Jerome Guery is on fire; last weekend he won the CSI5* Grand Prix in Knokke – this weekend he went away with the victory in two 1.50 classes as well as stealing the win in the Grand Prix de L'Hippodrome de Wallonie/Mons at the CSI4* event in Mons. Riding his winning mount from Knokke – Papillon Z (Perhaps x Cassini) – Guery made it his third big Grand Prix win in less than three months with the 13 year old stallion.

The Belgian rider was one of eight in the field counting almost fifty moving on to the jump-off after producing a first clear round. Guery was joined by two more home riders, which of course provided the competition with a top atmosphere as the Belgian crowds that had filled up every space around the ring was guaranteed a lot to cheer for.

The first clear round in the jump-off was courtesy of France’s Nicolas Delmotte, who is a dream to watch in the ring with his beautiful riding. Delmotte rode the stallion Number One D'Iso Un Prince (Baloubet du Rouet x Si Tu Viens)  – which was his winning partner in the Grand Prix in Bourg-en-Bresse earlier this spring, and that for sure will make some useful contributions on the French team this year judging by the couple’s latest performances. The jump-off was as fluent as the first round, and also very fast as the timers stopped at 35.60 seconds.

Spain’s Eduardo Alvarez Aznar on Rokfeller de Pleville Bois Margot (L'Arc de Triomphe) and Belgium’s Arnaud Doem on Gastronom de Hus (Carthago) both went clear, but slotted in behind Delmotte in temporary second and third respectively. France’s Robert Breul had one down, as did Great Britain’s Robert Whitaker – a result they shared with the first rider to go in the jump-off Eugenio Garza Perez. Unfortunately for home rider Pieter Devos, he shared their fate as the b-element in the combination fell to the ground.

The final rider in the ring was Jerome Guery, and as usual he left the brakes by the in-gate. Putting Papillon Z in top gear, Guery only slowed down a little into the combination – where he was quite lucky to leave the rail intact out and the next fence rattled too after a tight turn. The grey stallion woke up though and minded his legs for the rest of the track, and racing through the finish line the clock showed that Guery had shaved off 0.15 seconds on Delmotte’s time to take the win home to Belgium – yet again.