Tom Whitaker secured victory in the 2* Medium Tour 1.40m Grand Prix at Chepstow International with BUVENTO.
The 58 starters were reduced to 17 for the jump-off, Tom and the Argento x Quattro B 8-year-old mare – bred in Derbyshire by Liane Smith – flying into the top spot by 0.58 seconds.
“She’s a family horse, I own her with my brother Donald and she’s by my uncle John’s top stallion Argento (picture),” said Tom. “She’s not the easiest ride but she’s very careful. I was last to go and the course really suited her, taking strides out and going forward is what she does best.
“I spoke to John about her because when she was younger, she jumped to the right a lot and he said Argento did that but grew out of it. So, she had similarities with her sire, I’m hoping she’s as good!”
Mark Edwards claimed second in day one’s 2* 1.40m two-phase section A aboard Martyn Edwards’ FLYING TINKER II (by Tinker's Tale)
Mark Edwards was again on form at the David Broome Event Centre showground and notched up six wins. He left the best until last in the final day’s 22-strong 2* Medium Tour 1.35m two-phase, galloping Vicky Gillard’s 10-year-old British Hannoverian EDE PEASY (Edward x Gletscher) into victory in the final moments by 1.33 seconds.
The consistent JAFABALOU (Balou de Rouet x Concorde) was responsible for a hat-trick of wins. The 1* Gold Tour 1.30m Grand Prix belonged to Mark and Amber Bundock’s Jafabalou. Fourteen of the 35 starters returned for the jump-off with Mark and the Balou Du Rouet x Concorde 10-year-old flying into the top spot by 1.04 sec.
The 12-horse Gold 1.25m speed fell Mark’s way too as he commandingly claimed victory with more than ten seconds to spare on Jafabalou, bred by Rachel Evison out of her former competitive mare, Rady Third Black. The pair also claimed Saturday’s 45-horse 1* Gold 1.25m accumulator by 1.03 seconds.
Mark featured strongly in the 10-horse 1* Platinum 1.35m two-phase, winning by 0.29 seconds on the Diarado 8-year-old DILLINGER NE, a British Hanoverian bred by Ros and Dennis Palmer in Sutton in Ashfield, Nottinghamshire. Mark also finished third aboard the Montreuxs Tale x Cavalier Royale 8-year-old ROYALE TALE, both owned by Martyn Edwards.
Mark took the top two places in the 20-strong 1* Platinum Tour 1.35m two-phase, with Royale Tale – bred by Sean and Charlene Daly – taking the win on this occasion and Dillinger NE slotting into in second place, 0.90 seconds separating the two. Tom Whitaker guided Colliers Carlotta into third just 0.06 seconds further in arrears.
George Whitaker finished second in Chepstow International’s top-billed Grand Prix with Martin Wood’s 10-year-old PEANUT (Barrichello x Quasimodo Z), bred by Samantha Jayne Lambert. A challenging 13-fence 1.45m track set by course-designer Colm Quinn tested the 75 competitors forward in this world ranking class and only eight found the key to qualify for the jump-off. George posted a competitive target on the promising Peanut, but two horses later Graham Gillespie wiped 1.22 seconds off his time with a smooth yet quick round on brand-new ride Veneno.
George claimed victory in the 34-entry 1* Platinum 1.35m speed with the 8-year-old ZIROCCA ZOOM (VDL Zirocco Blue x Kojak) – another bred by Rachel Evison – edging ahead of Mark Edwards’ Dillinger NE by 0.18 seconds.
Lorraine Lock has been knocking on the door for the last few weeks and scored a well-deserved victory in the Silver Grand Prix on her own BILLY GOBI . Fifteen of the 67 starters returned for the jump-off over a 1.25m track with Lorraine and the Billy Stud-bred 7-year-old Emerald Van’t Ruytershof x Cevin Z mare winning by 2.31 seconds.
Supplied by British Showjumping
