DEVON, Pa.--Alex Matz on Omthago VDL won the $25,000 Devon Fall Classic Grand Prix Saturday evening, Sept. 12 at Devon.
Alex Matz on Omthago VDL (Photo by Phelps Sport)Matz had the only clear round of the four that made the jump-off from the starting field of 37.
Matz entered the Grand Prix with two young horses, giving both a valuable opportunity to gain experience in the atmosphere of the Dixon Oval.
“I brought two young horses, and I think they both exceeded my expectations,” Matz said. “You never know how they’ll do under these lights and with this atmosphere, so I think it was a great learning experience. The result is just the cherry on top.”
“I thought tonight’s course was difficult enough,” he said of the course set by Manuel Esparza of Mexico. “There were only four clear out of 37, so it was challenging, but it was fair.”
Matz was clean in 35.160 seconds to be the only competitor to finish the Grand Prix without a fault.
“MY HORSE gives me a lot of confidence,” Matz said. “He’s a wonderful horse. He’s inexperienced, but he’s always very competitive.”
“I didn’t have a great turn back to the double, but my horse really helped me there,” Matz said. “He’s an amazing fighter.”
Going early in the class on Million One, Matz had one time fault to place sixth.
Hannah Matts on Markant was second with four faults in the jump-off in 33.955, Morgan Ward-Knowlton on GF Diego was third, four faults in 34.239, and Elizabeth Traband on Marcee W was fourth, four faults in 35.836,while Taylor Madden on Manhattan VDL was fifth with one time fault in round one, finishing in 75.164, a half second faster than Matz on Million One.
Earlier on Saturdaay, Wendy Chapot Nunn on Miss Keros won her second class in 1.10m Amateur, having won the 1.10m Amateur on Zealous on Friday.
"Miss Keros is a horse that Laura showed in 7-year-old jumpers last year," said Nunn. "She's a new ride for me. I started showing her in May. We won at Lake Placid earlier this year. She's fun. She's very flexible."
"Zealous won yesterday," said Nunn of the Chapot's homebred by Gemini. "He's 22, but he's still going strong."
Laura Chapot also won her second class in 1.30m Jumpers, one on Friday and one Saturday, having won both days on Ciego.
