Sunday 6th September, 2026 Daryz warms up for Arc with dominant display in Prix Foy

By Press Association Sport Reporters

Daryz looks perfectly placed to defend his Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe crown in four weeks’ time judged on his dominant display in the Prix Foy.

Francis-Henri Graffard’s charge made the perfect start to his four-year-old campaign by winning two more Group Ones at his beloved ParisLongchamp, with a comeback victory in the Prix Ganay followed by a runaway triumph in the Prix Aga Khan IV.

He could only finish third when sent across the Channel for the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot in June, but with connections feeling they had viable excuses for that below-par run, the son of Sea The Stars was expected to regain winning ways back on home turf.

On paper his task was not entirely straightforward, with George Scott’s 10-length Coronation Cup winner and fellow Arc aspirant Bay City Roller among his three rivals, and as expected the latter was sent straight to the front by Oisin Murphy in an attempt to draw the sting out of Daryz’s exceptional finishing kick.

But Mickael Barzalona always looked ultra-confident in the saddle aboard the red-hot favourite, who cruised alongside Bay City Roller a furlong out and only had to be pushed out hands and heels to win by a length and three-quarters.

“I couldn’t be happier with the trial he had today. We got a good lead and luckily Oisin made the pace a little bit harder at the top of the hill, so the horse was really travelling nicely,” Graffard told Sky Sports Racing.

“For me as a trainer it was the best preparation I could have for the horse. He will come on a lot for that, I left plenty in him, so he should be spot-on for four weeks’ time.”

Scott too was delighted with the performance of the runner-up and is hoping for rain in Paris ahead of a rematch with Daryz in Europe’s premier middle-distance contest on October 4.

He said: “Oisin was very happy with him and we’ll be hoping for a different set of circumstances in a month’s time.

“We know that this horse has a high level of form on ground like this, but when it rains he’s a different animal.

“He came here and travelled well, went through the race very well and got beaten by a better horse on the day. In four weeks’ time that might be the case (again), but it might not, so we’ll see.

“I think he’s the best version of himself now. The winner might be as well, but in four weeks’ time it’s going to be completely different.

“He’s going to be an underdog coming back, of course he is – Daryz is a champion and he is unbelievable around here. It was all perfect for him today and set up great, but I was very happy with our horse, Oisin was most happy, so we’re looking forward to it.”

Sunday 6th September, 2026 Raaheeb set for return in Winter Hill Stakes after summer break

By Ashley Iveson, Press Association

One-time Classic hope Raaheeb makes his return from a summer break in the Weatherbys Global Stallions App Winter Hill Stakes.

A full-brother to a couple of multiple Group One winners in Baaeed and Hukum, the son of Sea The Stars looked a potential Derby contender after making an impressive start to his three-year-old season at Sandown in the spring, but a tilt at the premier Classic at Epsom was ultimately deemed too much too soon.

He instead travelled to the Curagh for the Irish Derby where he was not disgraced in finishing fourth on what was only his third career start, after which connections opted to give the immature youngster more time to strengthen and develop further.

The Owen Burrows-trained Raaheeb steps back in distance and class for Monday’s Group Three feature, where he is set to face six rivals.

Angus Gold, racing manager for owner-breeders Shadwell, said: “As long as it’s decent ground and it’s not too quick, the plan is very much to run.

“Rossa (Ryan) very much felt the ground was fast enough in Ireland for him and we’ve minded up until now, so obviously we don’t want to go and undo that with the autumn ahead of us.

“Physically when you look at him, he was just a shell of a horse earlier in the year. The worst thing we could have done was to bottom him at that stage, so Owen has been very patient, as have the owners.

“He’s had plenty of time and whatever he does this year is a bonus – he’s very much all about next year this fellow. We just want to mind him and see how we get on.”

Raaheeb’s opponents include a pair of Godolphin-owned runners in Charlie Appleby’s Maho Bay and John and Thady Gosden’s Morris Dancer, while Ralph Beckett saddles recent Salisbury Listed scorer On Message.

