Dettori guides 6-year-old Stradivarius to record Goodwood Cup trimph
Frankie Dettori and trainer John Gosden recorded their second piece of racing history in a matter of days as Stradivarius won a fourth Goodwood Cup on Tuesday, the opening day of the Glorious Goodwood Festival.
Stradivarius’s hard-fought victory could give Dettori a headache come the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe on October 4.
For Gosden said afterward that owner Bjorn Nielsen wants him to run in Europe’s most prestigious race in France, where he will meet the stable’s other star, Enable, who is bidding for a record third win in the race.
Dettori looked in trouble halfway down the straight of Tuesday’s Group One contest as he was blocked by a wall of four horses.
However, the 49-year-old Italian managed to get Stradivarius out of trouble and target the front-running Nayef Road and Irish Derby winner Santiago.
Once Dettori got upsides Santiago and Nayef Road, he and the three-time Ascot Gold Cup champion were not to be denied and eventually beat Nayef Road by a length.
Stradivarius’ record run comes after super mare Enable won a historic third King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot on Saturday.
“What a horse,” exclaimed Dettori, who was winning the Goodwood Cup for a joint record fifth time.
“He was giving away over two stone to Santiago and made light of it.
“Everyone was racing to beat him and yet he still gets out and wins. He is an amazing horse.
“Enable on Saturday, Stradivarius today – it is the stuff of dreams!”
Gosden had said prior to the race 6-year-old Stradivarius faced the biggest challenge of his career due to the amount of extra weight he had to carry compared to the younger Santiago.
“He has great heart and is cool and relaxed,” said Gosden.
“He is a horse you like to play along with the way he wants to do things – he is a great character.”
‘A lot of luck’
Gosden said Stradivarius could win in any style – his gritty display on Tuesday, which was his 16th win in 23 starts, contrasted with his 10-length romp to victory in the Ascot Gold Cup in June.
“He was flashy last time [Ascot] and here, he had to grind it out,” said Gosden.
“It was a little bit rope-a-dope.”
Nielsen said Stradivarius deserved to be talked about in the same bracket as the other great stayers of yesteryear like four-time Ascot Gold Cup winner Yeats and three-time Goodwood Cup victor Double Trigger.
“It is an amazing thing that Stradivarius turns up on my doorstep because I don’t have a big stable,” said the South African-born naturalised American hedge fund trader.
“You have guys like Sheikh Mohammed with 500 horses and Coolmore with all their horses, how do I wind up with Stradivarius?
“There is a lot of luck involved, a lot of luck.”
Gosden said Stradivarius would run in the Arc trial, the Prix Foy, in September and all being well then the Arc.
“Let us hope Enable and Stradivarius are in top order [for the Arc],” said Gosden.
“Frankie will have to decide what he is riding, I probably know the answer, but that will be his decision.”
Dettori for his part said if the ground turned soft for the Arc his head might be turned toward riding him instead.
“Obviously, I am on Enable at the moment, but who knows?” said Dettori.
“I am not going to discourage him [Nielsen].
“He [Stradivarius] has done nothing wrong and there’s a possibility the ground would come very soft, which he doesn’t mind.”
Stradivarius ridden by jockey Frankie Dettori wins the Goodwood Cup for a record fourth time at Goodwood racecourse near Chichester, England on Tuesday. Photo: AFP
