Dreams come true for Starke and Smart on day of shocks at Longchamp

The trainer had paid 100,000 euros to supplement his three-year-old into a Longchamp field rich in quality, and that faith was rewarded with an astonishing 20-1 victory.

In a clean-sweep for fillies, 66-1 outsider Shareta was second with 2010 Oaks winner Snow Fairy, the mount of Frankie Dettori, a gallant third and the first British horse to cross the line.

The winning time of two minutes 24 seconds was fractionally quicker than the mark set by Andre Fabre’s Peintre Celebre in 1997.

On a day of shocks, Bryan Smart’s Tangerine Trees had earlier won the Prix de l’Abbaye sprint for Yorkshire; the battling Dream Ahead defeated France’s three-times Breeders’ Cup heroine Goldikova and that man Dettori recorded his 500th Group win on Dabirsim who is now 8-1 for next year’s 2000 Guineas.

But, on a sweltering day, the Arc’s international status was confirmed by the race throwing up a German winner in this Indian summer.

“This is my best moment in racing. I don’t believe it – she was such an easy winner,” said Schiergen. “She is a small filly with a big, big heart and there’s no better race to win.”

The 15th three-year-old to win the Arc in the last 18 years, victorious jockey Andrasch Starke kept repeating the ‘dream’ word in post-race interviews.

“In the last two furlongs she just gave me a great feeling and I was just dreaming. I don’t know what has happened. It’s a dream come true,” he said.

Danedream was the first German-trained Arc winner since Star Appeal prevailed in 1975 for the late Greville Starkey who joked in the starting stalls that he had only “turned up for the beer”.

Aidan O’Brien’s Irish Derby winner Treasure Beach put the pace into the race for his stablemates So You Think, who eventually finished fourth, and St Nicholas Abbey, who was one place behind.

Shareta, thought by many to be the French favourite Sarafina’s pacemaker, did incredibly well to cling on for second but could not match the winner’s turn of foot.

The likes of Sarafina, Galikova and Workforce were never involved, though the latter – victorious a year ago – was hampered early on. Ridden more prominently than the market leaders, St Leger hero Masked Marvel faded badly in the home straight – the Doncaster race, and the phenomenal Arc pace, proved too much for John Gosden’s Classic winner.

Gosden did at least land the Total Prix Marcel Boussac with Elusive Kate, the first of two Group One wins for a red-hot William Buick who then conjured a career best performance out of Dream Ahead as David Simcock’s sprinter shattered French hearts by denying the record-breaking Goldikova a 15th Group One win.

While age may be catching up with Freddie Head’s heroine, Dream Ahead gave his jockey a more straight-forward ride than at Haydock when he veered badly in the Betfred Sprint Cup and hampered Mick Easterby’s Hoof It. This time, Buick made sure he had a target to strike at – and then hit the front when in shadow of the winning post. It was the most mature of rides from Flat racing’s hottest riding prospect.

And though Dream Ahead, last year’s joint champion two-year-old with Frankel, may race again this season, he will not stay in training – a stud career is planned for Khalifa Dasmal’s colt.

“I just wish Goldikova wasn’t second because I’m a big fan, but Dream Ahead was a worthy winner, the best horse won the race,” said the 23-year-old.

“I always said he’d be better in a good race because when he gets to the front he does nothing. Today he went a head up and started hanging left.”