DAYS before Rayif (Sea The Moon) strode to an impressive win in the Group 1 Poule d’Essai des Poulains, the French 2000 Guineas, his dam Rayisa (Holy Roman Emperor) was covered by No Nay Never (Scat Daddy) at Coolmore.

This was in the aftermath of Rayisa foaling a filly by No Nay Never’s son Little Big Bear. Pat Downes provided these updates as he reflected on a wonderful weekend for the Aga Khan Studs, crowned by the latest classic success for one of the greatest racing and breeding organisations in the history of the thoroughbred, now in the hands of Princess Zahra Aga Khan.

Since the death of Aga Khan IV, the successes enjoyed by the team have served to pay due tribute to his years of propagating families with meticulous care and attention to detail, while Princess Zahra has added something extra to what was an already winning formula. Together with trainer Francis Graffard, she has been a little more adventurous perhaps, and how that strategy is delivering.

Calandagan and Daryz have been outstanding flagbearers last year and this season, and now we have another star in Rayif. While he missed his intended warmup race for Sunday’s classic, Graffard was nonetheless strong in his view that the colt should take his chance, in spite of ground conditions and the likely race tactics not playing to his strengths.

Royal Ascot

It is indicative of the colt’s class that, despite these negatives, he clearly demonstrated his ability, and connections will be relishing now a trip to Royal Ascot where he will almost certainly get the ground he desires, and the St James’s Place Stakes will be a true-run contest. Having shown at two that he was talented, Rayif was successful last year in a Group 3 sponsored by the Aga Khan Studs and finished third in the Group 1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere, again on ground that the team believes is not ideal.

Winning the French 2000 Guineas for the ninth time means the Aga Khan Studs now has another stallion in waiting, this one being a grandson of the outstanding Sea The Stars (Cape Cross). I can imagine that Irish breeders will be hoping he comes to Gilltown Stud in due course, and especially if he wins at Royal Ascot. His family combines speed and stamina, and is marked by great durability and soundness.

After the race, Princess Zahra said: “I wasn’t sure Rayif would stay the distance, but Francis thought he would. He did so very well. I imagine it wasn’t heavy ground as it had only been raining for a couple of hours. He certainly had the speed to get through it. Mickael [Barzalona] had the most amazing timing, it was lovely to see. I think he’ll remain at a mile.”

Amazing job

Pat Downes said of Rayif as a young horse: “He always possessed quality, and is a well-made colt. We liked him from the start. Francis has done an amazing job with him, and we look forward to his future. Mick Halford trained his dam, and nearly everything she has produced to date has won. Rayif’s half-sister won a Group 3 over five furlongs earlier on the card. She is by Blue Point, and her record has influenced our breeding plans for Rayisa in recent times.”

Rayisa won a mile maiden at Gowran Park at two after being beaten a neck in Galway by another Aga Khan runner, Third in a listed contest at the Curragh, she went into winter quarters looking likely to be better at three. She failed to win again, but did put up her best performance when beaten half a length in the Listed Corrib Stakes at Galway over seven furlongs.

Mated with Sea The Stars for her first covering, she produced the once-raced Roziyna. She was sold cheaply, and her first foal won last year as a two-year-old in France. Armoured (Lope De Vega) was next, and he took until the age of five to win. Rauzan (Australia) followed, and won four hurdle races at four, while Raybiya (Almanzor) won at three before selling to David Skelly for €62,000.

After Raybiya was born, the breeding strategy changed from trying to breed a middle-distance horse, and instead speed was injected into the family. Rayevka (Blue Point) showed immediately that this was the correct move to make, and last year less than a length covered the first three home in the Group 1 Commonwealth Cup, Rayevka running third behind Time For Sandals and Arizona Blaze.

Family double

While she has largely been campaigned over six furlongs, on Sunday Rayevka showed real class to win the five-furlong Group 3 Prix de Saint-Georges, and she will surely go back to Royal Ascot and attempt to being off a great family double. In time she will be a hugely important addition to the broodmare band at the Aga Khan studs.

Following the birth of Rayif, his dam slipped foal to Churchill (Galileo), her only miss at stud, and then produced a colt by Churchill’s champion son Vadeni. He is now a yearling. As they write in the history of foundation mares at the Aga Khan Studs, rarely does a season pass without the influence of the Marcel Boussac stock playing a role in the fortune of the operation. Rayif is the latest.

By Derby winner St Paddy (Aureole) out of Sarila (Snob), a listed-placed half-sister to another Aga Khan Stud foundation mare in Denia (Crepello), Rilasa won at two and ran third in the Prix Vanteaux. Her lasting gift to the Aga Khan at stud was as dam of the Group 3 Royal Whip Stakes winner Rayseka, a talented stayer for John Oxx who was second to Vintage Crop in the Group 1 Irish St Leger.

It is this branch of the family that provided two classic scorers in recent times. In 2024 it was Poule d’Essai des Pouliches-French 1000 Guineas winner Rouhiya (Lope De Vega), and now Rayif. Another of the stakes winners in the family was Group 1 Irish 2000 Guineas runner-up Rayeni (Indian Ridge).

Lanwades Stud

While Rayif’s win was celebrated within one of the industry’s great organisations, it will have been no less well-received by the head of another, Kirsten Rausing at Lanwades Stud. She stands the brilliant Group 1 Deutsches Derby winner Sea The Moon (Sea The Stars), and Rayif became the stallion’s sixth top-level winner and his third to win a classic. They are the stars among his 39 blacktype winners, of which 21 did so at group race level.

It is remarkable to think that Sea The Moon is standing this year at a fee of €20,000, his lowest since 2020. With 75 stakes performers on the flat, almost 10 with each crop aged three and over, his consistency shines through. His record is only likely to get better, as his current crop of two-year-olds is one of his largest to date, numbering 100.

Rayif’s win is another at the highest level for a daughter of Holy Roman Emperor (Danehill), and that sire’s daughters have enjoyed great success in recent times, with such as Caballo De Mar and Porta Furtuna adding to earlier triumphs for the likes of Shale, Newspaperofrecord, Verbal Dexterity and Johannes Vermeer.