Stradivarius sparkles
to seal Gold Cup treble

Stradivarius demonstrated his star quality again with a stunning 10-length
victory to win the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot for the third time.

With Frankie Dettori on board, the 4/5 favourite didn't disappoint as he
eventually romped clear in the big race of the day at the Royal meeting on
Thursday to make it a hat-trick of Gold Cup wins.

Amid some doubts over how the six-year-old would cope with the softer ground
due to heavy rain, John Gosden's charge delivered when it mattered most again
for owner Bjorn Nielsen.

Stradivarius is a winning machine and this latest success was his 15th victory
on the Flat as he judged the race perfectly to come out on top for the third
year in a row.

With 3/1 shot Technician struggling, Dettori guided Stradivarius behind Nayef
Road before out-running his rival, who finished second, in spectacular fashion.

Dettori labelled Stradivarius as “one of the great stayers” after yet
another stunning win.

The jockey said afterwards: “It's an amazing achievement. The rain this
morning was against him but he did it well. I'm very proud of the horse and he took
off in the straight.

“I've ridden some great horses and he's one of the great stayers.”

Behind Stradivarius and Nayef Road (11/1), Cross Counter (7/1) came in third.