The Aga Khan has retired his Group 1 winning filly Sarafina.  The daughter of Refuse to Bend will be bred to an Irish based sire in 2012.

Sarafina (4f Refuse To Bend – Sanariya by Darshaan) is an Aga Khan homebred and was unraced as a juvenile for trainer Alain de Royer-Dupre.  She was an impressive debut winner at Chantilly in May 2010 before going straight to the top of the class in the G1 Prix Saint-Alary at Longchamp and G1 Prix de Diane back at Chantilly.

After closing out last term with a G1 Arc de Triomphe placing, she returned to win the G2 Prix Corrida, G1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud and G2 Prix Foy.

She bowed out with a lifetime record of 11-6-1-2 after defeats in the Arc de Triomphe and Breeders’ Cup Turf earlier this month.

“She’s a smashing filly and will be a lovely prospect to breed from,” Aga Khan manager Pat Downes said.  “We will probably sort out a stallion in the next week or so.  There’s a good chance she’ll come to Ireland to be covered.”

Darley has followed the money and transferred her sire Refuse To Bend from England to France for the 2012 breeding season.  He will be based at Sheikh Mohammed’s Haras du Logis in Normandy.

Refuse To Bend (Sadler’s Wells) was a G1 winner of the 2003 English 2000 Guineas and returned to add the 2004 Queen Anne Stakes and Coral Eclipse.  He retired to Kildangan Stud in County Kildare and stayed there until 2010 when he was transferred to Whitsbury.

Refuse To Bend shuttled to Australia for three seasons until 2008 and has sired the stakes winners Benny’s Buttons and Right Of Refusal.