He won four Group One races including the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes and was Europe's Champion Older Horse in 2005.
Azamour was made 6/4 favourite in a field which included runners from the leading stables of Aidan O'Brien, Jim Bolger and Dermot Weld.
Murtagh tracked the leader Relaxed Gesture throughout the race and Azamour stayed on under pressure in the straight to take the lead inside the last furlong and win by a neck.
He was largely ignored in the betting and started at 25/1, but exceeded expectations, staying on strongly up the centre of the straight mile course and finishing third, beaten just under three lengths, behind Haafhd and Snow Ridge.
Kinane had Azamour just behind the leaders for most of the race before moving into the lead a furlong from the finish, but was caught in the closing stages and beaten a neck by the English-trained Bachelor Duke.
[15] Azamour was then sent back to England for the Royal Ascot meeting, where he faced a strong field, including Haafhd and Bachelor Duke in the St. James's Palace Stakes.
Azamour produced his best performance to date, taking the lead in the straight and running on strongly under pressure to hold off the French-trained Diamond Green by a neck.
Azamour produced a powerful, sustained run (described by RTÉ as a "blistering flourish")[19] to move past the entire field, catching Norse Dancer in the last strides and winning by half a length.
[22] As predicted, Azamour began his season in a strong renewal of the Tattersalls Gold Cup in which he took fourth place behind Grey Swallow, Bago and Ace.
Azamour was made 11/8 favourite for the Prince of Wales's Stakes, and justified his position by leading a furlong from the finish and beating Ace by one and a half lengths, with Elvstroem, Warrsan and Ouija Board among the also-rans.
Azamour was made 5/2 favourite in a field which included Bago, Grey Swallow, Doyen and several other major winners, although the absence of top-class three-year-olds was noticeable.
He ran on strongly in the closing stages to record what one commentator called an "insultingly easy"[27] win by one and a quarter lengths from Norse Dancer, with Bago third.
[37] Several years after Azamour's retirement, John Oxx pointed out the colt's similarities to Sea the Stars, explaining that both horses had dominant temperaments- they were natural "herd leaders.