There was a massive turn-up in the first race on Arc day as trainer Francis-Henri Graffard's 100/1 chance Vertical Blue edged out odds-on favourite and stablemate Zarigana.
The ParisLongchamp race appeared to revolve around the previously unbeaten Zarigana, a grand-dam of the great Zarkava, but she had to settle for a second after the photo was required to split the stablemates in a pulsating finish to the mile Group 1.
The Graffard-trained pair were settled well off the early pace set by Aidan O'Brien's Exactly under Christophe Soumillon, with Ballydoyle first-string Bedtime Story keen through the early stages as Ryan Moore tried to settle the grey at the back of the pack.
Soumillon looked to have slipped the field on turning into the home straight, sticking towards the far rail and skipping a couple of lengths clear, but his filly eventually started to tire inside the final furlong on the soft ground and the Mickael Barzalona-ridden Zarigana came home strongly alongside the eventual winner under Alexis Pouchin.
Zarigana appeared to get her head in front as the pair swept past Exactly, but right on the line it was the game Vertical Blue - on her fifth career start - who had her head down, winning by the narrowest of margins.
Graffard said: “It’s unbelievable, they are both amazing fillies. My other filly is really a champion, she quickened strongly but the other one has experience and I knew on a big, galloping track she would be competitive.
“It’s not much (between them), but I am happy."
“I knew going into this race that I had two very good fillies and that both were in good form.
“In the race I could see how it was developing was very different, I had Vertical Blue who was progressing on the inside and I knew because of the open stretch she would be in a good position to challenge.”
Francis Teboul, owner of Vertical Blue under the Gemini Stud and Argella Racing banner, added: “I think our emotions were more on display than I could describe.
“We hesitated over running her in the Arqana series or in the Prix Marcel Boussac.
“We knew she was a quality filly and that she could run to a place because Francis-Henri told us that she was in great form, he’s a fantastic trainer who doesn’t get things wrong very often.
“We just thought we had nothing to lose but we never thought we would beat the champion in the race!”
Nemone Routh, racing manager for the Aga Khan Studs, was taking the positives from Zarigana’s narrow defeat.
She said: “We’re of the opinion that Zarigana ran really well. She’s a very sensitive filly. There are still areas for improvement with her. For example when Mickaël (Barzalona) pulls her out for her, she tends to quicken straight away.
“We thought that had got up on passing the winning post. She has her future ahead of her. She has a lot of speed and will begin her 2025 campaign over 1,600 metres. It’s true that we’re disappointed to have got beaten but that’s racing! She’s come a long way in a short space of time.”
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