July Cup

Group 1 race
July Cup

Location	July Course Newmarket, England
Inaugurated	1876
Race type	Flat / Thoroughbred
Sponsor	Darley
Website	Newmarket
Race information
Distance	6f (1,207 metres)
Track	Turf, straight
Qualification	Three-years-old and up
Weight	8 st 13 lb (3yo); 9 st 5 lb (4yo+) Allowances 3 lb for fillies and mares
Purse	£400,000 (2011) 1st: £226,840

The July Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run on the July Course at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is scheduled to take place each year in July.

It is one of Britain's most valuable and prestigious sprint races, and many of its winners have been acknowledged as the champion sprinter in Europe.

History

The event was established in 1876, and the first two runnings were won by Springfield, a colt bred by Queen Victoria at the Hampton Court Stud.

The present system of race grading was introduced in 1971, and the July Cup was initially classed at Group 2 level. It was promoted to Group 1 status in 1978.

The July Cup became part of the Global Sprint Challenge in 2008. It is now the sixth leg of the series, preceded by the Golden Jubilee Stakes and followed by the Sprinters Stakes.

The race is currently held on the final day of Newmarket's three-day July Festival meeting.

Records

Most successful horse (3 wins):

• Sundridge – 1902, 1903, 1904

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Leading jockey (10 wins):

• Lester Piggott – Vigo (1957), Right Boy (1958, 1959), Tin Whistle (1960), Thatch (1973), Saritamer (1974), Solinus (1978), Thatching (1979), Moorestyle (1980), Mr Brooks (1992)

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Leading trainer (5 wins):

• Charles Morton – Sundridge (1903, 1904), Spanish Prince (1912, 1913), Golden Sun (1914)
• Vincent O'Brien – Thatch (1973), Saritamer (1974), Solinus (1978), Thatching (1979), Royal Academy (1990)

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Leading owner (5 wins):

• Jack Joel – Sundridge (1903, 1904), Spanish Prince (1912, 1913), Golden Sun (1914)

Winners since 1968

Year	Winner	Age	Jockey	Trainer	Owner	Time
1968	So Blessed	3	Frankie Durr	Michael Jarvis	David Robinson
1969	Tudor Music	3	Frankie Durr	Michael Jarvis	David Robinson
1970	Huntercombe	3	Sandy Barclay	Arthur Budgett	Horace Renshaw
1971	Realm	4	Brian Taylor	John Winter	Bob Boucher	1:13.60
1972	Parsimony	3	Ron Hutchinson	F. Johnson Houghton	Ruby Holland-Martin
1973	Thatch	3	Lester Piggott	Vincent O'Brien	Jack Mulcahy	1:13.10
1974	Saritamer	3	Lester Piggott	Vincent O'Brien	Charles St George	1:11.80
1975	Lianga	4	Yves Saint-Martin	Angel Penna, Sr.	Daniel Wildenstein	1:11.80
1976	Lochnager	4	Edward Hide	Mick Easterby	Charles Spence	1:12.30
1977	Gentilhombre	4	Paul Cook	Neil Adam	J. Murrell	1:11.40
1978	Solinus	3	Lester Piggott	Vincent O'Brien	Danny Schwartz	1:11.90
1979	Thatching	4	Lester Piggott	Vincent O'Brien	Robert Sangster	1:13.20
1980	Moorestyle	3	Lester Piggott	Robert Armstrong	Moores Furnishings Ltd	1:12.89
1981	Marwell	3	Walter Swinburn	Michael Stoute	Edmund Loder	1:14.10
1982	Sharpo	5	Pat Eddery	Jeremy Tree	Monica Sheriffe	1:11.74
1983	Habibti	3	Willie Carson	John Dunlop	Mohamed Mutawa	1:12.11
1984	Chief Singer	3	Ray Cochrane	Ron Sheather	Jeff Smith	1:11.75
1985	Never So Bold	5	Steve Cauthen	Robert Armstrong	Edward Kessly	1:11.86
1986	Green Desert	3	Walter Swinburn	Michael Stoute	Maktoum Al Maktoum	1:12.25
1987	Ajdal	3	Walter Swinburn	Michael Stoute	Sheikh Mohammed	1:11.02
1988	Soviet Star	4	Cash Asmussen	André Fabre	Sheikh Mohammed	1:12.55
1989	Cadeaux Genereux	4	Paul Eddery	Alex Scott	Maktoum Al Maktoum	1:09.82
1990	Royal Academy	3	John Reid	Vincent O'Brien	Classic Thoroughbred plc	1:11.46
1991	Polish Patriot	3	Ray Cochrane	Guy Harwood	Dick Kirstein	1:12.98
1992	Mr Brooks	5	Lester Piggott	Richard Hannon	Paul Green	1:11.80
1993	Hamas	4	Willie Carson	Peter Walwyn	Hamdan Al Maktoum	1:13.08
1994	Owington	3	Paul Eddery	Geoff Wragg	Baron G. von Ullmann	1:10.96
1995	Lake Coniston	4	Pat Eddery	Geoff Lewis	Highclere Racing Ltd	1:12.42
1996	Anabaa	4	Freddy Head	Criquette Head	Ghislaine Head	1:10.63
1997	Compton Place	3	Seb Sanders	James Toller	11th Duke of Devonshire	1:12.10
1998	Elnadim	4	Richard Hills	John Dunlop	Hamdan Al Maktoum	1:09.72
1999	Stravinsky	3	Michael Kinane	Aidan O'Brien	Magnier / Tabor	1:09.51
2000	Agnes World	5	Yutaka Take	Hideyuki Mori	Takao Watanabe	1:13.18
2001	Mozart	3	Michael Kinane	Aidan O'Brien	Tabor / Magnier	1:09.86
2002	Continent	5	Darryll Holland	David Nicholls	Lucayan Stud	1:13.00
2003	Oasis Dream	3	Richard Hughes	John Gosden	Khalid Abdullah	1:09.94
2004	Frizzante	5	Johnny Murtagh	James Fanshawe	Hopper / Grundy	1:11.51
2005	Pastoral Pursuits	4	John Egan	Hughie Morrison	Pursuits / National Stud	1:11.86
2006	Les Arcs	6	John Egan	Tim Pitt	Willie McKay	1:11.16
2007	Sakhee's Secret	3	Steve Drowne	Hughie Morrison	Bridget Swire	1:10.77
2008	Marchand d'Or	5	Davy Bonilla	Freddy Head	Carla Giral	1:11.01
2009	Fleeting Spirit	4	Tom Queally	Jeremy Noseda	The Searchers	1:09.58
2010	Starspangledbanner	4	Johnny Murtagh	Aidan O'Brien	Michael Tabor et al.	1:09.81
2011	Dream Ahead	3	Hayley Turner	David Simcock	Khalifa Dasmal	1:10.66

