Sarah Bullimore and her home-bred Corimiro have delivered a superb clear inside the time for the 10-year-old gelding’s first Mars Badminton Horse Trials cross-country experience.
The pair stopped the clock with a second to spare, delivering the second round of the day inside the 11min 30 sec optimum time at Badminton Horse Trials. Holly Richardson and Ballyneety Silver Service were 12 seconds under earlier in the morning.
“He’s phenomenal. He’s the reason I’m still doing this and the reason I get out of bed in the morning,” said Sarah Bullimore.
“Every phase he’s a pleasure. He’s a pleasure to take out hacking, everything he does he just wants to go and do a good job. He wants to get on with it and he’s always saying, ‘Come on, let’s do the next thing’. And he has a great brain.”
Corimiro rose to the challenge and was full of running at the finish line.
“He could have gone again. In fact he didn’t want to come out of the arena, he was turning back towards the start,” said Sarah.
“He has such scope and such range and power.”
Sarah Bullimore on the Badminton cross-country course
Sarah said Eric Winter’s Badminton Horse Trials cross-country course rode as she expected, and despite Corimiro’s big stride, the shorter distances did not cause him any problems.
“Coming up to the beehives I was a little bit concerned because a lot of people were going six strides, and I thought I’m never going to get get six there, but he was amazing,” she said.
“We hadn’t planned to put the extra stride in at the corners at the end, but with the big slip in the middle, I think that just added one. But bless him, he just picked up. That was our only sort of sticky moment. And that wasn’t really his fault.”
Bubby Upton and her experienced 16-year-old gelding Cola – who had been ninth after the dressage – jumped clear around their fifth Badminton Horse Trials cross-country run, adding 9.7 time-penalties.
“He was just phenomenal, he digs so deep,” said Bubby. “He is not quick, he just plugs away at one pace and never gives up on me, he’s truly incredible.”
They enjoyed a super round, though Cola had a little look in places and Bubby had to keep his focus and maintain their rhythm.
“I really had to use my head at times, which I felt in the past I potentially lacked at times, which has caused expensive mistakes for Cola,” said Bubby.
“I was really pleased at the fact I engaged my brain at all times, put the clock aside and really rode the track, rode my horse, and hopefully did him justice.”
Earlier in the morning David Doel enjoyed a super round with the little mare Ferro Point. The pair were not chasing the clock, in what is Ferro Point’s first competition back at this level since 2023. They came home smiling with 28.2 time-penalties to add to their 41.9 dressage.
Lithuanian Aistis Vitkauskas and his long-term partner Commander G had a miscommunication resulting in a run-out at the second part of the KBIS Slalom fence 14ab and elected to retire.
How to watch and listen to Badminton Horse Trials
To watch Badminton Horse Trials live or via catch up, including the trot-ups, from the comfort of your home anywhere in the world, you need a 2026 Badminton TV Pass. Badminton TV is once again powered by ClipMyHorse.TV, but you do not need a full ClipMyHorse.TV subscription to watch – you can just subscribe to Badminton TV for £22.99. Go to badminton-horse.tv to sign up. If you are already a ClipMyHorse.TV premium member, Badminton TV is included in your subscription. Also check out the Badminton app, which provides free live results and much more this year. Sign up for Badminton Plus membership for £4.99 to access the live Radio Badminton broadcast and receive exclusive offers from on-site exhibitors. Search for Badminton Horse Trials in your app store.
Enjoy the best of Badminton with Horse & Hound
To ensure you keep up to date with all the breaking news, behind the scenes insight, and the best of the action throughout Badminton Horse Trials with no limits on how much you can read, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website from as little as £1 a week. Sign up now. And don’t miss our bumper 28-page magazine report on Badminton, including in-depth analysis and exclusive comments from top names, in the issue of Horse & Hound dated 14 May.
You may also be interested in:
A fall, a retirement and a clear inside the time: mixed fortunes for early riders on Badminton cross-country
How to watch Badminton Horse Trials live from anywhere in the world
What time does your favourite start? Badminton cross-country times released
‘There won’t be much time in between’: Harry Meade’s day riding three horses cross-country at Badminton Horse Trials
Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round
