Goodwood Cup Tips: Take on Stradivarius in feature race on day one

We are set for a sensational renewal of the Goodwood Cup on the opening day of the Glorious Goodwood festival on Tuesday, as the four-time winner Stradivarius bids for a record-breaking fifth success in the event, but the John & Thady Gosden-trained superstar will face stiff opposition in what should be a thrilling renewal of the marathon contest...

Much was made of the ride Frankie Dettori gave Stradivarius in the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot last month, as the eight-year-old found himself well back when they turned for home in that Group 1 event, and the horse could only finish third. A spat between owner Bjorn Neilsen and Dettori has seen the enigmatic Italian taken off the multiple Group winner and Andrea Atzeni will take the ride on board Stradivarius, who is a best-priced 5/2 to make it a famous fifth victory.

Atzeni partnered Stradivarius to victory in this race back in 2017 and 2018, so the jockey booking won't be an issue, but the horse appears to be on a slight decline having dominated the division for the last few seasons, and while he's likely to be ridden more prominently he could well just falter to younger legs, and the one that can get the better of him is KYPRIOS, who heads to the south coast as the reigning Gold Cup hero.

Aidan O'Brien's four-year-old produced a fine performance to outbattle Stradivarius and several other classy stayers in the Gold Cup at the Royal meeting, and the Ballydoyle raider is sure to improve for his first Group 1 success, and at 13/8 here he looks the one they all have to beat. Excelling over the marathon 2m 4f distance last month, Kyprios will need to show his class over two miles here, but he has shown he possesses a turn of pace, and that could well put the race to bed in the closing stages.

Ryan Moore gave the son of Galileo an exquisite ride last time out and the world class jockey is sure to have his mount in the right position throughout this event, and while he may have to eyeball Stradivarius in the closing stages, the O'Brien charge is on obvious incline and she should frank the form with the Gosden charge, who will find it tough to down the emerging young gun.

Alan King's Trueshan was a mightily impressive three-and-three-quarter length winner of this race last season, but the six-year-old's participation is sure to be in doubt as the Barbury Castle inmate will only run if Goodwood receives significant rain. Having missed the Gold Cup due to the quick ground, Trueshan was then rerouted to the Northumberland Plate at Newcastle where he produced a phenomenal weight-carrying performance to land the coveted north east prize. Giving lumps of weight away to all his rivals, Trueshan showed his class as he stormed to victory and duly cemented his place as one of the leading stayers in training.

However, it's still unknown whether he will take his chance, and while if the rain came he'd likely be sent off favourite for the event, the current 100/30 available with the bookmakers is not worth backing, and even still if he was to line up on Tuesday he will have a tough task on his return to Group company, and Kyprios could quite easily have too much class for him.

There's a chasm in the betting between the top three and the remaining six runners, but one contender that could make significant appeal from an each-way perspective is the progressive Coltrane, who lines up for Andrew Balding and is a 10/1 chance. Second in the Chester Cup, the five-year-old then went on to win the Ascot Stakes at Royal Ascot in fine style before going on to win the Listed Coral Marathon at Sandown. This is a huge step up in class, but he's in the form of his life and if some of the leading principals failed to fire then he's sure to run a solid race and he could sneak in the frame.

A winner of the Sagaro Stakes at Ascot, Princess Zoe failed to play any part in the Gold Cup, and the 16/1 shot could be out of his depth at this level again, while Away He Goes (50/1), who finished second last year, Enemy (50/1), Nate The Great and Thunderous (both 66/1) all appear to have their work cut out in a race that can be dominated by those at the front end of the betting.