The Gosdens also run outsider Harmonics, with Jack Channon’s Crest Of Fire and Venetian Prince from Andrew Balding’s yard completing the line-up.

Sunday 6th September, 2026 Saddadd enjoys Group One breakthrough in Grosser Preis von Baden

By Chris Phillips, Press Association

Roger Varian is in no rush to decide on the next plan of attack with Saddadd after he struck top level gold for the first time in the 156th Grosser Preis von Baden.

Victory in the Group Three Gordon Richards Stakes at Sandown in April earned the four-year-old his first couple of shots at Group Company, and he was not disgraced in finishing third behind Almaqam in the Tattersalls Gold Cup and then an eight-length fourth to Constitution River in the Coral-Eclipse.

He had a bit less on his plate at Baden-Baden, with fellow British raider Giavellotto seemingly his biggest threat, and after hitting the front early in the straight under Billy Loughnane the latter’s effort petered out disappointingly.

Parachutiste briefly took over the lead, but Jack Mitchell and Saddadd soon arrived on his outside and they were always doing just enough to win the battle by half a length, with Giavellotto passing the post in fourth.

Of the winner, Varian told the Press Association: “He’s got a great attitude, he’s a real fighter and he’s run some great races this year. It was a very strong Tattersalls Gold Cup that he was third in back in May and we’ve minded him through the summer and waited for this race, so I’m really delighted.

“There’s never one plan when you go through a race. Having been so slow into stride in the Eclipse, we were keen just to get him out and get him travelling and as things began unfolding, Jack couldn’t have been any further forward than falling in behind Giavellotto, so as it happened it worked out well.

“He’s very talented and I’m delighted for Sheikh Ahmed (Al Maktoum, owner), who has been a great supporter of the stable over the years, and the team at home and Jack of course, who has been very much part of our team of jockeys over the last 12 years and for him to ride his first Group One for us is a nice part of the story as well.”

Saddadd has options ranging from the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, the Champion Stakes and the Breeders’ Cup over the coming months, but Varian is keen to let the dust settle before deciding on a firm target.

He added: “We’ll get him home and make sure that he’s OK and I’ll have a chat with the owner Sheikh Ahmed and we’ll make a plan. It doesn’t need to be decided today, we’ll enjoy today and we’re really delighted with the result.”

Mitchell added on Wettstar: “It’s nice to finish in the first position. It’s a great job by all of the team at Roger’s. I’m speechless, I can’t believe we’ve done it.

“I was drawn wide and I could have gone a bit more forward, but the pace was OK. So I just got a nice settle and kept my eye on Giavellotto and when he made his move to the outside I just followed him through. His stamina really showed up well.”

Sunday 6th September, 2026 Benvenuto Cellini disappoints as Varandir secures Prix Niel glory

By Press Association Sport Reporters

Irish Derby hero Benvenuto Cellini proved bitterly disappointing as Varandir claimed a decisive victory in the Qatar Prix Niel at ParisLongchamp.

Down the field as favourite for the Derby at Epsom before controversially being declared a non-runner due to an incident in the starting stalls, Benvenuto Cellini bounced back to claim Classic glory at the Curragh three weeks later, since when he had finished a creditable third against his elders in the King George at Ascot.

Returning from a short break, the son of Frankel was widely expected to stake his claim for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe over the same course and distance in four weeks’ time, but after going in pursuit of his pacesetting stablemate Montreal from the home turn, he found little for pressure and weakened into fifth place.

With Montreal’s petrol tank running on empty entering the final furlong, having streaked clear of his rivals for much of the race, Francis-Henri Graffard’s Varandir – a close-up fourth behind the William Haggas-trained Maltese Cross in the Grand Prix de Paris on his last outing – was the one who finished best to grab the lead under Mickael Barzalona and he was ultimately a comfortable winner over the staying-on Alam.

