Stradivarius launched his bid for a second Weatherbys Hamilton Stayers’ Million series bonus in fine style May 17 by landing his second consecutive Matchbook Yorkshire Cup (Grade 2).
An anxious moment occurred when the whip was temporarily drawn by Frankie Dettori at the three-furlong marker but was gone as fast as it appeared cast aside as Stradivarius recorded a sixth consecutive victory, defeating Southern France by three-quarters of a length.
John Gosden who has trained Stradivarius to win his sixth in a row had this to say:
“Stradivarius is the best stayer I’ve trained, but he’s never going to go and win by five lengths and show off, that’s not his style. The season will map itself. We haven’t trained him hard for this, and the Gold Cup is a different ballgame over 2 1/2 miles. The pace was slowed right down, which wasn’t ideal, but I liked the way he showed a bit of grit at the end, and he was a little ring-rusty so should come forward. He’s not the polished, finished article, but we hope to have that right at Royal Ascot.”
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