absence but has run his best races in those circumstances. His work has been okay and he is an extraordinary horse who we would love to see getting placed.”

Austrian-born Suborics has seen his top-class riding career transform into an equally glittering training career, and he sends Seguro and Noble Lips, who has been supplemented.

Suborics said: “Seguro has had a perfect preparation and the break (since the end of July) has been intentional. The move up to 2400m is the big question mark but everything else, including the ground, is perfect.”

Regarding Noble Lips, he said: “We thought it was the right thing to supplement her. The filly has done nothing wrong and, in a field where every runner comes with its own little question marks, we are very hopeful of running into a place or even better.”

The G1 Preis von Europa (2400m) is carded as S3-1 and will be run at 10.07pm (Hong Kong time) on Sunday, 27 September.

Photo：Bradley Photo