Stradivarius Aims for Fifth Goodwood Cup Success

Star stayer Stradivarius  had been beaten 10 times before his shock reverse in the Gold Cup (G1) at Royal Ascot last month, so connections knew how it felt, but it seems that loss was a tougher pill to swallow than perhaps any other.

That is understandable considering the popular 7-year-old was sent off favorite to equal the four triumphs the dominant Yeats recorded in the famous race, but he could manage only fourth after being positioned towards the rear and enduring a troubled route round as the now-injured Subjectivist  shot clear for a handsome victory.

It was probably not Frankie Dettori's finest moment, but one of the sport's greatest riders is unlikely to be caught out again, even if enthusiastic owner Bjorn Nielsen is well aware of the role tactics could play as his golden boy aims for a fifth Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup (G1), a QIPCO British Champions Series race July 27 at Goodwood.

"The way it is with him now is that he's always the one they have to beat and they ride to beat him, so a lot of horses will be trying to make sure he doesn't have a good run round," Nielsen said.

"They are going to try to make it difficult for him and that's what happened at Ascot. But if he's out and about he's going to win.

"Stradivarius had worked very well before the Gold Cup and we were pretty confident he was going to run a huge race, but things just didn't work out—no disrespect to Subjectivist, who was well trained, well ridden, and quickened up exactly as we were getting stopped."

Sticking to his theme, Nielsen added: "You are always going to need some luck in running at Goodwood too—things have to go your way.

"There are still some very good horses there though, and any rain is going to suit Trueshan . We can't underestimate Sir Ron Priestley  either, who Mark Johnston has supplemented and is no slouch."

Trueshan's trainer Alan King had similar thoughts, saying: "I thought the rain they had already had would make it safe enough to run, but to see Trueshan at his best it's a case of the more rain the better." 

John Gosden, who trains Stradivarius with son Thady, seems more concerned about conditions.

"He's doing fine and has trained well up to the race," he said.

"Obviously all the rain that has fallen has gone against him. He's a horse that prefers summer ground in summer because he has a great turn of foot and when you get 30 millimeters of rain in a hurry like this it's going to slow things down a little.

"It plays to other horses's strengths, not to his, and I would have a lot more confidence if we had missed it. It brings Trueshan very much into play and from our point of view the slower the ground is, the worse."

Gosden, no doubt, will have discussed tactics and a game plan with Dettori as they seek a different outcome to Ascot.   

"I think Frankie, having ridden him so brilliantly in previous Gold Cups, seemed to have a brainstorm and sit 12 lengths off the pace!

"It's an extraordinary achievement for him to be coming to the Goodwood Cup five years in a row and we're going to be there doing our best," added the Newmarket ace.

"Hopefully this time he's in a position where he can make a race of it because he was too far back and then ran into trouble at Ascot."