Daryz has joined an elite pantheon of greats as he became the first colt to retain the prestigious Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe since 1978.
Not since Alleged 56 years ago had a colt successfully defended their Arc crown, but Francis-Henri Graffard's star looked imperious as he finished strongly to win back-to-back renewals.
Longchamp has been a happy hunting ground for Daryz. Since his courageous victory over Minnie Hauk 12 months ago, the four-year-old had been sublime on each visit to the French capital, including in the Prix Foy last time out, and he was magnificent again as he became the ninth dual Arc winner in history.
The podium was completed by Bay City Roller, who briefly threatened to cause an upset, and Diamond Nekclace, who ran a huge race from the outside stall under Christophe Soumillon.
2025: 🥇 2026: 🥇 Daryz goes back-to-back in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe! 🏇 https://t.co/mQBaL3EE6l
— bet365 (@bet365) October 4, 2026
Sent off as the 13/8 favourite, Daryz might have had the luck of the draw on his side with an excellent pitch in stall five, but his trademark burst of speed separated him from the rest as he triumphed under Mickael Barzalona.
It's a ninth victory in the Arc for the Aga Khan family and their fifth this century after Sinndar (2000), Dalakhani (2003) and Zarkava (2008).
Daryz has now shortened into 9/1 to win the Breeders' Cup Turf at Keeneland at the end of this month.
Bay City Roller proved a worthy runner-up, and trainer George Scott was delighted with his effort.
"What an amazing ride and an amazing racehorse he is," Scott told ITV Racing.
"He wears his heart on his sleeve and he's got all the ability and all the talent to go with it. We came out second best to an outstanding racehorse, on good ground, and congratulations to the connections. Francis is a gentleman and he always come to have a talk to me when I'm here and wants to know how I'm getting on and anything he can do to help.
"But I'm proud of our horse, what a machine he is. I'm proud of the whole team.
"It's an amazing run. We'll go to the Champion Stakes now and hopefully we get a little bit of rain."
Bay City Roller is joint-third favourite at 7/1 to win the Champion Stakes at Ascot on 17th October.
All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
