Piergiorgio Bucci is the winner of the 2026 Rolex Grand Prix of Rome - to the delight of the hosts

Of the twelve pairs who were able to recommend themselves for an appearance in the second round, only Piergiorgio Bucci and his beautiful Cornet Obolensky son Pallieter by D. N. Ranch managed two clear rounds. As the eighth starter, Bucci didn’t go for safety. Nor was he allowed to do so, as he was followed by Aachen winner Richard Vogel, among others. 42.01 seconds was not a great time, but since Bucci’s gray horse didn’t even come close to a pole, he took the lead. And the spectators around the beautiful grass arena went wild. The success is anything but a surprise. Just a few weeks ago, the 49-year-old was presented with a competitor’s watch as an honorary prize for winning the Global Champions Tour show jumping competition in Mexico, also on Pallieter. And now the home victory in Rome.

Twice unlucky

Jörne Sprehe and her Toulon son Toys, with their self-confidence boosted by their victory in the Grand Prix of Mannheim, were the sixth pair in the second round and delivered a brilliant ride, the only one in less than 40 seconds. But that only helped them to a limited extent, as a pole fell at the last oxer of all places. Nevertheless, that was enough for second place.

The pair that tried to thwart Bucci’s victory included Richard Vogel and the twelve-year-old Holstein stallion Cloudio. Vogel approached the jump-off in typical style: Rein bridge, high basic speed and assessing the first oxer with a large distance straight away. But Cloudio made a careless mistake. The pole of the first obstacle fell. No reason for Vogel to slow down. But Cloudio was no match for Toys’ brilliant time. The clock stopped at 41.67 seconds for the son of Casall. In the end, that was good enough for third place.

Hinners also at the forefront

The third German rider in the group of pairs in the second round was Sophie Hinners in the saddle on Combella. The third-placed rider from Aachen and her twelve-year-old Cornet du Lys daughter were the last pair in the second round and also tried to ride a clear round in order to finish in the top three. They opted for safety, but their plan did not work out. A pole fell anyway and the pair finished in sixth place in 45.26 seconds.

Between Hinners and Vogel, the US-American Marilyn Little – probably still remembered by many from eventing – lined up with the eleven-year-old Mecklenburg mare La Contessa by License, as well as the Swedish dream team Wilma McMahon and her one-eyed European team champion Cicci BJN. The rider is better known by her maiden name Hellström. But three weeks ago she married her partner Eion McMahon, the Irish show jumper who left his previous employer Ludger Beerbaum a while ago to set up his own business alongside Hellström.

You can find all the results here.