Rupert Winkelmann & Quinn 33 Race to the Top in the $35,000 Bluegrass Grand Prix at Lexington

By Jumper News on 21 21America/Sao_Paulo May 21America/Sao_Paulo 2023

Lexington, Kentucky, USA – May 21, 2022 – The two-week Kentucky Spring Classic series came to a close Sunday afternoon in the Rolex Stadium as athletes gathered for the $35,000 Bluegrass Grand Prix sponsored by Audi of Lexington for one final shot at a top finish. Out of a field of 23 competitive entries, just 9 cleared their way to the jump-off for a chance to vie for the first place honors. In the end, it was Rupert Winkelmann (GER) and Eickendorf Horses’ Quinn 33 who emerged victorious to claim the last win of the spring series.

Bernardo Costa Cabral (POR) set a challenging first-round track fit for the field of international athletes, narrowing down the group to just nine pairs who would advance to the tie-breaking jump-off. Among them included the first to go clear, Grace Debney (GBR), as well as Rupert Winkelmann (GER), Quentin Judge (USA), Conor O’Regan (IRL), Shane Sweetnam (IRL), Sean Jobin (CAN), Will Martin (CAN), and Loic Cannaert (BEL) would all add their names to the jump-off list by the conclusion of the first round.

**Grace Debney** (GBR) & **Jesprit H.S.**

Setting the bar as the first to contest the shortened eight-fence jump-off track, Grace Debney (GBR) piloted Jesprit H.S. to a quick clear 41.114 -second effort.

**Quentin Judge** (USA) & **Medarco PS**

Although Debney and Jesprit H.S. were able to hold the lead for 6 trips, Quentin Judge (USA) and Medarco PS put their best foot forward and scrapped 2 seconds off the leading time to finish with 38.851 seconds.

Quickly overtaking Judge’s lead and shaving off seven tenths of a second from his time, Rupert Winkelmann (GER) masterfully piloted Quinn 33 through the course, turning and burning their way to cross the finish line in 38.079seconds. In the end, Winkelmann and the 13-year-old Holsteiner gelding were awarded first place honors.

Show jumping competition will resume at the Kentucky Horse Park July 26 – August 6 for the Kentucky Summer Horse Show.