Henri Matisse wins the French 2000 Guineas – Emirates Poule d’Essai des Poulains (VIDEO)
The Irish powerhouse Coolmore is known for naming its horses after great men. Just over two years ago, they named a colt Henri Matisse, after the renowned master of modern art. On Sunday, Henri Matisse—by the French champion Immortal Verse—won the Emirates Poule d’Essai des Poulains (Group 1) at ParisLongchamp. Last year, he had already claimed a prestigious international victory by winning the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile in the U.S. as a 2-year-old.
On Sunday, over the 1,600m of the Grand Piste, four horses set a blistering early pace… allowing Henri Matisse to make history by smashing both the race and course records in 1’33’’91 (the previous records stood at 1’34’’50 for the race and 1’34’’10 for the course).
After giving their all, the four frontrunners had to surrender, setting the stage for a duel between two horses: the British runner Jonquil (by Lope de Vega), who had travelled just behind the leaders, and the Irish-trained Henri Matisse (by Wootton Bassett), who came from mid-pack and picked off his rivals one by one along the rail. On the far outside, Coolmore’s other Irish contender Camille Pissarro (also by Wootton Bassett), named in tribute to another great French painter, produced a storming finish to take third place from British colt Luther (by Frankel). The first French horse home was Ridari (by Churchill), who finished fifth.
Official Result
EMIRATES POULE D’ESSAI DES POULAINS
1st: HENRI MATISSE (R. Moore)
2nd: JONQUIL (O. Murphy)
3rd: CAMILLE PISSARRO (C. Soumillon)
Time: 1’33’’91 – Margins: Head – 1 – Short Neck
RYAN MOORE THAT WAS BRILLIANT 👏
HENRI MATISSE WINS THE FRENCH 2000 GUINEAS FOR AIDAN O’BRIEN!! 🇫🇷🤩
— Stephen R Power (@racingblogger) May 11, 2025