When asked whether the victory was a surprise, Nemone Routh, French racing manager and director for winning owners Aga Khan Studs, told Sky Sports Racing: “No, not hugely. We knew the horse was really well, we knew he’d progressed a lot and we were very happy with his run in the Grand Prix de Paris – he really moved forward from when he won the Group Three and I think he’d moved forward a lot since then.

“He’s a horse that mentally and physically has improved throughout the year and we knew we had him well. I think he needed this run, because he was a bit heavy in the preliminaries.”

Coral cut Varandir for 20-1 from 40-1 for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and while the same connections have last year’s winner Daryz set to defend his crown, this son of Zarak is clearly entitled to line up alongside him.

Routh added: “He is in the Arc. We obviously need to speak to Princess Zahra (owner), (but) I’d say why not run? That would be my idea right now.

“I think he goes on any ground and sometimes it’s good to have two runners as you can be drawn 18 out of 18 with one and have a good draw with another, so why not spread your chances? It’s a possibility.”

Sunday 6th September, 2026 Erdenali shines at top table to claim Prix du Moulin honours

By Press Association Sport Reporters

Erdenali graduated to the highest level in impressive style when proving too strong for the raiding party in the Qatar Prix du Moulin de Longchamp.

A strong British and Irish contingent went to post for the Group One contest, with Aidan O’Brien’s Irish 2,000 Guineas hero Gstaad the hot favourite ahead of Charlie Appleby’s Opera Ballo and the Ed Walker-trained Ten Bob Tony.

Unlike that trio, Francis-Henri Graffard’s Erdenali was unproven in Group One company, but he had looked an exciting prospect in winning his first three starts and was an unlucky loser when third in a Group Three on his most recent outing.

With Opera Ballo taken on for the lead by Gstaad’s pacemaker Dorset, Appleby’s charge was a spent force entering the final furlong, at which stage Erdenali and the shock Queen Anne winner Ten Bob Tony moved up to dispute the lead.

Erdenali was always getting the better of that particular battle, however, and the pair drew clear of Gstaad, who never threatened to land a telling blow and was ultimately a bit disappointing in third.

Nemone Routh, French racing manager and director for winning owners Aga Khan Studs, told Sky Sports Racing: “We were wondering if he was going to the Arc sale or not after this, but I don’t think we will now!

“He’s not a horse that shows very much in the morning – if you’d seen him work this week you wouldn’t have been particularly impressed, but it all comes together in the afternoon.

“He should have been unbeaten – he should have won that Group Three very easily, we had just a nightmare trip.

“It was always the plan to come here, we needed to find out if he was a Group One horse and I think he’s done that quite resoundingly.”

Erdenali is Coral’s new 2-1 favourite for the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes on Champions Day at Ascot, but with connections fortunate enough to have several horses in the same division, plans are on hold for the time being.

“We have some other horses for the Prix de la Foret – we have Samangan if the ground doesn’t get too soft and we have Rayif, who might go to the QEII,” Routh added.

“I think Erdenali is in the QEII as well and we were thinking of taking him to Keeneland for a race after this, but we might have to rethink now.

“He’s definitely shown us he’s a Group One horse.”

Walker said of the runner-up Ten Bob Tony: “Thrilled, very proud of him again. I’ve slightly lost my voice.

“He’s amazing and he’s had an amazing season. He’s really stepped it up a gear, it was a huge run. I’m kind of a bit gutted as I thought we had it. I saw we had Opera Ballo and Gstaad beat and probably didn’t give the winner the respect he deserves – he looks very good and we were probably beaten by a very good horse.

“The plan was always the QEII. Whether we do the QEII and the Breeders’ Cup, we’ll see. We’ll do what’s right by him, hopefully he’ll be around for many more years.”

Sunday 6th September, 2026 Friendly Soul makes all to strike in Prix Vermeille

By Press Association Sport Reporters

Friendly Soul led from pillar to post to double her Group One tally in the Qatar Prix Vermeille at ParisLongchamp.

