Tracy Fenney Caps Off Winning Weekend with MTM Apple in the $50,000 First Equestrian Grand Prix

14 JUN 26 Ocala, FL

A rider in a navy jacket and helmet guides a gray horse over a show jumping obstacle labeled

Ocala, FL – Tracy Fenney (USA) closed out a remarkable weekend at World Equestrian Center – Ocala with yet another victory, this time piloting the renowned MTM Apple (Favorit Ask x Kong’s Whopsie) to the win in Sunday’s $50,000 First Equestrian Grand Prix. Fenney also secured a third-place finish aboard MTM Can Talk To Me. 

A rider on a white horse jumps over an obstacle decorated with butterfly designs during an equestrian event in an outdoor arena.
Tracy Fenney continues winning ways with MTM Apple in the $50,000 First Equestrian Grand Prix. Photo by Andrew Ryback Photography.

A field of 23 horse-and-rider combinations tackled Andy Christiansen’s (ECU) final Grand Prix track of the week. The course proved demanding from start to finish, with a tight time allowed catching several competitors throughout the first round. Only six combinations managed to leave all the rails in place and advance to the jump-off.

Fresh off her victory in Saturday night’s $85,000 4CYTE Grand Prix CSI2* aboard MTM Pablo, Fenney returned to the WEC Grand Arena looking to continue her momentum. First to return for the jump-off, she partnered her longtime mount MTM Apple, a 15-year-old Danish Warmblood mare known for her experience and competitive spirit.

A rider on a white horse jumps over a colorful floral obstacle during an equestrian show jumping competition in an outdoor arena.
“Apple goes like Apple goes.” – Tracy Fenney Photo by Andrew Ryback Photography.

At the sound of the tone, Fenney laid down a target that would ultimately prove impossible to catch. “Apple goes like Apple goes,” laughed Fenney. “She’s got such a big stride, and she obviously has the left drift, but sometimes that works to my advantage. I knew in one of the lines the seven would be right there, and I was going to do it going to the last jump. She kind of got rowdy and went left, right, left, and then I held her back out for one more stride. She’s just so quick, and you don’t think she’s going to be quick.”

The pair crossed the timers in an impressive 35.401 seconds, setting a mark that none of the remaining competitors could match.

A group of people and two horses stand around a podium with "First Equestrian" written on it at an outdoor event, with flowers and a large event screen in the background.
Tracy Fenney accepting her first and third place awards, presented by Leslie Padoll and Amy Silvis of First Equestrian. Photo by Andrew Ryback Photography.

Despite her size, MTM Apple has built a reputation for surprising competitors with her speed. “A friend of mine always says, ‘Here comes that Tracy on that old grey mare,'” Fenney shared. “He didn’t know her at that point. He said, ‘This class has been really fast.’ Then he watched me go in and thought, ‘There’s no way this big mare is going to get in within that time.’ Then I beat them by like three seconds. He was absolutely shocked. Now he’s a big fan of hers because of that.

“She’s such a cool horse. She knows how much to give and how much not to. She kind of double-kicked over a couple jumps because she was like, ‘Oh, I might hit this… I’m not going to hit it.'”

Equestrian rider in black attire and helmet jumps a brown horse over a decorative obstacle with flamingo and palm tree designs at an outdoor competition.
Taylor St. Jacques (CAN) jump to second place in stellar form. Photo by Andrew Ryback Photography.

Taylor St. Jacques (CAN) came closest to Fenney’s time, guiding Bridlegate Farm, LLC’s Gold du Rouet (Consul DL Vie Z x Camera du Rouet) to a clear jump-off round in 37.078 seconds for second place.

Equestrian rider in blue jacket and helmet jumps a white horse over an obstacle during a show jumping competition outdoors.
Tracy Fenney also secured third place with MTM Can Talk To Me. Photo by Andrew Ryback Photography.

Fenney still had one more opportunity to add to her impressive weekend. Returning aboard MTM Can Talk To Me (Catoki x Ocarina), owned by Nina Koloseike, she produced another efficient effort, stopping the clock in 37.252 seconds to secure third place. 

$50,000 First Equestrian Grand Prix Results 

Explore the daily class schedule, orders of go, class counts, and final results on HorseShowing.com. For real-time scoring, check out Ryegate.Live.

Photos courtesy of Andrew Ryback Photography.
Videos available at ClipMyHorse.TV

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