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‘I don’t think they had any gin and tonic at lunch’: judges hold their standard as best Friday dressage test at Burghley takes third
Falco produces a more settled test than at the World Championships for third after the Burghley dressage, under New Zealand’s world number one Tim Price
Tim Price put in the best Defender Burghley Horse Trials dressage test today (Friday, 4 September), scoring 30.5 to finish the phase in third place with Falco.
The 17-year-old, owned by Sue Benson and his rider, was far more settled than at the eventing World Championships three weeks ago. He was well in the lead throughout the walk and trot work but a few mistakes in the canter flying changes, for which Tim blamed himself, dropped their marks to fours.
“He’s such a cool horse. We got redemption from a couple of few weeks ago at the World Championships where he was just on his ear, fresh, loving life a little bit too much,” said Tim.
“There were still a couple of mistakes, which cost us, and the judges are staying pretty dried up. I don’t think they had any gin and tonic at lunch, so it’s annoying.
“But Falco was really good. I’m happy with him. He loves his job, he’s got a big smile on his face, and he thinks he’s the best. So it’s good fun to be with him.”
Falco is the only horse who completed the World Championships in Aachen and has then come to Burghley. Tim spoke to H&H earlier in the week about making that decision, explaining the horse feels on great form, is low mileage in general through his career and this is a way effectively to make use of one preparation for two high-profile events.
“It was like a mini holiday and a mini bring back into work,” said Tim of Falco’s programme between the events. “He had a few days off, then went hacking, walking up the road for four or five days.
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“Then I really worked back from his first gallop, which was halfway through that three-week period. It was really just getting his body working and moving, and then building up to a gallop or two, and here we are.”
Falco, a double world bronze medallist in 2022 and Mars Badminton Horse Trials runner-up this year, had his top front teeth out last winter due to a rare disease. He has to have the bottom ones out this winter and so this may be his last five-star, depending on how he comes through that.
Three other pairs moved into the top 10 this afternoon. Caroline Pamukcu now holds fifth for the US with HSH Blake, with compatriot Will Coleman ninth on Very Dignified. Tom Jackson was best of the Brits today and holds eighth on United 36.
“He notices if a leaf falls off a tree”
Tom presented Michael Stenning’s 10-year-old in a pleasingly modern frame, with the nose in front of the vertical, and scored 33.1.
Tom Jackson pilots United 36 round his second five-star dressage test on the way to fifth after this phase at Burghley 2026
(Image credit: Peter Nixon)
“He’s been quite feral the whole week. But actually, he really stayed with me and focused on what I was asking,” said Tom, who said the horse certainly remembers his strong performance at Badminton, where he was fourth, and the razzmatazz of that event.
“He definitely turned up here on Tuesday and thought, ‘Right, I know what we’re doing.’ It’s amazing how they know. They go to short formats and one-days all the time, but once they’ve done a few of these, they really do know when they turn up.
“He just is into everything and notices if a leaf has fallen off a tree four miles away. So he’s been swinging his head around all over the place for the past two days. But I got on to ride this morning and he knuckled down so I thought, ‘Oh, good, we’ve got there.’”
Pippa is a true eventing geek and has been H&H’s eventing editor since 2005. She has first-hand experience of competing up to British Eventing intermediate and international CCI2*-L level, and has worked in the industry on a top event yard. Pippa enjoys nothing more than immersing herself in the sport at the highest level, reporting from the five-stars and international championships, including the Olympics.
