Barnavara Holds On to Win Prix de l'Opera

According to her rider, Barnavara (IRE) is a filly who wears her heart on her sleeve. In contrast, the man on top may well have had his heart in his mouth in the dying strides of the Prix de l'Opera (G1) Oct. 5 as challengers thundered down on him from all angles. Shane Foley knows that running from the front is what suits Barnavara best, and it has helped her climb impressively through the grades with a listed, group 3 and, most recently, a group 2 success. That last win came at the Curragh during the Irish Champions Festival when the 3-year-old pulverized her opponents by upwards of 3 1/2 lengths. Foley's pulse barely needed to rise there, but it was never going to be so simple in a group 1 on Arc day; not only because of the caliber of the race and the quality of the opposition, but because Longchamp's expansive home straight has been the scene of many a late-thrusting winner. However, Barnavara does things her way, and she went to the front not long after the start in the colors of her owners, Alpha Racing. All Foley had to do was keep her there. Rolling around into the home straight, Barnavara was challenged by Tamfana (GER), who had stalked her from the outset. She rallied to the fight, stretching out her neck and turning away the challenger. Yet such battles leave their mark, and Barnavara now sat ready to be swallowed up by a brigade of fillies and mares who came charging at her at frightening speed. Asked for all that she had left by Foley, Barnavara gave it, and at the line her head was as far down and as stretched out as it could be. It proved to be enough; she would not be passed. See The Fire finished second with One Look third, the first seven home covered by less than two lengths. "I rode Hotazhell in the Arc and he ran okay, but this was always my main ride of the day and I was looking forward to riding her," Foley said. "She's improved all year, and I think she's a very good filly, which she's shown today. She wears her heart on the sleeve and does it the hard way, but she was good. "I've been saying it all year that she's very good and is only filling her frame. She was that size as a 2-year-old, she's a big girl, and she's really maturing now and learning to relax and race." Jessica Harrington has had previous success on Arc weekend, but this was another memorable victory, and the trainer was keen to praise the performance of her fast-improving winner. "She's been fantastic," Harrington said. "She's gone on improving all year, and she just does better and better. "That's how she loves doing it. She's such a long-striding filly, she loves going off in front and putting the race to bed." Barnavara earned an automatic berth to the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf (G1T) at Del Mar Nov. 1, thanks to the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series: Win and You're In. Asfoora Wins Abbaye After Uber Driver Comes to Her Rescue in Pre-race Drama Speed is key in sprints, but not normally like this. An unnamed Uber driver was the hero as his dash across Paris allowed Asfoora (AUS) to make history in the Prix de l'Abbaye (G1). She came within a minute and a half of not being allowed to run. But thanks to the local taxi man channeling his inner Oscar Piastri, the mare was able to become the first Australian horse to win in France and the first from anywhere to do the Nunthorpe-Abbaye double in the same season for 32 years. None of that looked possible when she arrived at the track without her passport. There had been a mix-up, and she came instead with one belonging to a horse Henry Dwyer had bought at the Arqana sale Oct. 4. Hers was back at Amy Murphy's yard in Chantilly. So Murphy, who has been part of the support crew working with Dwyer in France, contacted Francis Graffard's assistant. She in turn put the vital documentation in an Uber, whose driver made it across the city just in time. Dwyer refused to share the blame with anyone else, and said: "It was the silly Australian trainer who didn't know which passport to bring. "It's just surreal really. We were within a minute and a half of not running—I had the Uber driver on a retainer of £200 to get it here in time. "I've driven back and forward from Chantilly to Longchamp four times in the last three days, and it's never taken me shorter than an hour. He did it in 52 minutes." It was much easier on the course than on the roads, as Asfoora allayed any fears that the ground would be too soft for her. She was always traveling strongly under Oisin Murphy, who moved her out to challenge inside the final quarter-mile, hit the front inside the last 75 yards and scored by a comfortable half-length. Jawwal (FR) was second, and She's Quality (IRE) finished third. Through the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series, Asfoora earned an all-expenses-paid berth into the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1T) at Del Mar Nov. 1. "It can be easy to get carried away, but I truly believed she was in the form of her life," said the jockey, who was also on board for Asfoora's Nunthorpe success."That sprint track took the rain really well and she was able to cruise through the race with a good draw. I got a little bit of space when I needed it and I never really had to get too serious with her. She's truly a star and the people connected with her are the same." Lochsong was the last sprinter to win the Nunthorpe (G1) and the Abbaye in the same season, landing the five-furlong championships of Britain and France in 1993. Dwyer had come to France as a backpacker when he was 21 and hatched a plan for a campaign culminating in Paris rather than heading home after the European summer as most Australian sprinters tend to do. "This means a whole lot," he said. "I'm pretty sure she's the first Australian-trained horse to win in France and that was always a real bucket-list thing. "I'm not a massive trainer, I'm not going to win trainers' premierships and Melbourne Cups. But trying to do something different is what motivates us, I suppose. "When you're lying on your deathbed, you're not going to think about the things you didn't do but about the things you did do. It's about experience. We tried to experience new things. I've never been to the races in France and here we are winning a group 1 on Arc day." Dwyer was set to experience a celebration party on Sunday evening and hoped to greet a special guest. He put a post on social media in an attempt to track down the driver who made victory possible, and said: "He's more than welcome if they can track him down." Maranoa Charlie Lands the Prix de la Foret There may have been no British-trained winners on the Arc card, but there was a loud Yorkshire cheer when Maranoa Charlie (FR) landed the Prix de la Foret (G1). The 3-year-old is based with Christopher Head in France, but owned by Bond Thoroughbred Limited, the family operation that inherited the black and yellow colors of the late Reg Bond, a Yorkshireman who started out with £350 and ended up creating a multi-million-pound tyre wholesale empire. The colt took the Foret from the front to secure his first group 1 prize, after near-misses at Deauville and York. It was also a timely success for a budding stallion, whose sire Wootton Bassett died last month. "I'm lost for words," Charlie Bond said after the 3-year-old had held on by 1 1/4 lengths under Aurelien Lemaitre. "We've had three runs, he'd nearly won two group 1s before today, and he's an amazing horse. We're so lucky really." "This horse has been incredible," said Head, who won the race with Ramatuelle last year. "He goes in every ground, he can even go to the mile. "With the loss of Wootton Bassett there is a possibility that the owner might put him as a stallion for next season, but he would be such a miler next year. It was extremely satisfying to see him win here today." Maranoa Charlie is a 10-1 chance for the Breeders' Cup Mile (G1T), for which he earned an automatic, fees-paid berth through the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series, with Paddy Power and Head said: "He has the profile to win a race in America, since he can be so fast at the beginning of the race. In America, you need to have that kind of aptitude. The only question mark is the interest for him and his career as a stallion." Asked about the future for his colt, Bond said: "We're going to sit down tomorrow with a clear head and make some decisions."