THE feature races on Friday were held over contrasting distances with the finish of the Group 2 Lonsdale Cup proving to be every bit as fast as the finish to the Group 1 Nunthorpe Stakes as both Stradivarius and Winter Power further enhanced their brilliant course records.

The late defection of Trueshan on account of the ground took some of the gloss off the Lonsdale Cup but Stradivarius (117) and Spanish Mission (116) produced a finish to savour after two miles, the pair separated by just a head at the line.

The Grand Visir made sure the race was not run at a crawl and he still held a healthy lead turning for home but, after being ignored early, the principals closed him down quickly with Spanish Mission enjoying the benefit of being taken into the race by Stradivarius.

As the protracted battle suggested there was little difference in the closing splits with Spanish Mission edging it slightly in posting 33.57 seconds against the winner’s 33.64 seconds, both finishing off almost as fast as the sprinters who contested the Nunthorpe.

The difference maker was Frankie Dettori as he conjured one last effort form his partner to grind his way back to the front in the shadows of the post after being headed.

The filly Winter Power (117) made it three wins from three starts at York this season with a runaway win in the Group 1 Nunthorpe, making the most of what look to be her ideal conditions.

The formative stages of the race were as crucial as the finish as Silvestre de Sousa quickly had his mount into full stride while race favourite Suesa (110+) was slow to find hers and was then hampered by the equally slow to stride Dakota Gold, which in turn resulted in Arecibo (102) being forced into evasive action.

Disadvantage

While not wanting to detract from the performance of the winner, it was a disadvantage that the French-trained favourite could not overcome despite a finishing split of 32.37 that was much faster than Winter Power’s 33.56 seconds.

Using Suesa as a barometer, the performances of Chil Chil (110) and Aricebo are worthy of upgrading.

Andrew Balding’s mare will be better suited by a return to six furlongs but finished strongly in posting a closing section of 32.57 seconds while Aricebo’s finished off in 32.70 seconds after recovering from the interference at the start.