First Grand Prix Victory for Nicole Velazco Magana & Daddy’s Destiny in the $25,000 Perfect Products Grand Prix

By on 2022-11-02

Wellington, Florida, USA, – October 30, 2022 – After four days of USEF “A” National and Jumper 4* competition, the ESP Fall III show concluded on Sunday. The feature class of the week was $25,000 Perfect Products Grand Prix, which took place on the Derby Field and saw competitors representing nine different nationals contest the track, designed by Héctor Loyola (PUR). The competitive jump-off field of five competitors was no match for Mexico’s Nicole Velazco Magana (MEX) and Daddy’s Destiny, who celebrated their first Grand Prix victory together.

“Daddy’s Destiny is a ten-year-old mare, I’ve had her for two years now,” shared Magana. “She’s very fast, very competitive, and I’m really happy to finally be jumping Grand Prix classes with her. Our first one was this past August in Colorado, and then two weeks ago we were second here, so it’s nice to get our first Grand Prix win today.”

The highlight class attracted a field of 24 horse-and-rider combinations to compete for the lion’s share of the prize money. With five pairs advancing to the jump-off, João Carvalho (BRA) and Emotion de Riverland set the pace early on with a clear time of 42.057 seconds, which held until Magana and her own Daddy’s Destiny dashed through the short course in 38.042 seconds without faults, slicing four seconds off Carvalho’s time.

“The course was certainly very challenging. The bending lines were tricky in the first round, especially if you have a warm-blooded mare like mine. In the jump-off, the turn from one to two was very short and you had to be ready for it since it was at the beginning of the course, and I also thought the first jump was very technical since you had to angle it to be able to get a good approach to the second jump,” commented Magana after her win. “Ultimately, I just tried to do my best. I’m proud that my horse and I were able to get this kind of experience on the field over a challenging course, and am grateful that I’ve been able to jump all of my horses on the grass here because it’s such a nice ring.”

Early frontrunners João Carvalho (BRA) and the Kent Farrington LLC entry, Emotion de Riverland, finished in second place, followed by Kris Killam (USA) and Gangster CHS, owned by Tophorses LLC. The third-place finishers stopped the clock at 40.119 seconds but knocked a rail down to incur four faults against them.