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.