Dettori spat, millions in earnings and what could be his last run… Atzeni wants Goodwood Cup glory on Stradivarius

AFTER a quiet few years,  Andrea Atzeni is hoping to be Bjorn again.

That’s because he has been called up to ride Stradivarius on his final career start in today’s Goodwood Cup.

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The horse’s owner Bjorn Nielsen turned to Atzeni after a public falling out with Frankie Dettori at Royal Ascot.

Nielsen and trainer John Gosden laid into Dettori for his ride on the horse, who finished a never-nearer third in the Gold Cup last month.

It sparked a huge row and resulted in Dettori having a two-week ‘sabbatical’ from his role with Gosden.

And it caused a break-up between Dettori and the legendary eight-year-old Stradivarius.

But if anyone has earned another crack on the great stayer, it’s Atzeni, who is a perfect three from three on him.

He last rode Strad as a four-year-old in the 2018 Goodwood Cup — when Dettori was forced to sit it out through suspension.

It’s a very different situation this time, but Atzeni has distanced himself from the politics behind the scenes and is keeping his mind on the job.

It‘s an important job for him, with his career in need of a  jolt.

He enjoyed a flurry of big-race wins between 2014 and 2018 but the good horses have been harder to come by recently.

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Atzeni, 31, said: “It’s great to be back on Stradivarius. The last time I sat on him was in 2018 when I won my second Goodwood Cup on him.

“I stayed well out of the discussions between Bjorn and Frankie, it is not my place to get involved in any of that.

“I get paid to ride horses and I was the lucky one to get the call and obviously very happy to take the ride on Stradivarius.

“I’m good friends with Bjorn and Frankie and I’ve got a good record on the horse, so hopefully that can continue.

“Lately it hasn’t been as easy to get on good horses so it is nice for the owner to believe in me — I want to repay the faith.”

It will be a completely different Stradivarius to the one Atzeni last rode in 2018.

He is four years older and has a few more miles on the clock — 45 miles in 22 races to be exact — and his air of invincibility is long gone.

But he has shown he can still perform at a high level. Whether that will be enough to beat Royal Ascot hero Kyprios remains to be seen.

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The bookies expect Aidan O’Brien’s four-year-old to confirm his superiority over Stradivarius this afternoon.

After all, he is half his age and is open to bundles of improvement after just seven career starts.

But Atzeni isn’t concerned. He said: “I’m not too bothered about who turns up, I am only worried about my fella and getting him in the best position possible.

“He is one of the best stayers we have ever seen and he loves it at the track, so what is there to be worried about?”

It’s true, Stradivarius has never tasted defeat at Goodwood, having returned home with the gold medal on each of his four visits to the Sussex Downs.

The horse will be packed off to a stud career at the end of the season and his performance today will decide when to call stumps.

Nielsen said: “He has an entry in the Lonsdale at York, so we are keeping our options open.

“If he gets properly beaten we’d probably call it quits, but he’s not shown any signs of that and there’s a chance he’ll run again, for sure."

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Whatever happens at Goodwood, Stradivarius will retire as one of the most popular horses of his generation and Atzeni knows the ride is one that carries great responsibility.

He said: “Physically he is going to be a different horse from when I rode him as a four-year-old. I will speak to Frankie and I’m sure he will give me plenty of advice.

“But once the stalls open it’s all up to me.  I’m fairly relaxed and it’s a great opportunity to get on a horse like him.

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“The public love him and to have a horse around for so long and run to such a high level isn’t something you see every day.

“It’s a privilege to ride him and it would be amazing to give him and his fans a good send-off. He deserves it.”

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