Stradivarius faces 10 rivals in bid for fifth Goodwood Cup

LONDON: Stradivarius is set to face 10 rivals in his bid for a remarkable fifth victory in Tuesday’s Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup. John and Thady Gosden’s superstar stayer has landed the two-mile Group One ever year since 2017, beating the great Double Trigger’s record of three victories in the race in the 1990s.

Despite having come up short in his bid for a fourth Gold Cup success at Royal Ascot last month, Stradivarius will be a hot favourite to get back on the winning trail on the Sussex Downs under Frankie Dettori.

With his Gold Cup hero Subjectivist sidelined by injury, Mark Johnston instead saddles his half-brother Sir Ron Priestley and his stablemate Nayef Road.

Sir Ron Priestley steps up to two miles for the first time off the back of winning the Group Two Princess of Wales’s Stakes at Newmarket over a mile and a half, while Nayef Road was runner-up to Stradivarius in last year’s Goodwood Cup, but has been disappointing of late.

Andrew Balding will have high hopes for Spanish Mission, who was one place ahead of Stradivarius when third in the Gold Cup.

Aidan O’Brien retains a strong hand, with recent Curragh Cup winner Amhran Na Bhfiann joined by Serpentine and Santiago, who won the Derby and the Irish Derby respectively last season.

The Donnacha O’Brien-trained Emperor Of The Sun is a fourth Irish challenger.

Away He Goes (Ismail Mohammed), Mekong (Jamie Osborne) and Trueshan (Alan King) complete the field.

Stradivarius’ owner Bjorn Nielsen expects his Goodwood rivals to “try to make it difficult” for the reigning champion, but he believes his star stayer can rise to the challenge in an event which is part of the Qipco British Champions series.