We are full swing into Defender Burghley, and we’re experimenting with a new “coffee break” style wrap-up of the day for those of you who want the bits and bobs to fill the gap between reports.
Our classic full round-up of the best of today’s tests will be along as soon as riders have been wrangled for their reactions, Chinch has been consulted, and the whole thing’s been edited down from 6 million words to a more digestible 5.5 million – eyes on the website for that dropping just as soon as two eventing nerds and an obnoxious chinchilla can make that possible.
Until then, here’s a quick recap of what went down between the white boards today…
1️⃣ 🇬🇧 Heading the charge and leading Burghley overnight is Piggy March and MCS Maverick who are sitting pretty on a score of 25.7.
2️⃣ 🇬🇧 In second spot is Alex Bragg and Ardeo Premier who are on a score of 28.4.
3️⃣ 🇬🇧 Rounding out the podium as things stand is Will Rawlin and Ballycoog Breaker Boy on a score of 28.8.
You’ll find the full scoreboard right here.
Whilst the scores are obviously important in the grand scheme of like, winning the whole dang thing, we all know that eventing is about so much more than just numbers. So here’s a run-down of some of the other goings on in the dressage ring at Burghley:
☔ Preamble Predicament – The weather’s already been a talking point at Burghley, with a storm delaying the first horse inspection yesterday and the rain turning on and off, off and on, like it doesn’t know which way’s up. Poor Nick Luck and Tina Cook were caught in a proper downpour during the preamble while we waited for the competition to start. Props to whoever had an umbrella handy.
🎤 Insider Insight – We were treated to dressage judge Nick Burton and dressage king Carl Hester in the commentary box. So cool to have such insight.
🎶 Spa Day? The snoozy music being streamed like, all day, elicited some yawns in the crowd, where the fashion of the day was raincoats-a-go-go all round. It sure seemed to seep into the horses too, with more ambling out of the ring than jig-a-jogging, on the whole. Very cool to see such relaxed and happy horses.
😁 Mr Charming – Trailblazer and World No. 1 Harry Meade looked like a man on a mission as he kicked off the action with Kentucky third-placer Et Hop Du Matz this morning. Sadly, he’d opted to swap out his pink horse inspection pants for more traditional white breeches. It was leg day for Harry as his gelding seemed particularly affected by the sleepy soundtrack. That didn’t stop him turning on the charm for the judge at C though, giving his best and most beautiful smile as he walked past on his way out after his test. Yup, we clocked that, Harry. They scored 32.7.
🧸 “Warm Fuzzies” – Samantha Lissington may have had a tricky day at the office with her 5* debutant Billy Alberto, who was busy playing with his bit rather than focusing on the job at hand for a lot of his test. Sam gave a great display of tactful riding and nursed him through. “Hey ho!” she said afterwards, showing just the right attitude when it comes to horses and admitting that dressage is “not his forte”. They’re not here to rival the leaders on the first day and she was pleased the horse kept it together. On a delightful note, her parents have flown over from New Zealand to watch which Sam says has given her lots of “warm fuzzies”. Aw. She sits on a score of 39.5.
🌱 Snack Time – Aimee Penny’s PSH Encore took the opportunity of rewarding herself for a PB with a bite of the Burghley grass on the way out of the ring. The mare made her Burghley debut with a first sub-35 score at 5*, so that snack was well-deserved. It was 34.4 for them.
🐮 Cow Kicks – Game Changer took slight offence in a couple of flying changes and let Grace Taylor know just how he felt, kicking out before delivering what turned out to be clean changes. Perhaps he wanted to make sure everyone had clocked his very attractive quarter marks across his bum and down his flanks – for sure the most stylish so far. The gelding was the picture of relaxation on the way out of the ring. “He was a good boy,” said Grace. They landed on a score of 32.4.
🤫 Fireworks Avoided (kind of) – Global Fision M was hot, hot, hot at the first horse inspection yesterday, literally running rings around Lauren Innes as she tried to trot him up. The announcer today asked the crowd to stay silent as the pair made their way round the arena, and the spicy gelding seemed to have things under wraps. A couple of snorts and some masterful riding from Lauren had us holding our breath. The walk was OK. But then… the rodeo came calling after the reinback and ‘Flipper’ showed off some of his snazzy dance moves. Full props to Lauren for getting him back and continuing on with the test. This guy has oodles of ability and talent and it’s an absolute testament to Lauren’s horsemanship and knowing her horse that she’s able to keep him as together as she does. She shushed the crowd as she halted to finish the test, almost before she saluted. They did the classic jig-jog on the way out but Lauren looked delighted – a first sub-40 result for them at 5* – 38.7.
👍 Thumbs Up – FOD specialist Galileo Nieuwmoed “absolutely nailed it today,” said a delighted David Doel after they scored a PB, with every chance that’ll be their finishing score. The rain poured down but that didn’t dampen David’s enormous grin as he delivered a test which trended sub-30 almost throughout and put him into the lead at the lunch break. David says the gelding’s “feeling the best he’s ever felt in his body”, which has gotta have him feeling good about the prospect of a first 5* win – maybe? Look out for them on Saturday, “He’s an absolute weapon cross country,” David grinned. Galileo gave us a taste of what’s to come as he added a little jump to the end of his test, thankfully after the halt and salute. David gave an elated thumbs up as he jogged out of the ring. The first sub-30 of Burghley – 29.6 and 4th place overnight.
