Scandinavia shows plenty of fighting spirit in Saval Beg Scandinavia set himself up for Royal Ascot and the Gold Cup with a hard-earned victory in the Saval Beg Levmoss Stakes at Leopardstown. In a race Aidan O’Brien has won with Kyprios in three of the last four years, and also with the likes of Yeats, Fame And Glory and Order Of St George, Ryan Moore started to wake up the St Leger hero with half a mile to travel in the Group Three contest. Dallas Star still held sway turning for home, before the 2-9 favourite took a definite advantage just inside the two pole. Even then, however, it was not without some concern, with Donnacha O’Brien’s Happy Pharoah (18-1) running a huge race to push Scandinavia all the way. That said, Scandinavia – who made a winning reappearance at Navan last month – held on well, albeit the margin was just half a length at the line. Willie Mullins' Polish-owned import Le Destrier, on stable debut and having his first start since June 2024, ran on well for third, a further three-parts of a length away. Winning trainer Aidan O'Brien reflected "This was the perfect race to bridge the gap (from Navan to Ascot) and we’ll get more serious as we go along. He’s a big relaxed horse and we couldn’t be happier really. “Ryan was very happy. He’s a big, relaxed horse now you know. Ryan said he ended up getting there and he was just waiting. Those type of horses, that’s what they do. They just get very relaxed. I’m delighted now really.” Additional reporting by John O'Riordan
