Sea La Rosa takes Group 1 honours for Haggas on a day Soumillon kept a cool head

Saturday: Longchamp

Amazing things happen when Christopher Tsui comes to Longchamp. We saw that again on Saturday, when we may also have seen the last of an Australian racing superstar.

For the connections of Verry Elleegant, it has been a disappointing week that got no better when the 11-time Group 1 winner and reigning Melbourne Cup champion managed to beat only three of her nine rivals in a Qatar Prix de Royallieu won for the Tsui family by the Tom Marquand-ridden Sea La Rosa.

In following up a brace of Group 2 wins with a first triumph at the highest level, the British raider maintained her family's great Longchamp tradition. Her sire Sea The Stars won the 2009 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, his mother Urban Sea landed the 1993 Arc and Sea Of Class, another Tsui-owned daughter of Sea The Stars, was an unlucky Arc second to Enable four years ago.

William Haggas was frustrated on that occasion but victorious this time, much to the delight of the winning owner.

"It is always great to come back to Longchamp on Arc weekend," said Tsui. "This meeting has always been good to us and it's always very emotional. I can tell you my heart was racing!"

Verry Elleegant and Mark Zahra break from the stalls in the Prix de RoyallieuCredit: Edward Whitaker

There was much less to cheer for those associated with Verry Elleegant. Earlier in the week they had been annoyed she was not able to get a place in the Arc, but even in this lesser company the seven-year-old was unable to land a blow under her 2020 Caulfield Cup-winning rider Mark Zahra.

"The circumstances today made it hard to get a good guide about her," said Zahra. "They didn't go a strong gallop, so by the time I got out and found clear running room, they were off and gone. I think they are looking at Ascot and I think she is worth another chance. How much longer she has left, I don't know."

When asked if Verry Elleegant would go on to the Qipco British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes or head home in retirement, trainer Francis Graffard was non-committal.

"Everything we didn't want happened," said Graffard. "She was in traffic, stuck on the rail, and poor Mark couldn't do anything. Everything went against us."

Soumillon gets it right on Erevann

All eyes were on Christophe Soumillon at Longchamp but he had to wait until his final ride of the afternoon to get on the scoresheet – and when he did it was on a particularly smart horse.

Erevann had finished third in the Prix Jacques le Marois on his previous outing and suggested a return to Group 1 company would be entirely merited when proving too classy for Group 2 opposition in the Prix Daniel Wildenstein.

Erevann and Christophe Soumillon win the Prix Daniel Wildenstein at Longchamp on SaturdayCredit: Edward Whitaker

Giving his reaction to the success, trainer Jean-Claude Rouget nominated the Queen Anne Stakes as a long-range target but also appeared to make a subtle reference to Soumillon's elbowing of Rossa Ryan at Saint-Cloud on Friday.

Rouget said: "Christophe took the right decision in going up the rail because the 'other Christophe' – the one with the hot head – would have gone round the outside. This will be a proper horse next year. That will be it for the year."

Anmaat and Jim Crowley (striped hat) dig deep to hold off Junko in the Prix DollarCredit: Edward Whitaker

British stables won three of the card's five Group prizes, with former Shadwell team member Al Qareem taking the Prix Chaudenay under Ryan Moore for Karl Burke and rising Shadwell star Anmaat digging deep to land the Prix Dollar, thus continuing the excellent season of trainer Owen Burrows.

"That was a tough win," said jockey Jim Crowley. "He was headed but he fought back. He has improved massively and I think he can keep progressing."

Results and analysis

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The Front Runner is our latest email newsletter available exclusively to Members' Club Ultimate subscribers. Chris Cook, a four-time Racing Reporter of the Year award winner, provides his take on the day's biggest stories and tips for the upcoming racing every morning from Monday to Friday