Arc winner Daryz storms to Prix Ganay comeback victory

Daryz came back from his winter break and immediately reminded Europe why he was last year’s Arc winner. At ParisLongchamp on Sunday, the 4-year-old swept past a capable Ganay field to land the Prix Ganay World Pool by PMU, the first of France’s 28 Group 1 flat races and the traditional starting point for the season’s older-horse clashes.

The 2100-metre contest was never truly about survival for Francis-Henri Graffard’s colt. Arrow Eagle and First Look controlled the early tempo, with First Look even playing up in the stalls before the start and James Doyle dismounting. Daryz settled just behind the pace, travelled smoothly under Mickael Barzalona, then had to be asked for his effort about 300 metres from the finish. Once Barzalona pressed the button, the response was instant. The race was over in a few strides, and Daryz pulled clear of Bright Picture and 2024 Arc runner-up Aventure with plenty in hand.

France Galop said the winner had “literally dominated” on his return, and that was the right reading. This was not a rusty prep or a survival job over a trip short of a mile and a half. It was a sharp, authoritative reappearance in which Daryz showed the same decisive turn of foot that carried him to the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe on October 5, 2025. He is by Sea The Stars, the 2009 Arc hero, and the bloodline looked alive and well as he powered away in Paris.

The bigger significance lies ahead. Graffard had already pointed to the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot in June as the main target for the first half of the season, and next month’s Prix Aga Khan IV, on May 21, is expected to be the logical stepping-stone if Daryz comes out of this race in good shape. The market moved fast too, with Coral cutting him to 5-1 from 10-1 to defend his Arc crown in October.

That is the real story of the Ganay: Daryz did not just win a comeback race, he re-entered the European middle-distance picture looking every bit like a horse still in peak form. For a champion returning after the biggest victory of his career, that is exactly the sort of statement that changes how the rest of the season looks.