Forty-one riders lined up Sunday afternoon in the indoor arena of El Jadida to contest the CSI4*-W Grand Prix of His Majesty King Mohammed VI — the grand finale of this 2025 Morocco Royal Tour. It was Ireland’s Tim Brennan who had the honor of taking the victory in this prestigious class, in front of H.R.H. Crown Prince Moulay El Hassan, who, like the crowd, must have felt a rush of emotion watching the extraordinary comeback of his compatriot, El Ghali Boukaa, from eleventh to second place.
As always with Belgian course designer Louis Konickx, the course offered a clever balance between technicality and flow, but it was far from easy: twelve obstacles, fifteen efforts in total. From the very first line, the tone was set: the opening vertical, followed by the first oxer on a bending line, already stood at a serious size. The poles were light; one could not afford to even brush the plank at fence 4, nor the highly delicate vertical 10. The faults were evenly spread throughout the course: always a positive sign of quality and difficulty. Each horse found its own problem… except, of course, for the five clear rounds of this first phase! “I found the course very difficult,” said the winner. “Almost 5* level, just a bit smaller, but truly selective.”
It took until the ninth rider, Italy’s Roberto Previtali with I’m Special Mess PS, to record the first clear. Young Portuguese rider Molly Hughes Bravo (23), daughter of international riders Miguel Bravo and Marion Hughes, soon joined him. She now works alongside her parents and two sisters at the Hughes Horse Stud, a breeding and training stable that has produced several Grand Prix horses, as HHS Tokyo proved again today. Three more pairs would follow suit: Egypt’s Olympian Mouda Zeyada, Saudi Arabia’s World Cup finalist 2024 Khaled Almobty, and Irish Tim Brennan (19).
The top eleven—the five clear rounds plus the six fastest four-faulters—returned for the second round, reduced to eight obstacles (nine efforts), on a tighter time and higher pace, as is tradition in such second rounds. There was total suspense because the four-fault riders could still win it all, while the clear-round riders risked losing everything. Morocco’s El Ghali Boukaa, for instance, immediately put the pressure on his rivals by producing a fast, faultless round in 42.79 seconds aboard A Kyss. Last to qualify, the Olympian climbed all the way from eleventh to second place, overtaking not only all the other four-faulters but also four of the five clear rounds.
Tim Brennan, for his part, opted for caution, ensuring the clear was a priority, which was no easy task on such a volatile track; precision and composure were key.
“I was lucky to be last to go. My mare is naturally quick, but today all I had to do was jump double clear. I tried to play it safe, maybe a bit too safe, took a few wide turns, and ended up with three time faults, something that had never happened to me before with her! Fortunately, she jumped incredibly in both rounds. She gave me everything.”
It came down to just thirty-three hundredths of a second; any slower, and the young Irishman would have picked up a fourth time fault, dropping to seventh place. An admirable display of composure for his age and for his first-ever 4* Grand Prix. Yet Timmy has one big advantage: he knows his mare inside out. “I bought Maradona as a five-year-old from Fanny Walsh at Sean Monaghan’s yard, where I was doing work experience. Thanks to them, I got to ride her early. We won team gold at the Junior Europeans when she was eight, and this year we took silver. She also won two 2* Grands Prix in Florida earlier this season. But this victory here: it’s the most special one. In five years, Maradona has taken me from zero to hero. She owes me nothing. This result tops everything. Winning my first 4* Grand Prix here: it’s a dream come true. I can hardly believe it.”
As for the other hero of the day, El Ghali Boukaa was just as overjoyed as the young Irishman: “To qualify as the very last rider (by only 24 hundredths) and finish second after having four faults in the first round, that’s something I never expected. When I came in for the second round, my plan was to jump a nice clear and aim for fifth or sixth. But when the bell rang, I changed my mind and decided to go fast, whatever happened. Finishing second under these circumstances feels like a victory. I’m so proud of my horse; he jumped incredibly today. It was a very technical course, truly worthy of a Grand Prix at this level. To ride here, in front of the Crown Prince and the Moroccan crowd, is always a deeply emotional moment.”
GRAND PRIX DE SA MAJESTÉ LE ROI MOHAMMED VI
CSI4*-W – 1.55m
1. Tim Brennan, IRL – Diadema Della Caccia 0-3/54.67, 2)
2. El Ghali Boukaa, MAR – A Kyss 4-0/42.79
3. Mouda Zeyada, EGY – If Looks Could Kill O.H. 0-4/45.38
4. Molly Hughes Bravo, POR – Hhs Tokyo 0-4/48.62
5. Mans Thijssen, NED – Joviality 4-0/49.56
6. Alexis Goulet, FRA – Be Hippy TT 4-0/49.80
7. Leon Thijssen, NED – Hello 4-4/48.37
8. Mel Thijssen, NED – Juice 4-4/48.71
9. Roberto Previtali, ITA – I’M Special Mess PS 0-8/49.49
10. Khaled Almobty, KSA – Spacecake 0-8/51.67
11. Marek Lewicki, POL – La Pezi 4-8/50.43
Results here.
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