Justify 3YO Wins G1 Goodwood Cup

The Group I Goodwood Cup (2m) had a short priced favourite in the Aidan O’Brien trained four year-old Galileo stallion Illinois, but he had to bow to his young stablemate with Scandinavia (3c Justify x Fabulous, by Galileo) taking the prize.

Scandinavia outgunned Illinois to win by three-quarters of a length under Wayne Lordan.

A last start Group III winner at Newmarket, Scandinavia has now won three starts.

“Scandinavia looks a very classy stayer, he travelled very well through the race and Wayne [Lordan] gave him a beautiful ride,” said Aidan O’Brien.

“He was always a very smart horse. The lads actually backed him for the Derby very early in his career, he was considered a very good horse.

“He won his maiden over a mile and a quarter and Wayne was delighted with him at Ascot next time - he got trapped six wide but he still didn't lie down the whole way and came back at the line to try and win.

“He's a great stayer with a great mind, he's uncomplicated, and like we saw today he handled the ease in the ground well. You couldn't be more delighted with him really. You would imagine he looks a ready-made Leger horse.”

A homebred for the Coolmore partners, Scandinavia is a half-brother to Group I winner Above the Curve and is the second Group I winner among three winners from blueblood Galileo mare Fabulous, an unraced half-sister to champion racehorse and sire Giant’s Causeway.

Fabulous is also a half-sister to Group II winning blue hen You’resothrilling, the dam of Group I winners Gleneagles, Happily, Joan of Arc and Marvellous with the family also producing this year’s exciting Group winning juvenile Albert Einstein.

Scandinavia is the ninth Group I winner for Justify, who is available for Southern Hemisphere covers at Ashford Stud in Kentucky.

Justify has two sons on the roster in Australia this spring with 2024 World's Best Racehorse, City of Troy standing at a fee of $49,500, while Storm Boy is priced more affordably at $16,500.