Blast From The Past: July Cup

There were some top-class colts among the three-year-old crop of 1999. In France there was Montjeu, winner of the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, while in Britain there was Dubai Millennium whose best effort that season came in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes over a mile. Meanwhile, Stravinsky, trained in Ireland by Aidan O’Brien, was the season’s champion sprinter, proving far too good for older rivals in that division as well as his fellow three-year-olds.

Stravinsky began the season ante-post favourite for the 2000 Guineas but ended up missing that race and instead lined up for the July Cup with two defeats over seven furlongs to his name, latterly finishing only fourth in the Jersey Stakes at Royal Ascot. The July Cup was his first start back at six furlongs since his winning debut at the trip at York the previous summer. He started at 8/1 in a wide-open contest with the 11/2 favourite Wannabe Grand also dropping back in trip after dead-heating for third in the Coronation Stakes last time out.

There were no fewer than thirteen pattern winners in the field, the proven speed merchants among them including the Cork And Orrery (now the Diamond Jubilee) Stakes winner Bold Edge, the King’s Stand winner Mitcham and the previous season’s Nunthorpe winner Lochangel.

Stravinsky was fitted with a visor for the first time, which, combined with the shorter trip, resulted in a spectacular performance. ‘The colt didn’t just beat his rivals in the July Cup,’ commented his essay in Racehorses, ‘he destroyed them.’

‘Cool as a cucumber in the preliminaries, Stravinsky was held up, travelling smoothly, as Bold Edge and Bertolini set a good pace. Cruising through on the bridle from halfway, he unleashed a spectacular turn of foot to lead inside the final furlong and strode away to score by four lengths. For the record, Bold Edge was second and Bertolini [who had finished a place in front of Stravinsky in the Jersey] third, a neck away, but nothing really mattered besides the winner, who was in a class of his own and clearly very much at home on firm going.’

The very quick ground, incidentally, helped Stravinsky break the track record which stood for fourteen years until it was lowered again in the 2013 July Cup by Lethal Force. Stravinsky confirmed that sprinting was his game by following up over five furlongs in the Nunthorpe Stakes and finished sixth in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint before being retired to stud. Aidan O’Brien won the July Cup again two years later with Mozart and was successful for a third time with Starspangledbanner in 2010.