DURING the winter months trainer Francis Graffard and owner-breeder Princess Zahra Aga Khan had a problem on their hands. How to keep apart their two outstanding older horses, Calandagan and Daryz, during the season to come. A joyous problem, but a problem none the less.

Last Sunday, in the 31.94 seconds that it took Daryz to cover the three furlongs of Longchamp’s home straight at the end of the Group 1 Prix Ganay World Pool By PMU, that problem was solved.

In exhibiting a startling finishing kick to trounce two Group 1 winners and two more with relatively recent Group 2 victories on their CVs by three and a half lengths and more in a mile, two furlongs and 110 yards race that was run at an extremely slow early pace, he has proved that he is far from your average, stamina-laden soft ground Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe hero.

Pick holes in the Ganay result if you want to. Daryz may have been fitter than the other two seasonal debutants in the field. The runner-up, Bright Picture, may have sat too far out of his ground. And the third home, Aventure, may have pulled so hard that her jockey, Stephane Pasquier, risked having his arms pulled from their sockets.

Remarkable

Even with all these qualifications, Daryz’s performance was still remarkable. This is a colt who, in his seven previous career outings, had not raced over shorter than a mile and two furlongs and himself had proved so headstrong in a paceless Juddmonte International that he had trailed home last of the six runners.

Graffard, a man who has showed himself to be level-headed and measured in both triumph and disaster, could barely conceal his delight afterwards, saying: “It was the perfect comeback race. They didn’t go fast but he was perfectly in tune with what Mickael [Barzalona] was asking him to do. He got there without being woken up and when Mickael asked him to accelerate he reacted immediately.

“His objective will be the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Ascot in June, and the race that falls in between is the Prix Aga Khan IV, [formerly the Prix d’Ispahan, over a mile, one and a quarter furlongs on May 21st] so we’ll discuss that as an option.”

Nemone Routh, Princess Zahra’s racing manager, was similarly effusive, saying: “He’s incredible, it’s a real pleasure to see him win like that! He did it very easily. He stayed focused and was extremely easy to handle. Mickael told us that he didn’t even have to ask him: he accelerated all by himself.”

“In the mornings, we had already seen that he was a cut above. When we resumed training, he dominated all his workouts.

“He’s proved his adaptability: a mile and a half on soft ground as well as a mile two on fast. It’s important for us to show breeders that he’s versatile.

“He’s also a horse who needs to run regularly, almost every month. He’s better when he’s busy, because this winter he had gained strength and was becoming a bit too keen.”

Sounds eerily reminiscent of his sire, Sea The Stars. And, after Ascot, maybe he will follow the same programme as his dad: Eclipse, Juddmonte International, Irish Champion and Arc? Three races that might be too short for Calandagan followed by another for which he is ineligible.

Aidan misses out

Aidan O’Brien had a rare mid-week runner in France when he sent Montreal to run in the Listed Prix de Suresnes over 10 furlongs at Chantilly on Tuesday. Sent off favourite, the son of Sea The Stars who impressed in winning a Leopardstown maiden last August could only finish second when sent off favourite, beaten a head by the Aga Khan Studs Dolmalan

French have a Guineas fancy

WITH the mid-week withdrawal of Samangan, My Highness, one of my horses to take out of the straight course Deauville Guineas trials staged at Deauville three and a half weeks ago, is more than worthy of a place in the field for the early classics of the European season at Newmarket this coming weekend.

My Highness may have only finished second in the Group 3 Prix Imprudence, but she should have come on a tonne for those comeback races having showed noticeable promise against race-fit rivals, and the Andre Fabre-trained My Highness in particular strikes me as a fine 1000 Guineas prospect.