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The Rolex IJRC Top 10 Final 2025 at CHI Geneva ended with three Rolex Testimonees on the podium on Friday night, with Scott Brash (GBR) and the 12-year-old mare Hello Chadora Lady taking the top honours ahead of Kent Farrington (USA) and Toulayna in second and Richard Vogel (GER) aboard Cloudio in third.

“Thank you to Rolex and CHI Geneva for putting it on, because it really is one of the pinnacle classes of the year,” Scott Brash said after taking the title with his feisty Hello Chadora Lady. “The Top 10 class is one of the most unique classes in the year. It is on all our radars, we all want to first of all be in the top ten, and when you are in it, you just want to win it – and every rider is the same. I think I speak on behalf of all ten riders, it is just great to be here and to be part of the Top 10 class.

To find a worthy winner among the ten best horse-and-rider combinations in the world, the course designer duo Gerard Lachat (SUI) and Gregory Bodo (FRA) had set a 12-fence first-round track with a time allowed of 74 seconds.

Palexpo-pet Steve Guerdat (SUI) and Venard de Cerisy (Open Up de Semilly x Djalisco du Guet) were the pathfinders, and much to the delight of the Swiss crowds, delivered a clear to open the competition on a high note. Next out, Julien Epaillard (FRA) and Donatello d’Auge (Jarnac x Hello Pierville) saw the b-element at the oxer-vertical-oxer triple combination at fence eight fall, while the third pair of the night – Daniel Coyle (IRL) and Incredible (Clinton x Heartbreaker) – got unlucky at the IJRC-vertical at fence ten.

Harrie Smolders (NED) and the evergreen Monaco (Cassini II x Contender) got away with a strong touch at the double at fence five, but their luck ran out when the front pole at the oxer at fence nine fell to the floor, leaving them on four penalties after round one. Richard Vogel (GER) and Cloudio (Casall x San Patrignano Cassini) looked well on their way to a clear, but a slight miscommunication in the three-stride distance between fences nine and ten cost the powerful pair a pole.

Meanwhile, Gilles Thomas (BEL) and Qalista DN (Emerald x Landetto) impressed once again, jumping clear in what was undoubtedly the biggest track the talented mare has jumped in her career. Seventh out in the order, Christian Kukuk (GER) and Just Be Gentle (Tyson x Ticallux Verte) left the fences intact but picked up a single time penalty when just fractions over the time allowed of 74 seconds.

Current world number four Ben Maher (GBR) and Dallas Vegas Batilly (Cap Kennedy x L’Arc de Triomphe) had a heartbreak at the final fence to add four to their tally, while Brash and Hello Chadora Lady (Chacco-Blue x Nintender) delivered a fast clear as the penultimate pair out. However, current world number one Kent Farrington and Toulayna (Toulon x Parco) matched them, jumping an effective clear to take the lead after round one.

Returning in reverse order in round two for a shortened, nine-fence track, Smolders opened with a stylish clear on Monaco, while Maher and Dallas Vegas Batilly parted ways after a sharp roll-back to fence no. six. Vogel took a daring approach with Cloudio, powering through and jumping clear to take an early lead and piling pressure on those to come. Epaillard matched Vogel’s pace, as Donatello d’Auge stepped to another gear – but paid for it at the penultimate IJRC-vertical where a rail fell. Coyle and Incredible picked up eight penalties while Kukuk and Just Be Gentle added four to their score. Despite having all of Palexpo behind them, Guerdat and Venard de Cerisy also picked up eight penalties, while Thomas and Qalista delivered another tidy and effective round, only to see the penultimate IJRC-vertical on the floor.

Second last out, Brash and Hello Chadora Lady delivered the first double clear performance of the night – not without excitement, though. Turning to the fourth fence which was away from the ingate, Chadora Lady locked on to the double at fence eight. However, the two got home clear, taking the lead with a time of 45.63 seconds. With Brash’s leading time as a target, Farrington and Toulayna entered the arena as last to go. Jumping clear, the two crossed the finish line in 45.79, and had to settle for second while Brash and Chadora Lady took home the Rolex IJRC Top 10 Final 2025-title.

“I watched Scott’s round and my strategy was to try to go very smooth,” Farrington explained afterwards. “I thought I would catch him with my horse’s natural speed, while his horse is also naturally very fast. On the second to last fence, they were all having it down, so I took my time to make sure I cleared it and it swung me a little bit to the outside. I ended up on ten strides to the last. I think the others went nine, so I lost by a fraction – so not a good strategy.”

“I didn’t feel like I got it perfect,” Brash said humbly. “She is such a quick mare, she is so eager to get to the jumps and when I came around to fence four, she locked on to the double, which was my fault, because I should have anticipated that. For a minute, she thought she was going to the double and that just got a little bit untidy, that turn. She was amazing to jump the vertical and then the next line was a bit tricky because that was a bit messy, but she is so naturally fast and she jumped home good. I thought that Kent might nick me – and I was happy with his strategy,” Brash joked.

“I’m more than proud of how incredible Cloudio jumped today,” third placed Vogel said. “I think both rounds he could not have jumped any better. It is his first time in Geneva but he really seems to rise to the occasions. I was a bit disappointed after the first round, that I let him down there. I was thinking the three strides will be short for me, so I was sitting up after the oxer – I had quite a forward approach to the water oxer – and he was almost listening too well, he was really waiting, and all of the sudden the three strides got long, and got away from me, and he had no chance to clear that vertical. I am happy that I could ride him a little bit better in the second round and we luckily moved our way up a little bit.”

13.12.2025 No reproduction of any of the content in this article will be accepted without a written permission, all rights reserved © World of Showjumping.com. If copyright violations occur, a penalty fee will apply.