👣 He’s Got the Walk – Holly Richardson’s 5* debutant Ballyneety Silver Service excelled himself with a gorgeous walk section deserving of a 9 for the extended from the judge at C, in what was an impressive showing for the gelding’s first time at the top level. Riding in a snaffle bridle with no spurs, Holly really helped her guy to build in confidence throughout his test and there’s more to come as he establishes himself at the level, for sure. They scored 32.4 to sit in the top 10 after the first day’s competition.
🌶️ Hot Shot – Caroline Powell says herself that her Burghley guy, High Time, is a bit of a hot dude and he showed that in the ring today, although Caroline gave us an absolute masterclass in settling a horse that’s feeling a big atmosphere, really bringing out the best in the gelding and getting him straight back on track after a whoopsie in the extended trot saw him canter a few strides, so much so they scored a 9 in the shoulder in just afterwards. Caroline was beaming at the end of the test, with the hugest pats for the horse for a job, on the whole, very well done. They scored 31.1.
👻 Spooky Central – Spookiest horse of the day was certainly Simon Grieve’s 5* first-timer Autograf, whose tail got higher and higher the further he got through his test. The huge breath out from Simon as he saluted at the end said it all. He said the horse was “a little bit starstruck” but “we’ve got to try these things” and overall he was pleased with the gelding’s efforts. They landed on a 37.4.
🐴 Hey, Buddies? Ballycoog Breaker Boy called out for his buddies while he was in the ring, although the only help he needed was from his very tall pal on board, Will Rawlin. Together they produced a correct and classy test which trended sub-30 throughout and elicited a huge cheer from the crowd as it went into the lead, albeit temporarily. Will’s clearly got some fans out there. Will was “absolutely thrilled,” saying the horse “really pulled it out the bag”. Indeed he did. He sits in 3rd on 28.8.
💩 Bathroom Break – Alex Bragg’ll have been relieved Ardeo Premier got his bathroom break out of the way before entering the ring today. Squinting in the sudden burst of sunshine, Alex set up his test with a beautiful halt for three 8s and so it continued. Striking and bold work, particularly in the canter (I’m looking forward to seeing this guy go on Saturday), the test was impressive throughout with Carl Hester commenting that “the potential is huge” for the partnership. Total showman and fan fave Alex gave a huge double thumbs up and a punch of the air as the crowd gave the biggest cheer of the day for the pair’s best international score of their career, which rocketed them into 2nd place. Afterwards Alex said, “You’ve got to go in there believing,” which he clearly did. Don’t stop, Alex. They’re on 28.4.
🩰 Best Foot Forward – Relatively new, incredibly elegant, pairing Piggy March and MCS Maverick got off to a super start with two 8s and their test continued to impress the judges and Nick Burton in the commentary box. Piggy’s taken over the ride from great mate and legend Pippa Funnel and says the gelding’s been “trained by the best in the world”. It’s no secret that this guy can be a tricky customer and getting into his mind has been a priority for Piggy, and they sure seemed to be of one mind between the boards today. Correct and classy, they went straight into the lead with a score of 25.7.
🫶 Cute Guys – It’s so great to see horses that are obviously in the game for the cross country delivering sweet tests in the first phase, and we had two cute examples of such this morning, courtesy of two Toms. 5* debutant Tom Strawson’s Public Address really showed he was on his Tom’s side, being rideable and working hard to do what he was being asked, despite dressage not being the easiest for the former point-to-pointer. Huge pats for him as he ambled out of the ring looking very relaxed on his big day at Burghley. They squeaked sub-40 with a 39.8. And Tom Bird’s Cowling Hot Gossip really tried for his Tom and showed an improvement on his previous scores at the level, which is what it’s all about at the end of the day – partnership, love of the sport, and building on each performance. They scored 43.2.
🫡 Best Salute – The prize for the most extravagant salute for sure goes to Gaspard Maksud, with Carl Hester awarding the accolade, which was clearly appreciated by the E judge who gave it an 8. The mare was a little cheeky in the ring today, sticking her tongue out at the judges for a lot of the way round in what was a bit of a hit and miss kind of test. Watch out for them on Saturday though – blink and you’ll miss this incredibly quick duo. They finished up the day’s sport with a score of 31.8.
I’ll leave you with some wise words from World No. 1 Harry Meade, which he shared after his 5th place test with Cavalier Crystal: “It’s about understanding the horse, knowing what they’re capable of and accepting certain things and working with them to try and get the best performance you can, but not forcing them to be something they’re not”. Yessir.
Stay tuned for the full report coming your way on the website. We’ve got a classic EN live blog in the offing on Saturday too. EN’s where it’s at.
The action resumes tomorrow at 10am BST / 5am ET with every test live on Burghley TV (subscription required) – don’t miss it!
Go eventing!
Many thanks to Kentucky Performance Products for their support of our Defender Burghley coverage! Click here to learn all about their science-backed and time-tested nutritional support products for horses.
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