Japan’s 56-year thirst to win Europe’s most valuable race sees a top quality three-pronged challenge in Sunday’s (5 October) G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (2400m) at ParisLongchamp.
Thirty-one Japanese-trained horses have competed since 1999 alone after Speed Symboli was the first to try in 1969, and there have been some excellent placed efforts, but without that magical victory in not only the continent's pre-eminent weight-for-age encounter but the world's top-rated race in five of the past ten years.
Another thrilling clash of nations and generations is on the menu for the €5 million (approx. HK$45.48 million) purse with either Ireland's Minnie Hauk or France's Aventure expected to be sent off as favourite.
Minnie Hauk achieved an exceptional 2025 Group 1 treble, winning the Oaks Stakes (2405m), Irish Oaks (2400m) and Yorkshire Oaks (2371m). Supremely reliable, Aventure found only Bluestocking too strong in last year's Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe and was the most impressive winner of last month's trials when clouting her opposition in the G1 Prix Vermeille (2400m). Berthed in gates one and 12, they will be partnered respectively by ace ParisLongchamp specialists Christophe Soumillon and Maxime Guyon.
Japan's Croix Du Nord, Byzantine Dream and Alohi Alii have all won their only French starts. Absent since his G1 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby, 2400m) victory in June, Croix Du Nord was sharp enough to land ParisLongchamp's G3 Prix du Prince d'Orange (2000m), whilst Byzantine Dream narrowly outgunned multiple Group 1 winner and Sunday rival Sosie in the G2 Prix Foy over the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe course and distance. Alohi Alii's French victory came at Deauville in August after a potent front-running display in the G2 Prix Guillaume d'Ornano (2000m).
The latter appears to have the most favourable gate, barrier four, with Byzantine Dream in 15 and Croix Du Nord posted in 17.
Trainer Takashi Saito sounded unconcerned about the inexperience of Classic winner Croix Du Nord, who is having just his seventh career start.
"He wouldn't be the first horse to win it with little experience and Lammtarra (1995) won it after fewer races. I'm not worried about that. I've put everything I've learned into the preparation of Croix Du Nord and I am confident in his ability," Saito said.
After watching Alohi Alii complete his final serious work at Chantilly on Tuesday (30 September), trainer Hiroyasu Tanaka said: "I wanted to have a six-week gap going into the Arc so he could have time to recover before building him up again. Winning at Deauville was very important, both for persuading Christophe Lemaire to come back to ride him and to show me that this horse was up to the challenge of the Arc."
Trainer Francis-Henri Graffard has three starters in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe and they will be especially respected given the trainer's fabulous year with ten Group 1 wins, seven of them in France. While hopeful for both Daryz (Mickael Barzalona) and Quisisana (Alexis Pouchin), Graffard sounds most bullish about Tom Marquand's mount Gezora, who scored a Classic victory in Chantilly's G1 Prix de Diane (2100m) in June.
He said: "She showed great courage to win the Diane and is just as effective at 2400 (metres). She is tactically versatile during a race and gets the weight allowance for three-year-old fillies. She's in great form and will give her best. The slow ground that is predicted won't bother her." Graffard said.
