'This is the pinnacle' - Daryz camp in dreamland after thrilling Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe success over Minnie Hauk

It might not quite have matched the drama of Solemia scuttling the hopes of a nation when she mugged Orfevre on the line in 2012 but Daryz certainly evoked memories of that unforgettable spectacle with a lung-bursting surge to thwart Minnie Hauk by a head and secure a poignant Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe victory under Mickael Barzalona. 

In the year the Aga Khan died at the age of 88 in February, the sight of his colours being carried to success in the €5 million race with which he had such a storied association provided a suitably sentimental theme. Four times the fabled green and red silks had been carried to Arc glory on his watch, and this was a record eighth time the family has triumphed in Longchamp's famous race. 

The Aga Khan's daughter Princess Zahra, who carries the flame with such eloquent poise, was overcome with emotion at the magnitude of it all. 

"As a breeder, and as part of a legacy that stretches back more than a century, winning this race is the pinnacle of what one can achieve," she beamed. "I hope my father saw it. He was always so happy when he won the Arc. Now, I know that feeling too.”

For Francis Graffard it was the moment that confirmed his status as a trainer of genuine clout. He is the principal handler for the Aga Khan Studs these days for good reason. 

In Daryz, Graffard had a three-year-old, much like Ace Impact two years ago, who had never even raced at two and was stepping up to a mile and a half for the first time. No one knew how good he might be and, when it came down to it, it was stamina that won the day.

Minnie Hauk had been the only one the market seemed to want beforehand and she was eventually sent off the 5-2 favourite. Everything jockey Christophe Soumillon had touched up to that point on the day had turned to gold, his three rides returning two Group 1 wins and the Arabian World Cup. 

More on the Arc:

• How Daryz went from unraced in March to a Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe champion 
• 'She ran a great race' - Breeders' Cup still an option for Minnie Hauk after going so close in Arc 
• Low draws to the fore: how the 2025 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe was won 
• 2025 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe full result: where your horse finished at Longchamp including each-way places 

He will have gone out full of belief in Minnie Hauk and he certainly rode Aidan O'Brien's filly with conviction from the inside stall, eventually switching her out from behind long-time leaders Hotazhell and Croix Du Nord at the top of the straight. Soumillon took his destiny into his own hands and sent her on two furlongs out.

For the next couple of hundred metres his confidence looked as though it would reap the ultimate reward, but the fates can be indiscriminate in a sodden Longchamp straight. Barzalona moved with him a couple of lengths behind on his outer and had a target to aim at. 

The two of them went at it in a pulsating duel for 100 metres and it was only in the dying strides that Daryz inched ahead. Three years after losing the Aga Khan job in the furore over the elbow that knocked Rossa Ryan off his horse at Saint-Cloud, Soumillon was foiled by the old firm here in excruciating fashion.

Daryz (near): stayed on best to beat Minnie HaukCredit: Getty Images

A shower of rain fell just as the field left the stalls and a rainbow landed right on the finish line where Daryz fetched the pot of gold for Barzalona, who was also winning his first Arc.

"I was quite confident in the final straight," said the elated rider. "I saw that Minnie Hauk had made quite a significant acceleration and [Daryz] immediately reacted behind her in her slipstream and he showed tremendous fighting spirit."

Daryz is the first son of the mighty Sea The Stars, who sealed his own glorious legacy in the Arc 16 years earlier, to win the race and his dam Daryakana also landed the Royallieu on that epic weekend in 2009. 

Francis Graffard and Mickael Barzalona with their Arc trophiesCredit: ANNA KURTH/AFP via Getty Images

He worked his way through the ranks in the spring and early summer and was unbeaten in four when he landed in York for the Juddmonte International, but he raced keenly in that unsatisfactory affair.

He was then narrowly foiled by Croix Du Nord back at Longchamp last month, but Graffard had him primed for the ultimate occasion. "York was messy but he came back much stronger mentally and physically," Barzalona said of the International blowout.

Soumillon was phlegmatic in his summation of the way the race unfolded, and he wasn't rushing to blame the soft ground for Minnie Hauk's defeat. 

"She is a big galloper and she took the front so easily," he said. "When she came on the bit I thought, 'Now it's time to go', and we are going to win easy, but I was squeezing her to keep going. 

"If you take [Daryz] out, she would be one of the most impressive fillies to win the Arc, but that is racing. Sometimes you just have to accept you get beaten by another one. Unfortunately it is in this race, but what can you do?"

Daryz (farside) edges past Minnie Hauk to win the ArcCredit: Edward Whitaker (racingpost.com/photos)

Sosie emerged from the rear to better last year's fourth in third, over five lengths behind, and Giavellotto, who got in quite a stew during the preliminaries, ran his heart out in fourth, with Byzantine Dream faring best of the Japanese contingent in fifth. The big disappointment was last year's runner-up Aventure, who found nothing off the bridle before finishing 11th.  

Graffard will be crowned champion trainer in France for the first time this year. He is in the vanguard of the next generation of marquee French handlers so a breakthrough Arc was pivotal for his profile, although what the next step for Daryz will be is unknown.

"In the past this was just a dream, and now it’s happening to me. It is very special," he said. "That was a great horserace to watch. Everything went according to plan and then his spirit at the end, it was just fantastic to watch.

"We always thought that if we ever had a colt good enough for the Arc, it would be him.

"To get here, we took the long road, even crossing the Channel, but he needed experience. You have to risk defeat in order to win later. Even though York didn’t go his way, he learned a lot from that trip – from the race, the travel, the atmosphere. And today it all paid off.”

That it did. Quite spectacularly.

Top tipping!

The 12-1 Arc winner Daryz was tipped by our Spotlight expert Steve Boow in his racecard analysis of the race, and by Cracking The Puzzle’s Harry Wilson.

Racing Post+ subscribers can gain access to Spotlight advice for EVERY race in Britain and Ireland by signing up to our Insights tier for just £14.95 a month, a package which also includes unlimited access to our cards, full race replays, statistics and race analysis.

Keep your eye on the Racing Post website and app for Harry Wilson’s weekly tips covering Premier meetings and the big ITV races.

Read more . . .

2025 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe full result: where your horse finished at Longchamp including each-way places 

How Daryz went from unraced in March to a Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe champion  

'She ran a great race' - Breeders' Cup still an option for Minnie Hauk after going so close in Arc  

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