There were a multitude of G1 races across all four corners of the globe last week – but it was left to Europe’s richest race, the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, to produce the most obvious effect on Thoroughbred Racehorse Commentary’s exclusive Global Rankings.
After a fierce duel, Daryz got the better of the favourite Minnie Hauk – thereby ensuring a gigantic leap on the rankings to #14 (from #432, +563pt).
In one sense, a hard-fought head victory neatly illustrated a changing of the guard in France as the son of Sea The Stars – who won the Arc himself in his glorious 2009 campaign – was the 11th G1 winner of the season for his trainer Francis-Henri Graffard (stays at #7, -7pt), who is now certain of landing his first domestic trainers’ title.
On the other hand, the more things change the more they stay the same. Or, given this was ParisLongchamp, plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.
Daryz was an eighth Arc winner for the family of the late Aga Khan (stays at #4, +69pt, on owners’ list), who died aged 88 in February to leave his daughter Princess Zahra fronting the operation. The Aga’s personal green-and-red silks have now been carried to success four times in the storied €5m contest.
“The prince left us at the beginning of the year, and we didn’t know how this season would unfold,” said racing manager Nemone Routh. “He’s clearly watching over us, because we’ve won everything we could have dreamed of. We’ve never experienced a season like this!
“To win with this colt – whose two parents both won Group 1s on Arc weekend – is extraordinary. He was born to run this race. The fact that he has won it in this way is incredibly emotional.”
Unraced at two, Daryz had generally looked a progressive three-year-old. However, his tumble down the rankings before the Arc is easily explained as he was a dismal last of six behind Ombudsman in the Juddmonte International before being beaten by Croix Du Nord (14th on Sunday) in his Arc prep race.
Making his debut over a mile and a half in the Arc under Mickael Barzalona (stays at #10, +38pt), Daryz held too many guns for three-time G1 winner Minnie Hauk (stays at #15, +53pt) as the pair drew an impressive 5½ lengths clear of third-placed Josie.
“We always thought that if we ever had a colt good enough for the Arc, it would be him,” said Graffard. “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.”
At the time of writing, no decision has yet been announced concerning Daryz’s future,
Also on Sunday’s card, leading sprint mare Asfoora (#78 from #131, +91pt) made a slice of history under Oisin Murphy (#13 from #14, +11pt) when she became the first-ever Australian-trained winner in France in the Prix de l’Abbaye.
In a race notorious for shock results, the Henry Dwyer-trained seven-year-old justified favouritism, scoring by a decisive half-length over longshot Jawwal. The winner, a five-furlong specialist, is set to stay in Europe for a similar campaign in 2026.
After G1 wins at a mile in France and Ireland, the estimable Fallen Angel (#13 from #21, +91pt) completed a G1 hat-trick in three different countries with a comfortable success in the Sun Chariot Stakes at Newmarket on Saturday [Oct 4].
Her connections – trainer Karl Burke (#25 from #29, +49pt) and jockey Clifford Lee (#56 from #62, +18pt) among them – continue on the upswing. Wathnan Racing (#7 from #8, +108pt) also move up another spot; their silks were also carried to victory in the Canadian International at Woodbine via Silawi.
Plans are afoot for Fallen Angel to go to the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes on British Champions Day at Ascot, where she will face her male counterparts for the first time in a while.
Moving to Australia, Sir Delius (#27 from #87, +186pt) – known just as ‘Delius’ in his former life in Europe for Jean-Claude Rouget – is new market leader for the Melbourne Cup after thwarting Via Sistina’s attempt to complete back-to-back successes in the G1 Turnbull Stakes at Flemington. Winning trainers Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott (#19 from #22, +26pt) sneak into the top 20.
Although this was a second consecutive defeat for Via Sistina (stays at #5, -23pt), the ten-time G1 heroine is no back number as she flashed home for third from an unpromising position early in the straight.
Other notable movers in Australia include Autumn Glow (#25 from #80, +159pt), odds-on winner of the G1 Epsom at Randwick, and Everest entry War Machine (#63 from #230, +209pt).
With the Breeders’ Cup hoving into view, Ted Noffey (#81 from #277, +212pt) ensured he will go off favorite for the Juvenile by extending his unbeaten record to three in the G1 Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland.
He has now won back-to-back G1s, advertising the not inconsiderable virtues of his sire Into Mischief (#1 from #2, +70pt on dirt sires), for whom this was a notable weekend as he moves to the top of the of the dirt sires’ list, overcoming Curlin.
Into Mischief, who also sired promoted Alcibiades winner Tommy Jo (#117 from #330, +164pt), moves up to second on the overall sires’ list behind Frankel, while owner-breeders Spendthrift Farm (#8 from #12, +139pt) enter the owners’ top ten.
With the Breeders’ Cup in mind, Japanese dirt star Forever Young (re-enters at #8) – third in last year’s Kentucky Derby and BC Classic – enjoyed the perfect prep race in a local G2 event at Funabashi.
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• Unlike traditional methods of racehorse rankings, TRC Global Rankings are a measure of an individual’s level of achievement over a rolling three-year period, providing a principled hierarchy of the leading horses, jockeys, trainers, owners and sires using statistical learning techniques. Racehorse rankings can be compared to similar exercises in other sports, like the golf’s world rankings or the ATP rankings in tennis.
They are formulated from the last three years of races we consider Group or Graded class all over the world and update automatically each week according to the quality of a horse’s performances and their recency, taking into account how races work out.