Daryz. (JTW Equine Photos)
“We always thought that if we ever had a colt good enough for the Arc, it would be him”
By Jim and Tom Williams
The first Sunday in October in Paris.
For Racing fans, it’s the equivalent of the Super Bowl Sunday. Nothing comes close, and it’s also a showstopper.
And once again, the race lived up to its billing.
The Qatar Prix De L’Arc de Triomphe is a highlight for a good reason, with the world’s best Colts, Fillies and Mares knuckling down to provide a spectacle for the assembled crowd in the west of the French capital.
And with one of the most open looking Arcs in recent history on the books, it was worth the anticipation as 17 thoroughbreds charged around Longchamp in a bid to claim a piece of history for their own.
For one, it was quite literally written in the stars.
Daryz flew home when it mattered most to down the favourite Minnie Hauk right in the shadows of the post to cement an emotional victory and emulate his father Sea The Stars by winning the race at 3, under an ice cool ride by Mickael Barzalona, timing his challenge to the perfection he is accustomed to.
In the year his long established owner, the Aga Khan, passed away in February, and in a race the late spiritual aristocrat held so dear to his heart, the epitome of his love for the sport of Kings, emotions were running high after the son of one of the all-time great horses of Flat Racing had showed the same tenacity his father was blessed with all those years ago.
Previously the great green and red colours were carried to success 4 times in the Arc, notably with Solemnia downing the gallant Japanese challenger Orfevre in the 2012 renewal, and it was almost a repeat of the day 13 years ago with Minnie Hauk reprising the role of a vanquished runner up, so far yet so close.
Before the race all the bookmakers were running scared of a brilliant Belgian, with Christophe Soumillon effectively untouchable on the biggest day of French Racing.
Everything he rode that day was firing on all cylinders, with Diamond Necklace storming to the top of the 2026 Classics ante post betting after an emphatic win in the Marcel Boussac and Puerto Rico simply not for catching in the Jean-Luc Lagardere 35 minutes later.
And when Al Ghadeer made it a record 3rd win in the Arabian World Cup, the entrée to the main course of the Arc, everyone seemed to pile onto Soumillon’s mount, a filly who has swept all before her this season at Chester, Epsom and York respectively.
With a big white blaze adoring her, the beautiful daughter of Frankel was backed off the boards to favouritism but had to defy plum draw in stall 1.
As the field set off in the rain that has suddenly enveloped eastern Paris, the shower flanked by blue skies and spotlight by an autumnal glaze, Christophe had done his early work and got Minnie off the rail and one across, making sure he could use his mount’s speed to good use once the field turned for home.
It seemed that the crowd were on his side too, if one had not looked up the betting.
A bellow roared from the stands as the field entered the home straight and Minnie Hauk burst past leader Hotazhell, the flame licking out as his challenge stalled and he began to retreat.
It could have been mistaken for Carlos Alcaraz going Championship Point at the nearby Roland Garros, the echo reverberating around Longchamp as Minnie and her esteemed pilot went for home with 400 metres to run.
And for the majority of the straight, it looked like Minnie would be taking the Mickey out of all her rivals, striding on to go clear by 2 lengths and sending the crowd into a frenzy.
Sadly, people were Goofy to oversee the challenger flying home to broadside her chances of success, who tenaciously stuck to her quarters and would not lie down as the pair flew down the straight towards the line.
With every stride, every strained sinew, very lungful of air, Daryz edged closer.
And with 50 metres to go, nothing could split the pair. Head sup, heads down, it was a slog in the 12th round of an epic fight, with nobody yielding any quarter.
It was only the momentum of his final challenge, the gutsy stamina he was assumed to have passed down from his father and the sheer drive from his jockey that edged Daryz to go a head up at the line, right when it really mattered.
The driving rain did not douse his fire, and he pulled off an incredible victory to give the family of the late Aga Khan their eighth success in the fabled race, ice cold jockey Mickael Barzalona saluting the crowd as the field ran pst the Jardin’s De L’Arc and headed round the bend to pull up.
It was a nod to the last French horse to win the Arc, Ace Impact in 2023, as both him and Daryz were unraced as 2-year-olds, and having been given time to mature, struck their names onto the monolith of history with success in the race this great nation prides itself on.
Both had never been to the distance this race demands the athletes conquer, and just like his contemporary he had mastered the challenge in pulsating fashion.
Christophe was left to rue what could have been, and deeply ironic it was that he was beaten by the Green and Red silks, for he was once the fabled retained rider to the owner, only to be let go of his duties for an infamous elbow on Rossa Ryan at Saint-Cloud on the Arc weekend 3 years ago.
For the winner however, it seemed that he was fated to win this day.
His sire had won the race in 2009 and was siring his first Arc winner as a stallion. The dam of the winner, Daryakana, had also won on the very same weekend that year when taking the Prix Royallieu the day before.
