The fairytale fourth Group I Ascot Gold Cup (2m 4f) win for race favourite Stradivarius failed to unfold at Royal Ascot overnight with victory in the staying test going to the four year-old Teofilo stallion Subjectivist.
Trained by Mark Johnston and ridden by Joe Fanning, Subjectivist was coming into this race off wins in the Group I Prix Royal Oak last year and the Group II Meydan Gold Cup and brought up a winning hat-trick with his five length defeat of long shot Princess Zoe.
Stradivarius finished fourth with Melbourne Cup winner Twilight Payment in ninth place.
“Subjectivist has been a great horse this year and he just keeps improving. Around five out and before the home bend I was able to get breathers into him and fill him up and I thought it would take a very good one to go by him,” said Joe Fanning.
Trainer Mark Johnston was winning the Gold Cup for the fourth time having been successful previously with Double Trigger and twice with Royal Rebel.
"It's a sad day for Stradivarius and I know what it feels like when a champion like that goes under but it's going to happen one day and I'm just happy that it was us," said Johnston.
"I thought he was the best horse we'd taken Stradivarius on with but his preparation hasn't been smooth. We had a scare straight after the Dubai race and thought that was going to be really serious and he missed quite a bit of time. Then, to cap it all, last week he fell on the road at Middleham – you can see his knees and hocks are skinned, so we've had quite a few scares along the way.
"There are much bigger races and more valuable races, even at Royal Ascot, but I say every year I come here the one race I want to win is the Gold Cup. This is what Royal Ascot is all about. It's a fantastic race to watch every year, even if you don't win it."
Bought by his trainer at the Tattersalls October Yearling Book 2 Sale for 62,000 guineas, Subjectivist has the overall record of six wins and six placings from 17 starts.
He is a three-quarter brother to Group III winner Sir Ron Priestley, who was also second in the Group I St Leger, and half-brother to Group II placed Alba Rose
One of 21 Group I winners by Teofilo, Subjectivist is the second winner from stakes-placed Danehill Dancer mare Reckoning, who comes from a family that has produced Group I winners such as Sholokhov, Intense Focus , Skitter Scatter and Soldier of Fortune.
Teofilo shuttled to Australia with good success earlier in his stud career and has two Group I winning sons at stud here this spring in Kermadec (Darley) and Palentino (Widden Stud Victoria), both standing at a fee of $11,000.
With a double cross of both Danehill and Sadler’s Wells, Subjectivist has an interesting pedigree and is among 54 stakes-winners to combine the blood of Galileo and Danehill Dancer.
The nick also featured at Royal Ascot overnight with three year-old filly Loving Dream taking out the Group II Ribblesdale Stakes (1m 4f).
Trained by John and Thady Gosden, Loving Dream scored a three-quarter length win, her first victory in a Black Type race.
A homebred for Lordship Stud, Loving Dream is the 13th stakes-winner for Galileo’s Group I winning son Gleneagles and she is a half-sister to stakes-winner Amandine from stakes-winning Danehill Dancer mare Kissable.
It’s a female family packed with quality stayers including multiple Group I winners Brian Boru, Workforce and Caulfield Cup winner Best Solution.
