Some great racing from Glorious Goodwood this week
More details to follow but just a taste
Tuesday : will see Stradivarius going for the Cup for a 4th time, but will have to give Santiago plenty weight 15lbs.
Wednesday: Siskin runs in a fairly open running of the Sussex stakes.
Thursday: Nazeef will probably top the boards in the Nassau Stakes.
Friday : Battaash looks unbeatable in the King George Qatar Stakes.
John Gosden describes the clash of staying generations between Stradivarius and Santiago as fascinating, though a quirk of the calendar makes it a little more finely balanced than when Bjorn Nielsen's brilliant chestnut recorded the first of his three Goodwood Cup wins.
Stradivarius was the new kid on the block in 2017. The three-year-old bounced out of the newly-truncated Queen's Vase to take advantage of the weight-for-age allowance to tackle the established order at two miles in the Goodwood Cup.
Santiago is on the same road in 2020 but with two potentially crucial differences: just eight days after Ascot he became a Classic winner with success in the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby and he receives an extra 2lb allowance from Stradivarius, owing to their meeting before the end of July.
"If the race was run on August 1, he'd be giving [Santiago] 13lb," said Gosden. "Because it's run at the end of July, he's giving 15lb to a horse who won stylishly in the Vase and went on to win an Irish Derby. That's a big ask for Stradivarius to give 15lb over two miles.
"We are perfectly aware of the task in hand and we ourselves took advantage of the three-year-old allowance when Big Orange conceded 13lb a few years ago. He will have to be at the top of his game."
Despite being the age of six, time is showing no signs of catching up with Stradivarius after landing a third Gold Cup at Ascot by the small matter of ten lengths last month. And if the race conditions make life tough, Gosden believes the 'Goodwood factor' may do plenty to level the playing field.
"I think it's a really fascinating contest and we'll see how the old boy feels about it," said Gosden. "Our fellow likes the track and handles it."
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