Talking Horses: grand old Stradivarius too short for Yorkshire Cup

Many owners might have been tempted to send Stradivarius off to stud at the end of 2018, when his big-race wins included the Ascot Gold Cup and Goodwood Cup. If so, his first crop of two-year-olds would have been stepping on to the track this spring.

Instead, the grand old horse himself is still going strong and about to start his seventh season on the racecourse in Friday’s Yorkshire Cup.

Related: Kentucky Derby’s 80-1 winner Rich Strike will not compete for Triple Crown

Cavalryman, in 2014, is the only eight-year-old “entire” horse to win at Group Two level in Britain in the last 20 years, and John Gosden, Stradivarius’s trainer, said this week that he is “certainly not giving him hard, hard works at home, he’s too old for that”.

Gosden added: “I don’t want everyone there thinking he’s going to necessarily go and win another Yorkshire Cup, I’d just like to see him run a race that acts as a platform going forward.”

On that basis, Stradivarius looks too short for Friday’s race at 4-5 and Dermot Weld’s gritty mare Search For A Song (3.35) is the obvious one to bet against him at around 5-1. The six-year-old has Group One-winning form in the 2020 Irish St Leger, has the benefit of a run behind her already this year and gets a handy 6lb from the favourite.

York 1.50: An astonishing 13 of these juveniles – in a 16-strong field – were winners last time out so the biggest improver is likely to land the spoils. Fix You is a tentative pick having put up a fair performance on the clock when going clear on debut at Thirsk last month.

Newbury 2.05: Puerto De Vega was much improved on the all-weather over the winter and will go close if transferring that form back to the turf.

York 2.25: John Gosden’s Grande Dame won despite very