A top-level winner in the Prix de l’Opera on Arc weekend two years ago, John and Thady Gosden’s five-year-old missed the entirety of last season through injury.

However, she has slowly come to the boil in three starts this term, most recently chasing home Diamond Necklace in the Nassau Stakes at Goodwood.

And although she was tackling a mile and a half for the first time on her return to France, jockey James Doyle did not appear to have any stamina doubts, sending his mount straight to the lead from the off.

Friendly Soul and Composing had built up a healthy lead over the chasing pack rounding the home turn and while both Pink Panthera and Sunly came from further back to mount a late challenge – with the latter perhaps an unlucky loser after missing the break and encountering traffic problems in the straight – the Gosden runner had enough in hand to claim victory.

“It was a hugely sporting decision from her owners, George and Julia Strawbridge, to keep her in training at this age,” Thady Gosden told Sky Sports Racing.

“Last time she was here she won the Prix de l’Opera, a couple of years ago now. She likes to do things her own way and took James to the front there, but she didn’t get an easy lead at all – she got attacked in the false straight there and was never really able to get a breather.

“Obviously she’s a hugely talented filly and very tough too. It’s great to have her back to her best.”

Friendly Soul is a 16-1 shot for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe with Coral. When asked whether Europe’s premier middle-distance contest could now be on the agenda, Gosden added: “It was obviously her first time over a mile and a half, so it was slightly unknown territory before this.

“I haven’t had a chance to speak to George and Julia yet, we’ll see how she comes out of the race and see where they’d like to go with her, but of course it’s great to have it (Arc) as an option.”

Sunday 6th September, 2026 Tiffany set for international farewell after sparkling in Kentucky

By Ashley Iveson, Press Association

Tiffany looks set to round off her racing career at either the Breeders’ Cup or in Japan after she backed up her belated Group One breakthrough in Germany last month with victory in the Kentucky Turf Cup Invitational Stakes on Saturday.

Sir Mark Prescott’s star mare had become something of a perennial bridesmaid, filling the runner-up spot in five consecutive races, with three of those coming in top-level events on German soil.

But having finally secured an elusive success in the Grosser Preis von Berlin in early August, the Elite Racing-owned six-year-old travelled to America for a Grade Two assignment at Kentucky Downs, with regular partner Luke Morris crossing the Atlantic for the ride.

Tiffany faced eight rivals including a second British raider in Ed Walker’s Fort George, as well as the Willie Mullins-trained Breeders’ Cup Turf hero of last year, Ethical Diamond.

The European trio came to the fore in the closing stages of the mile-and-a-half contest and it was Prescott’s charge who finished best to prevail by a length and three-quarters, with Ethical Diamond second and Fort George third.

Prescott told the Press Association: “It’s strange really as at the age of six, and after a whole series of seconds, you rather felt she might be beginning to be on the skids, but for some extraordinary reason she seems to be on the up and we’re all very grateful.

“For the breeders, it was very disappointing when she didn’t make her reserve at the December sales last year, and she’s won more than her reserve this year, which doesn’t often happen, does it?

“We’re very lucky and very grateful and we thought Luke gave her a fantastic ride.”

Tiffany looks set for one final outing before going through the Tattersalls sales ring again later in the year, but whether that is in America or Japan remains undecided.

“I don’t know, I think a lot will depend on how she is when she gets back, because we made a decision not to leave her there,” Prescott added.

“She’s in a fortunate position whereby she gets into both the Breeders’ Cup and the Japan Cup, and it’s a question of looking at the pros and cons of both. The main thing is to see how she is.

“We intend to run in the Breeders’ Cup or the Japan Cup, but we haven’t worked out the logistics of either. I believe the December sale is immediately after the Japan race, so we’ll work out the timings and everything else.

“I’m rather a believer in leaving these things to worry about when they come – and they don’t often come!”

There was also European interest in the Grade Two Nashville Derby, with Hugo Palmer’s Glacius faring best of the raiding party in second behind Miguel Clement’s clear-cut winner Caroline St. Beat.