Lexington, KY – May 14, 2025 – FEI show jumping action was back in the Rolex Stadium as the Kentucky Spring Classic kicked off on Wednesday with the $35,000 1.45 CSI3* Welcome Stake. Over 40 top athletes vied for the winning honors, but only the fastest had a shot at the podium. Simon McCarthy and Narcotique V/H Dingenshof galloped home with the blue ribbon with a blazing round that was almost three seconds ahead of second-place finishers Cathleen Driscoll and Flotylla, while Conor Swail rounded out the top three aboard One Edition.
“It feels great,” smiled McCarthy after his win. “It’s always nice to get off to a good start to the week like that, so I am thrilled with my horse.”
Conor Swail and One Edition
Anderson Lima and Jason Shelley set a welcoming track for the week’s first highlight event, featuring several rollbacks and two combinations. It yielded 13 clear rounds, with Conor Swail and One Edition, going 10th in the order, setting the early pace to beat in a clear 63.32 seconds, which would hold up for third place. Soon after, going 20th in the order, Cathleen Driscoll and Flotylla edged out Swail by just 0.01 seconds with a time of 63.31 seconds. McCarthy and his 12-year-old Belgian Warmblood mare Narcotique V/H Dingenshof followed Driscoll, going 26th in the order, and were blazing fast around the course to finish with a time of 60.39 seconds and the winning title.
Cathleen Driscoll and Flotylla
“Honestly, she’s just incredibly fast across the ground, so I did pretty much the same numbers as Conor Swail,” explained McCarthy. “I watched him go, and I knew I could trust her ground speed and do the numbers.”
Narcotique V/H Dingenshof is a 12-year-old Belgian Warmblood mare that McCarthy began riding a year ago. “Ilan Ferder gave her to me to ride, and then I purchased her at the beginning of this year,” noted McCarthy. “After I purchased her, we went through a bit of a lull results-wise, so it’s nice to see that she’s finding a bit of form again.”
Simon McCarthy and Narcotique V/H Dingenshof
McCarthy was thrilled to return to be competing at the Kentucky Horse Park for one more week, concluding, “I love Kentucky. Rockridge Farm, where we are based, is only two hours from here, so I get to come here for the shows, and I love it. it’s just an amazing facility – there’s so much room to ride and the scenery is amazing, so it’s always nice to win in a nice place.”
The next event for the pair will be Thursday night’s $62,500 Spring Classic CSI3*. Show jumping will continue throughout the week during the Kentucky Spring Classic, featuring the $125,000 Mary Rena Murphy Grand Prix CSI3*, presented by Hagyard Equine, on Saturday and the $35,000 Commonwealth Grand Prix on Sunday.