Gold Cup (G1)
June 16, 2021
Stradivarius goes for his fourth Gold Cup in a row.
He’s a brilliant stayer who also won the Queen’s Vase in 2017. Never beaten at Royal Ascot, he’s six from nine overall at Ascot, beaten 62L last year in the Long Distance Cup in October, his worst track performance (after contesting the Arc a few weeks earlier), his other two defeats, a nose behind Kew Gardens in 2019 and a length behind Order Of St George in 2017, also in the Long Distance Cup.
He’s been vunerable in October not in June.
The question – Is even money about an seven-year-old value? As we saw with Battassh, also a seven-year-old, age catches up.
A younger brigade is coming through.
The six-year-old Princess Zoe improved beyond all recognition throughout last year, rated 64 when she came from France to Tony Mullins she rattled off five wins on the bounce including winning France’s premier staying race (over this trip) the G1 Prix Du Cadran over Arc weekend on heavy ground.
The five-year-old’s, Treushan, Spanish Mission, Nayef Road and Rip Van Lips, all decent performers, winners at G2 level, have never won a G1.
The four-year-old’s bring G1 winning form, Derby winners, Serpentine, last year’s Epsom hero, Santigo, last year’s Irish Derby winner, and Amhran Na Bhfiann, third at Epsom, all have questions to answer over the marathon trip. Lesser so, Subjectivist, winner of the G1 the Prix Royal Oak over a 1m7½f. They’re are accompanied by Ben Lily and Emperor Of The Sun, a listed winner last time out.
There’s one older than Stradivarius, Twilight Payment, the eight-year-old Melbourne Cup winner.
Stradivarius is very short and it would be wonderful to see him do the four-timer, the last seven-year-old to win it was Yeats, the third of his four Gold Cups, however, age favours the field, with rain forecast overnight, given the trip, Princess Zoe appeals at a decent price, for her, the more rain the better.
Recommendation
Princess Zoe 22/1 ew
