The Goodwood - Trends, Trivia & Winning Links

Kristen Manning

Editor

Last updated: Thu 07 May 2026 16:56

Kristen Manning 07 May 2026

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Famous families and bloodlines feature among this year's Goodwood contenders
The race has a storied past, including 835-1 longshot and record-holding trainers & jockeys
Victorian trainers have dominated recently, but local outsiders remain dangerous

Santa Ana Lane finished his career with five Group 1 victories, with his first coming in the 2017 Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes before adding The Goodwood in 2018. (Getty)

The Goodwood has produced longshot winners, famous bloodlines and memorable moments throughout its history.

Goodwood Winning Relations
Longshot Winner
Distances And Conditions
Most Successful
Bits N Pieces
Did You Know?

Ahead of the 2026 running at Morphettville, this year's field shares several connections to past editions of South Australia's premier sprint feature, whilst the race itself also boasts a rich collection of records, trends and quirky moments.

Goodwood Winning Relations

Desert Lightning & Meridius: both members of the prolific Dancing Show (grandam of Redoute's Choice) family, which has as its ancestress the influential Torpenhow (also ancestress of Nijinsky and The Minstrel), whose descendant Bellzevir won this race in 1997.

Recon: descendant of Thrift, dam of the high-class UK galloper Tristram. She is also ancestress of the 2002 Goodwood hero Zip Zip Aray.

Power Beau: has the successful broodmare Banter (dam of the outstanding stayer and Champion Sire Touchstone) as his ancestress. Her other descendants include Widgiewa and Blague, winners of the 1913 and 1916 Goodwoods.

Midtown Boss: descendant of One I Love, as is the 2018 winner Santa Ana Lane.

Longshot Winner

The first Goodwood winner - D.O.D. (raced by Daniel O'Dea) - who carried just 36.5kg to victory - was backed by only one person on the tote, that lucky punter scooping the pool, leading to the horse still being the biggest-priced tote winner in Australian history... paying 835-1!

Distances And Conditions

The race was, in its earliest days, a 1600m lead-up to the Adelaide Cup; since 1889, it has been contested over its current distance of six furlongs/1200m. Though on one occasion - in 1980 (won by the Western Australian Marjoleo) - it was run over 1450m.

It was a handicap until 2007, since then run as a set weights and penalties race.

Most Successful

The most successful trainer of the Goodwood Handicap is Australian Racing Hall Of Fame member Walter Hickenbotham (trainer of Carbine) with six winners.

The most prolific winning jockey is John Letts with five wins between 1961 and 1984.

Only two horses are multiple Goodwood winners - Musket Belle in 1911 and 1912, and Mostyn in 1894 and 1895.

Bits N Pieces

The 1904 race was a dead-heat between Latchkey and Paedra, with the latter winning the run-off.

Local sprinter Aurie's Star, who has a Flemington race named in his honour, holds the weight-carrying record; 63.5kg in 1940 (winning by five lengths in race-record time).

Victorian-based trainers have won the last five editions, the most recent South Australian-trained winner being Despatch (Tony McEvoy) in 2019.

Jamie Melham has won the last two Goodwoods, whilst her husband Ben (riding Grand Larceny this year) has been successful on three occasions.

Did You Know?

Despite all producing strong runs in the John Hawkes Stakes (formerly the D.C. McKay Stakes), the main local lead-up, previous Goodwood winners Santa Ana Lane (2018 - $26), Despatch (2019 - $21) and Savatoxl (2021 - $19) were all outsiders when successful in this feature, with the latter two completing the John Hawkes Stakes/The Goodwood double.

The first three home in this year's John Hawkes Stakes - Grand Larceny, Watchme Win and New York Lustre - are all at double-figure quotes in the 2026 Goodwood.