Lexington, KY – August 16, 2026 – The $40,000 Bluegrass Festival Grand Prix, presented by Sterling Equestrian and Forest Hill, was the marquee show jumping event in the Rolex Stadium on Sunday morning at the Kentucky Horse Park. Besting the five-horse jump-off by almost 4 seconds, James Billington took home the victory for the second year in a row, this time aboard Inajottie WB. Kevin Gallagher and Casanova SP came the closest to catching the speedy pair for second place, while the third-place prize went to Loic Cannaert and Nazarine VD Axelhoeve as the only other double-clear combination.
“She’s had a few rounds here in the Rolex this summer, and she has plenty of experience,” smiled Billington after his win. “I knew today she’d be all right to go straight in there, and she jumped amazing.”
James Billington & Inajottie WB
The course built by Meghan Rawlins for Sunday’s class featured 13 obstacles that spanned the entirety of the stadium. Questions in the first round included a triple bar, an oxer-vertical double combination, and a vertical-oxer-vertical triple combination to the final wide oxer towards the gate. Five horses advanced to the tiebreaker, where three produced a second clear effort as they made tight rollbacks and fast gallops over the track, which included three new fences.
Kevin Gallagher & Casanova SP
Gallagher was the first to return Casanova SP, setting the pace to beat as they cleared the course in 42.017 seconds. Billington entered the ring next, though, and never let off the gas aboard his experienced mount Inajottie WB. With a quick rollback after the first fence, a fast gallop to the combination, and another quick turn, they were able to gallop across the finish line in 38.852 seconds with all the rails intact to go straight to the top of the leaderboard. Cannaert was the only other rider to challenge Billington’s time with Nazarine VD Axelhoeve, but their more conservative track stopped the clock at 45.280 seconds for the third-place prize. After one of the final riders had an unfortunate rail, Billington returned to accept the winning honors and lead the lap of honor.
Loic Cannaert & Nazarine VD Axelhoeve
“I thought I’d go as fast as I could, and I watched Kevin go,” explained Billington. “Honestly, I didn’t think I’d beat him, but she has more experience than Kevin’s horse, so I could just keep rolling. I got a good shot on all the turns, and she’s amazing – she knows what she’s doing.”
Inajottie WB is a 13-year-old KWPN mare owned by Samantha Mackenzie and Wilfred Beerse that Billington began riding last year. “They have owned her since she was 3 years old,” noted Billington. “Samantha produced her and rode her up to four-star level. They did some amazing things together. I know she has all the experience, and while we’re not so experienced together, I just have to do my best just to stay out of the way. She knows what to do. She’s so careful, and she jumps amazingly, so the biggest thing is that I just don’t mess up on her.”
Based in Kentucky in the summer, Billington was happy to end the week on a winning note at the Kentucky Horse Shows, concluding, “The facility is great, and the horses love to jump here. The young horses, they improve because they get to go in the Walnut and they get to go in the Rolex. It gives them great experience. For the older ones, we have great classes like this, great courses, and the grounds are amazing. We love it in Kentucky, so we’re happy to stay here and come back every year!”
Competition during the Bluegrass Festival has come to a close, but hunter/jumper action will continue next week at the Kentucky Horse Park during the KHJA Horse Show. Feature events will include the $30,000 KHJA Grand Prix, $15,000 KHJA Welcome Stake and $5,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby. For more information about the Kentucky Horse Shows please visit www.KentuckyHorseShows.com.