‘Without the team at home, days like this wouldn’t happen’: 25-year-old Irish rider stunned by remarkable success

Irish showjumper Mikey Pender conjured up a sensational jump-off performance to win the 1.60m grand prix of Barcelona on Friday night (4 October).

Drawn last in a nail-biting 12-way jump-off, the 25-year-old rider and his great partner HHS Calais (Cavalier Royale x Obos Quality 004) accelerated home nearly a second quicker than leader Rolf-Goran Bengtsson (Zuccero HV) to lift this historic silverware and collect the €99,000 top prize.

“Some days, when things aren’t going your way, it doesn’t fall as easily as that, but when it’s your day, it’s your day – it worked out perfectly,” Mikey Pender told H&H. “I don’t think it will fully sink in until tomorrow but it’s a great feeling.”

Mikey had earned his advantageous draw as the fastest of the 11 clears from round one and the huge-striding HHS Calais devoured the track with ease, taking out strides where his rivals couldn’t. Having made up time early on, the pair had earned some breathing space to tackle the tricky mid-way line of a vertical to double on a dog-leg before powering home, saluting the crowd in delight as he crossed the finish line.

“I had my plan before the jump-off but the vertical before the double ended up being a bit the bogey – the joker fence in the class almost – so I decided I would do nine strides to the last fence instead of 10 and take a bit more time to the vertical, which would also make the double a bit easier,” said Mikey. “It worked out down to a T.”

Showing great camaraderie, Mikey was assisted in the final decider by his Irish team-mates as well as chef d’equipe Michael Blake and it resulted in a huge win for this talented 25-year-old, who adds his name to an illustrious list of past winners.

“The boys helped me make that plan and Calais was just jumping incredible,” said Mikey, the youngest winner of the Hickstead Derby in 2019. “In the jump-off, he was so with me – everything I asked, he was waiting for me to tell him what to do next.

“Calais jumped great in Spruce Meadows last month – he jumped double clear in the Nations Cup there and Ireland finished second, but he’s been knocking on the door of a grand prix all year. He’s been having just little things and maybe I wasn’t riding well enough this year, but over the past few weeks he’s come into form and maybe I’ve given him a bit more justice during these past few shows. He’s been brilliant, I couldn’t ask for any more.”

Mikey Pender: a remarkable few weeks

Mikey Pender is on an absolute roll at the moment, having landed the seven-year-old final at the WBFSH World Breeding Championships for Young Horses riding HHS Mercedes a fortnight ago, before taking the eight-year-old title at the WBFSH Studbooks Jumping Global Champions Trophy with HHS Cyprus last weekend. His winning journey continued in Barcelona with another Bravo-Hughes-owned horse, HHS Calais, who was bred in Ireland by Ita Brennan.

“I’ve had a great few weeks and it’s all thanks to everybody working hard at home and those that have given me this opportunity,” he said. “Without them, days like these wouldn’t be possible – it’s just not possible to be at the shows every week and still have the horses in such good form and that’s thanks to them, I can’t thank them enough.

“It definitely surprises you when it ends up as successful as it’s been these past three weeks. We aim for the bigger shows in the year – it’s where we want to do well, that’s where we want the horses to be in form.”

Just one second separated the top four in the grand prix of Barcelona with Spanish rider Armando Trapote giving the home crowd plenty to cheer about in third on Tornado VS, with Henrik von Eckermann fourth with King Edward.

Best of the two British showjumpers in contention at the five-star CSIO Barcelona was Tim Gredley jumping a super double clear with Medoc De Toxandria for sixth.

“I’m so happy with what he did – he’s not a naturally fast horse and I’m not a naturally quick rider, but we’re getting there!” said Tim to H&H. “But he just keeps jumping clear rounds. I can’t remember the last time he had a fence down in a grand prix. Every time they put a huge track up, he steps up. So I’m just delighted with him, so proud.”

Competition at the CSIO Barcelona continues on Saturday (5 October) with the Queen’s Cup as the feature class, before all eyes turn to the inaugural Longines League of Nations Final on Sunday (6 October).

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