Christophe Soumillon
In October, Cirrus des Aigles was sent to race in Britain for the first time when he contested the Champion Stakes over ten furlongs at Ascot. The field for the most valuable race ever run in Britain included many leading horses including So You Think, Nathaniel, Snow Fairy, Midday and Twice Over. Ridden by Christophe Soumillon, Cirrus des Aigles raced just behind the front-runners before moving forward to challenge for the lead a furlong from the finish. In a strongly contested finish, he prevailed by three-quarters of a length from So You Think, with Snow Fairy half a length back in third. After the race Soumillon was given a five-day riding ban and lost his £50,000 share of the prize money for using his whip six times inside the furlong. He pointed out that he had been unable to see the furlong marker and claimed that the controversial rule "makes no sense". Barande-Barbe described the win as her best day in racing and said that Cirrus des Aigles "keeps improving, and has just run best race of his life."