And the great Urban Sea is a former winner of the Arc herself in 1993.
No pressure on Daryz then!
And there seemed to be no pressure on his rider either, who was overjoyed at securing a maiden Arc win aboard the three-year-old.
“I was confident in the straight”, he told the assembled press in their interview afterwards.
“I saw that Minnie had made a significant acceleration, and my horse reacted and showed tremendous fighting spirit”.
“I didn’t know exactly when we’d get on top, but I never doubted that we would”
“I could feel his strength and his reserves.”
The winner had made the journey across the pond to York in August to compete in the Juddmonte International but had been unsuited by conditions and how the race panned out, his rider detailing that it was “a very messy race”.
Nevertheless, he felt that his charge had emerged stronger from that race, detailing that he was relaxed and professional during the race at Longchamp.
A prep run in the Prix du Prince d’Orange last month, where he flew home to be just denied by Croix Du Nord, put him spot on for the race, and it duly did just the trick as he flew home again to deny the favourite with a powerful, well-timed finish.
“It is a big privilege for me to wear these famous colours, and I just try to give my best every time. We work all year to be competitive in these kinds of races, and I’m thrilled to win my first Arc for such a historic ownership.”
Winning trainer FH Graffard was taking his maiden Arc win in addition to the rider and was very reflective on how his career had led up to this point, where he is destined to become champion trainer imminently.
We’ve had big victories before, but today I realise just how special the Arc truly is!”
“The emotions are magnified – by the crowd, the atmosphere, and especially by these colours with such history!”
“When I was a boy in Burgundy, watching the races with my grandfather, I dreamed of these horses, this race!
“This sport is built on emotion, and today is the ultimate example!”
“We have always held him (Daryz, the winner) in high regard, he has that dazzling turn of foot”.
“He wasn’t mature enough to go to the (Prix Du) Jockey Club, however we said if we had a Colt good enough to win the Arc, it was him”.
“We took the long road to get here – even going to York!”
“He needed experience to win an Arc, and we preferred York to the Prix Niel with easy winners, you have to risk defeat to win later”.
“He learned a lot from that trip, the travel, the race, the atmosphere”.
“And today, it’s paid off!”
Of beaten connections, Aidan O’Brian stated his filly had run “an exceptionally good race” to finish runner-up, whilst Christophe Soumillon went further by adding “she ran a great race today”.
“She’s a big galloper and she took the front so easily”.
“When I felt Mickael coming in the last 200 (metres) I kept a little for the end and we went together, but his horse had a stronger dash, and he also loved the ground”.
Michael Tabor, one of Minnie Hauk’s owners, said to ITV Racing shortly after the race that “Seconditus is a terrible disease”.
“I’m very proud of Minnie, she’s run a blinder! I thought she’d won!”
“We’re here to fight for another day, she’s got a great future and I’m looking forward to seeing her run again.”
It would appear that a trip to the Breeders Cup may still be on the cards for Minnie Hauk, but as usual Aidan will wait for the lads at the yard to make the decision for whether she goes to Del Mar or not.
“We’ll get her home; see how she is and make a decision”.
Pierre-Yves Bureau, racing manager for Wertheimer & Frère, owners of Sosie (3rd) and Aventure (unplaced), advised that “We’re very happy with Sosie, he ran a great race. The ground might have been a bit firm for him, but he ran very well”.
“He won’t stay in training, he’ll be retired to stud, though his destination hasn’t yet been decided.
“As for Aventure, Maxime said she just had no spark today. We don’t have an explanation yet, so we’ll take our time before making any decisions.”
Marco Botti, trainer of Giavellotto, advised “The horse was in great form and had a good trip”.
“It’s a pity about the rain.
“On good ground, he probably would have finished third, but I’m very pleased with him nonetheless”.
“Hopefully the effort in this soft ground won’t take too much out of him before his next target, the Hong Kong Vase”.
“Still, to finish fourth in the Arc is a big achievement!”
Tomoyasu Sakaguchi, trainer of Byzantine Dream, the best of the Japanese runners in fifth, detailed that “the horse ran very well, he proved he has Group 1 ability and can compete at this level”.
“Back home, he’s more of a Group 2 performer. We’re delighted with his run!”
One person who was understandably emotional post-race more than most was the Aga Khan’s daughter Princess Zahra, overcome with emotion at the success of the colt, and her father’s outstanding devotion to the industry.
“As a breeder, as part of a legacy that stretches back more than a century, winning this race is the pinnacle of what one can achieve”.
“I hope my father saw it; he was always so happy when he won the Arc”.
“Now, I know that feeling too.”
The rainbow that blossomed over Longchamp would indicate the answer.
Yes. Of that, it is certain.
