Prix de l'Abbaye de Longchamp
Group 1, ParisLongchamp 13:50
€350,000 guaranteed,
2yo plus,
Class 1, 4f 213y    
Sunday 5th October 2025

BetPlay

1 Asfoora 13/5F
2 Jawwal 32/1
3 She's Quality 20/1
17 ran NRs: Megarry, Rayevka
Distances: ½l, 2½l, 1¼l Time: 56.39s (slow by 1.09s)

Asfoora, the Australian flyer with a passport story fit for Hollywood, continued her European adventure in style — and with a slice of late drama — to claim the win in commanding fashion.

It might well have been the win that nearly never was. With her horse passport missing in action and panic setting in, salvation came not from a stable hand or an official courier, but from a Parisian Uber driver, who delivered racing’s most precious document just minutes before the off.

Yet once the gates opened, it was all business. Under Oisin Murphy, the 9-4 favourite broke sharply from the stalls, grabbing a prime position against the rail among the 17-strong field. She travelled like the class act she is — smooth, poised, waiting for the moment. And when that moment came, she surged, finding top gear late to repel all challengers and deny the rank outsider Jawwal at 80-1.

If the performance was polished, the prelude was pure chaos.

Dwyer laughed in disbelief as he relived it all:

“The roof of the mouth is a touch dry and we’re very happy that she got to the post. We had a couple of complications before the race as the silly Australians forgot to bring the horse’s passport.

We got a man in an Uber to bring it from Chantilly, we put him on a retainer of a few hundred euros to get here for 2.30pm and he got it here by 2.33pm, so he can keep his retainer!

I’m going to put something on Twitter (X) and try to track him down. I’ve got his name and I’ll put it on there with a big love heart and say if he can find us he’s more than truly welcome to join us in the celebrations tonight!

I’ve driven back and forward from Chantilly to Longchamp four times in the last three days, it’s never taken me shorter than an hour and he did it in 52 minutes – he was on a good retainer, though!”

When the laughter subsided, the significance of what Asfoora had achieved began to settle in.

“It means a whole lot, obviously.

We came over last year to England wanting to try new things. A lot of Australian horses come over for the English summer and run at Royal Ascot, but not too many continue and we fully intended to come to the Abbaye last year. We just felt she’d come to the end of it when she ran poorly at York.

This year we held her back a little bit and wanted to get to Ireland and France. The ground didn’t go in our favour in Ireland and it didn’t completely today, but she was able to cope with it.

I’m pretty sure she’s the first Australian-trained horse to win in France, so that was always a bucket list item, just to do things that haven’t been done before.

I’m not a massive trainer who is going to win trainers’ titles and Melbourne Cups, so to try to do something different is what motivates us, I suppose.

Today adds a new chapter. I think this is my sixth trip this year and it’s obviously not a hop, skip and a jump to get here, but at the end of the day when you’re lying on your death bed, you’re not going to think back about the things you didn’t do, it’s the things you did do and that’s what it’s about – experiences.”

There was no mistaking the pride in his voice — this was a small team making a big statement on one of racing’s biggest stages.

And while the future had seemed uncertain before, it suddenly looked brighter than ever.

“She was entered in the Sceptre sale at the end of the year with Tattersalls, but at the last minute Akram (El-Fahkri, owner) decided he’d prefer to race her on.

She’s obviously won three Group Ones over here in the last year and a half and he’s enjoying immensely the opportunity to do that. Akram has raced a lot of horses over a lot of years, and a lot of good ones in fairness, and he’s stumbled across one of the best mares in the world and his theory is you don’t desperately need the money why would you sell?

He’s looking forward to racing her on next year, all being well.”

For Oisin Murphy, it was another masterclass in patience and precision. He knew what he had underneath him, and he delivered accordingly.

“They’ve done a terrific job with her because at the beginning of the season she wasn’t flying. I rode her about a week ago on the Rowley Mile, maybe about eight or nine days ago, and it was the best she’s ever felt.

They don’t work her very hard so it can be easy to get carried away, but I truly believed she was in the form of her life.

That sprint track took the rain really well, it was probably good to firm before it arrived – or even faster. She was able to cruise through the race with a good draw, I got a bit of space when I needed it and I never really had to get serious with her.

She’s truly a star, and the people connected with her are the same.”

And so it was that Asfoora, the mare from Down Under, overcame a paperwork panic, a Parisian traffic dash, and 16 rivals to strike gold once again — proof that in racing, as in life, sometimes the best stories come with a twist or two on the way to the winner’s enclosure.

BoyleSports

Prix De L'Abbaye De Longchamp (Group 1)
€350,000 guaranteed, 2yo plus, 5f, Class 1
17 ran
Going: Very Soft

POS. (DRAW) DIST HORSE AGE WGT TRAINER JOCKEY SP
1 (3)    Asfoora 7 9-7 Henry Dwyer Oisin Murphy 13/5F
2 (9) ½ Jawwal 3 9-11 Vaclav Luka Jr Clement Lecoeuvre 32/1
3 (7) 2½ She's Quality 4 9-7 Jack W Davison James Ryan 20/1
4 (2) 1¼ Ponntos 7 9-11 Miroslav Nieslanik Hollie Doyle 17/1
5 (5) nse Mgheera 5 9-7 Ed Walker Kieran Shoemark 66/10
6 (1) nk Monteille 4 9-7 Mario Baratti Cristian Demuro 63/10
7 (6) ¾ Ain't Nobody 3 9-11 Kevin Ryan Tom Eaves 46/1
8 (10) 1 Afjan 2 8-7 H-F Devin Alexis Pouchin 11/1
9 (12) snk Star Of Lady M 5 9-7 David O'Meara Daniel Tudhope 62/1
10 (4) hd Frost At Dawn 4 9-7 William Knight William Buick 9/1
11 (15) dht Sky Majesty 3 9-7 William Haggas Tom Marquand 13/1
12 (14) hd Jm Jungle 5 9-11 John & Sean Quinn Jason Hart 15/1
13 (18) ¾ First Instinct 3 9-7 William Haggas Cieren Fallon 23/1
14 (17) ½ Washington Heights 5 9-11 Kevin Ryan Shane Gray 56/1
15 (11) 1 Night Raider 4 9-11 K R Burke James Doyle 15/1
16 (16) hd Rumstar 5 9-11 Jonathan Portman Rob Hornby 35/1
17 (13) 9 Against The Wind 3 9-11 Kevin Ryan Kevin Stott 95/1
NR 4 (8) Megarry 4 9-11 Gianluca Bietolini NON RUNNER
NR 10 (19) Rayevka 3 9-7 F-H Graffard NON RUNNER