^a Marinsky finished first in 1977, but he was relegated to second place following a stewards' inquiry.

Earlier winners

• 1876: Springfield
• 1877: Springfield
• 1878: Trappist
• 1879: Phenix
• 1880: Charibert
• 1881: Charibert
• 1882: Tristan
• 1883: Clairvaux
• 1884: Geheimniss
• 1885: Energy
• 1886: Melton
• 1887: Ormonde
• 1888: Fullerton
• 1889: Mephisto
• 1890: Queen of the Fairies
• 1891: Memoir
• 1892: Workington
• 1893: Prince Hampton
• 1894: Best Man
• 1895: Woolsthorpe
• 1896: Worcester
• 1897: Kilcock
• 1898: Ugly
• 1899: Eager
• 1900: Running Stream
• 1901: Lord Bobs
• 1902: Sundridge
• 1903: Sundridge
• 1904: Sundridge
• 1905: Delaunay

• 1906: Thrush
• 1907: Dinneford
• 1908: Lesbia
• 1909: Jack Snipe
• 1910: Amore
• 1911: Sunder
• 1912: Spanish Prince
• 1913: Spanish Prince
• 1914: Golden Sun
• 1915: Volta
• 1916: Torloisk
• 1917: no race
• 1918: Irish Elegance
• 1919: Diadem
• 1920: Diadem
• 1921: Tetratema
• 1922: Pharmacie
• 1923: Golden Corn
• 1924: Drake
• 1925: Diomedes
• 1926: Diomedes / Phalaros *
• 1927: Highborn II
• 1928: Golden Oracle
• 1929: Tiffin
• 1930: Sir Cosmo
• 1931: Xandover
• 1932: Concerto
• 1933: Myrobella
• 1934: Coroado
• 1935: Bellacose

• 1936: Bellacose
• 1937: Mickey the Greek
• 1938: Shalfleet
• 1939: Portobello
• 1940: no race
• 1941: Comatas
• 1942–44: no race
• 1945: Honeyway
• 1946: The Bug
• 1947: Falls of Clyde
• 1948: Palm Vista
• 1949: Abernant
• 1950: Abernant
• 1951: Hard Sauce
• 1952: Set Fair
• 1953: Devon Vintage
• 1954: Vilmoray
• 1955: Pappa Fourway
• 1956: Matador
• 1957: Vigo
• 1958: Right Boy
• 1959: Right Boy
• 1960: Tin Whistle
• 1961: Galivanter
• 1962: Marsolve
• 1963: Secret Step
• 1964: Daylight Robbery
• 1965: Merry Madcap
• 1966: Lucasland
• 1967: Forlorn River

* The 1926 race was a dead-heat and has joint winners.

See also

• Horseracing in Great Britain
• List of British flat horse races

References

• Racing Post:
  • 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997
  • 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007
  • 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011

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• galopp-sieger.de – July Cup.
• horseracingintfed.com – International Federation of Horseracing Authorities – July Cup (2011).
• pedigreequery.com – July Cup – Newmarket.
• Abelson, Edward; John Tyrrel (1993). The Breedon Book of Horse Racing Records. Breedon Books. pp. 119–121. ISBN 1-873626-15-0.