De Luca’s win in Valkenswaard Grand Prix leaves LGCT race wide open

The grounds at Tops International Arena, a cutting-edge equestrian facility built by Tour founder and president Jan Tops, were in fact changed two weeks ago from grass to sand, and after the downpours during this weekend’s competition, Tops said he was pleased with the decision: “I always loved to have a grass arena here, but if you see this weather not one horse slipped or was uncomfortable so I was very happy with that.”

In Saturday’s €300,000 Grand Prix of Valkenswaard, it was World No.4 De Luca and Ensor de Litrange LXII who came out on top of a field of 25 starters and a jump-off on the new surface, with a clear round and time of 39.20 seconds. The high-flying combination put all the pressure on their eight jump-off rivals on Uliano Vezzani’s Grand Prix course, with its technically-challenging, brightly-coloured fences featuring windmills, tulips and Tops International Arena imagery. In the end, while De Luca’s podium mates Christian Ahlmann of Germany with Codex One and home crowd favourite Dutchman Maikel van der Vleuten with VDL Groep Verdi TN also rode clear in the tie-breaking round, they were slightly slower with times of 39.93 and 40.31 respectively.

De Luca’s victory at the birthplace of the LGCT not only came with a paycheque of €99,000 but also left the 30-year-old rider fifth in the Tour standings with 243.50 points. And looking at the current rankings, one can see that the gap between 6th place, Scott Brash of Great Britain with 230 points, and first place, Harrie Smolders of the Netherlands with 268, is tight.

“My horses are jumping really consistent,” said De Luca at the press conference afterward. “I know the horses and they try their best for me. Ensor loves the big rings so I knew he could do really good here and he did a fantastic job. When I finished I thought I was fast but never fast enough as those guys are really dangerous! My horse has a really big stride, I was quite fast everywhere but you’re never sure when you come out. I tried a long distance to the first which was risky, but it paid off today.”

With De Luca in fifth, Van der Vleuten in fourth, Alberto Zorzi of Italy in third, and Ahlmann in second behind Smolders, the possibilities are now wide open for the leading riders in the two remaining shows on the circuit, Rome (September 21-24) and Doha, Qatar (November 9-11). In the parallel Global Champions League, the Valkenswaard United team currently sits in second behind the Hamburg Diamonds. GCL standings are here.