PRIX D'HARCOURT

Paris Longchamp - 5th April 2026 - “Bon Souple 3,4”

4YO+ G2 - 2,000m - €67,380

2:04.29 (Réduction KM 1:02.14) - Winner’s Finishing Speed 112.4%

On paper this looked to be one of the strongest renewals of the Prix D’Harcourt in recent years and I think the race itself lived up to that billing. There were several G1 performers in the field and for the vast majority, there are reasons to be optimistic about these runners going forwards. Here is my summary of each runner and what we can take from this form;

Bright Picture (Fabre) has finally started to deliver on some of his earlier promise and added this G2 success to his recent victory in the Prix Exbury in March. Last season felt like a bit of rush after having a year off with injury, but he ran well enough in the Prix Dollar behind First Look to suggest he could be capable of competing at this level. Bahrain didn’t suit, but he looks a better horse now and having beaten Azimpour at Saint-Cloud, he more than confirmed that form on Sunday. We will come to the Aga Khan runner later, but having sat behind the early lead, Bright Picture rallied well in the closing stages and found the necessary speed to get himself to the front. He did have race fitness on his side, but he has confirmed the form with First Look from the Prix Exbury and deserved to win this after getting a clever ride from Maxime Guyon. He is a 5-year-old gelding who is yet to run in a Group 1 race, but after this victory, that would at least look to be worth a try and he does hold an entry in the Prix Ganay at the end of the month.

Leffard (Rouget) is undoubtedly the horse to take from this race. This was his first run since he finished 8th in the Prix de L’Arc de Triomphe, but having sat behind the pace on the inside rail, I really liked the way that he finished his race. Having raced 3 lengths back, he was forced to switch out wide to get a run, but he finished well with closing furlong splits of 10.76 and 10.90s. Those are some eye-catching figures from the McLloyd data and would suggest that he does have the necessary speed for this 2,000m trip. However, at this stage his only future entry is in the Prix D’Hedouville next month over 2,400m. With all roads presumably leading back to another go at the Arc, I would expect him to be a relatively warm order for that race next month.

Cualificar (Fabre) was also having his first start since finishing down the field in the Arc. He lost his unbeaten record at Paris Longchamp in this race, but shaped like a horse who was in need of the run. Having sat behind the pace, he was ideally placed but just lacked the tactical speed to get on terms with the race-fit winner. He was 0.11s quicker than the winner over the final quarter of a mile though and ought to strip fitter. He has entries in both the Prix Ganay and the Prix D’Hedouville and will be competitive in both, though he is likely to meet Daryz if he takes up the G1 entry.

First Look (Fabre) won the Prix Dollar with a good ride from James Doyle last autumn and I am more than happy to forgive his subsequent effort at Ascot when it appeared that he was turned out quickly and he was unlikely to be a match for Calandagan in any case. He had the run of the race in front and wasn’t beaten far, but whilst I could make the excuse that he needed the run in the closing stages of the Prix Exbury, there were no such excuses here. He looked like a G3 horse running against G1 performers and that is how I would expect his season to play out.

Oracle (Fabre) missed a lot of time last season and so can probably be forgiven his 3rd placed finish on the PSF in November. He ran a perfectly respectable race to finish 5th here on his return and at least ran to his official rating of 47 kg. He would need to prove that he is capable at this level and for all the promise that he showed last season, he only has a Saint-Cloud maiden win on his CV. He will find easier assignments than this in the weeks ahead, though his entry in the Prix Ganay looks to be a little bit optimistic at this point in his career.

Best Secret (Wattel) was well placed to win some valuable races at Goodwood and Saint-Cloud last season. However, this was his first try in Group company and he found it a little bit tougher. He raced towards the rear and traveled perfectly well, but was ultimately never on terms and finished only a fair 6th. This was his first run since September and the 2,400m looks more suitable, but he will need to improve if he is to win at this level.

Azimpour (Graffard) was the disappointment of the race. Having been ridden in rear, Mickael Barzalona was asking a lot of his mount, but he seemed to struggle to quicken on the ground and was eased off in the last 100 yards. He wasn’t beaten far and he was poorly placed in a slowly run race, but he had the benefit of a recent run and Bright Picture has widened the gap between them from the Prix Exbury. He ran a promising race when 5th in the Prix du Jockey Club, but hasn’t built on that and is arguably looking a little regressive at this point. He is also in the Prix Ganay and the Prix D’Hedouville, but Francis-Henri Graffard would look to have a lot of work to do if he is going to turn him around to be competitive in those races.