“I got the horse with the Philippaerts family; I bought them out so I own the horse together with Katie Robinson,” he said of Grass de Mars, a 9-year-old Selle Français mare (Windows CH Costersveld x Dollar dela Pierre). “It’s been a new partnership for me and we’re off to a good start. I’m very impressed with this horse at just nine to go in and jump a class like that. She’s still growing into herself so it will be fun to see what we have.”

Of the 13 clears over Anthony d’Ambrosio’s (USA) Winning Round track, Farrington had a quick enough time to secure a jump-off position and made the most of the opportunity.

“She has a big stride and turns on a dime,” Farrington elaborated on Grass de Mars and her jump-off strengths. “She did an exceptional job to the third fence. Then I let her open up and I was amazed by how big her stride is. She can carve up the lines and still be dropping out strides which makes her exceptionally fast in a big ring.”

Farrington’s time of 40.93 seconds couldn’t quite be caught, though Olympic Champion Christian Kukuk (GER) came very close with Espoir Blanc Cristal, owned by Beerbaum Stables GMBH, taking second with his time of 40.97 seconds. Jordan Coyle (IRL) was third with For Gold, owned by Falkirk Farm, LLC.

After snagging two CSI5* grand prix victories so far this season at WEF, Farrington is seeing the fruits of his efforts in developing the next generation of top show jumpers. After a period of rebuilding in the form of developing talented young horses, the results he hoped for are pouring in.

“I've been doing this a long time; you try to enjoy the wins when things go well, ride the high waves, and ride the low waves,” Farrington remarked of the year he’s had so far. “I love what I do, I love working with the horses, and I love producing the horses. It’s really a pleasure for me to see them get to a higher level like this and show what they can do.”

As for developing horses, Farrington has pretty simple advice: enjoy the process. “Today’s sport is so refined, and there's so much nuance in what we do, so it takes time to build a partnership. The more time you put into that and the more you enjoy the process the better partnership you have with your horse.”

To see full results from the $62,500 Hermès CSI5* 1.50m Classic, click HERE.