Pastorius gains first top-flight winner as daughter Dalika battles for Beverly D

Pastorius became a top level-winning sire at Churchill Downs on Saturday when his daughter Dalika showed determination and no little talent to secure the Beverly D Stakes by half a length from Princess Grace.

It was a fine performance by the hard-knocking six-year-old, who led and then rallied when it looked like the game was up.

She is trained in the United States by Albert M Stall jnr and was ridden here by Brian Hernandez jnr.

Dalika was already one of her sire's top performers on the Flat, having won a Grade 3 at Delaware Park last summer but had previously cut little ice in top-grade company in three previous cracks.

Bred by Gestut Ammerland out of Arc winner Hurricane Run's Drawn To Run, Dalika was raced by her breeders in Europe initially but has been in the US for more than three years now.

Pastorius, by Soldier Hollow out of Monsun's daughter Princess Li and bred by a partnership including Franz Prinz von Auersperg, was a brilliant performer on the track across three seasons.

Trained by Mario Hofer, he was a Group-winning two-year-old who took the German Derby and Grosser Dallmayr-Preis - Bayerisches Zuchtrennen at three, before adding a third Group 1 victory in the Prix Ganay at four.

Initially retired to Gestut Fahrhof, the now-13-year-old has been at Haras de la Hetraie in Cerisy-la-Forêt, France, since the 2018 season and serves as a dual-purpose stallion.

He stood this year for €5,800 and as well as Dalika has had three other Group 3 winners on the Flat, in Riocorvo (Grand Prix de Vichy), Parol (Grosser Preis der Wirtschaft) and Master Bloom (Arqana Scandinavian Open Championship).

Over jumps, Campinas was a Listed winner for him at Compiegne in the Prix Roger Saint Chase.

Of Saturday's triumph for Dalika, Stall said: "This was the perfect confluence of events for us to win a Grade 1."

The Beverly D had previously been run at Arlington Park, along with the Arlington Million (won by Godolphin homebred Santin on Saturday), but was moved to Churchill Downs this year after Arlington's owner, Churchill Downs Inc., opted not to open the racetrack in 2022 and reached an agreement to sell the Arlington property to the Chicago Bears.

Dalika was acquired by owner Paul Varga of Bal Mar Equine in a private purchase from Ammerland late in her two-year-old year.

He said: "We brought her back as a six-year-old this year to try to get her Grade 1-placed. We probably didn't dream we'd win a Grade 1.

"Today kind of set up for her — a shorter field, the rail was out, she's a speedy horse, and as you can see, she fights. She came back and won that. It was really a crowning accomplishment in the career she's had."

Dalika is the lone stakes winner among five winners from seven foals produced by Drawn To Run. Her unraced foals are a two-year-old filly by Iquitos named Drawn To Dream and a yearling colt by Waldgeist.

Varga said 2022 would be Dalika's final year of racing before she joins his broodmare band next year.

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