Six years ago, Ariel Grange’s Farrel proved himself a winner at Thunderbird Show Park. He was just nine years old on that occasion. Now, at age 15, the Dutch Warmblood gelding (Cardento 933 x Stakkato) made an impressive comeback back to the winner’s circle again, topping the $31,100 tbird CSI4* Speed 1.45m on opening day of the Canadian Premier.
Olympian Daniel Coyle (IRL) has piloted the horse for the majority of its jumping career, and they seem to be hitting their stride in 2025. The pair came out late in the order of Wednesday’s class, challenging the 59.61 second time set by Kara Chad (CAN) and Corinna Z that seemed nearly impossible to beat.
Farrel proved that wrong. Racing around the Fort Grand Prix Arena, Coyle and Farrel clocked in just over a tenth of a second faster at 59.45, narrowly edging the longtime leader into second. Kyle King (USA) finished third with Odysseus in 60.10.
“He likes winning classes, I guess,” Coyle remarked of Farrel’s recent form. “He’s been a great horse. I’ve been riding him since he was seven years old. He was very successful here at this venue when he was nine years old. He won the World Cup here and jumped the Nations Cup here very successfully for Ireland.”
The reason he hasn’t been winning all along? Farrel had a bit of a setback.
“He had an injury that put him out of the sport and it didn’t look like he was coming back,” Coyle explained. “He had four years out, which was crazy, and we didn’t really believe he would come back. Ariel had found somebody who could do a surgery to make him better, just so he could have a better life as a retired horse.”
Post surgery, Farrel was feeling better than ever.
“The vet was there one day and she said, ‘I think you should try again,’” Coyle continued. “If there’s one thing about this little horse it’s that he loves doing what he does. Otherwise he wouldn’t do it. He’s smaller than any other horse out there, but he doesn’t believe that.”
The run of form between Farrel’s comeback and now — the pair has jumped to seven international podium finishes, including three wins, this year alone (Jumpr stats) — has helped propel Coyle to 14th in the world rankings.
“He’s one of my top horses again right now,” he reflected on Farrel’s position in his string. “I’ve probably won more classes this year on him than any other horse. I need him if I want to try to stay at the top. He wasn’t there for a long time, but I’m really reaping the benefits of having him back.”
Coyle is thrilled to be back in Langley, especially when it comes with a win. “Ariel also is a big fan of Thunderbird,” he shared. “It’s been a great show for me over the years with Ariel’s horses and with some of my own horses. I’m happy to be back.”
With two top mounts in town for the Canadian Premier, Coyle will jump both in Friday’s $62,500 CSI4* Grand Prix Qualifier 1.50m to assess which horse will go forth in Sunday’s $116,050 CSI4* Grand Prix 1.55m.
“Next week we have the Nations Cup for Ireland, which probably will be Farrel,” he said. “It’s been a long time since we did it but he really likes the grass field here. If the weather stays good, we’ll be going in the Nations Cup.”
$31,100 tbird CSI4* Speed 1.45m
Horse / Rider / Nationality / Owner / Faults/Time
1. Farrel / Daniel Coyle / IRL / Ariel Grange / 0/59.45
2. Corinna Z / Kara Chad / CAN / Kara Chad / 0/59.61
3. Odysseus / Kyle King / USA / Patricia Vasey / 0/60.10
4. Theo 160 / Conor Swail / IRL / Mannon Farm / 0/61.22
5. Atout des Trambles / Nicole Walker / CAN / Nicole Walker / 0/61.23
Watch their winning round here.
Results here.
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