The psychological warfare has begun. Late in announcing his short list for the fourth round of the Riders Masters Cup, the American team leader Robert Ridland surprised everyone by directly revealing right after the Longines FEI World Cup Final the names of the five riders who will defend the colors of the Riders USA at NYCB LIVE, home of the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, on April 27. As we might have expected, it’s a great team that Ridland will field in New York: McLain Ward, Beezie Madden, Laura Chapot, Devin Ryan and Lillie Keenan as U25! Two recent World Cup winners (2017 and 2018), and riders with Olympic and World medals (the last is a team gold medal for Ward and Ryan) and a ‘‘U25’’ already rich in experience at top level, having already regularly represented the United States team in the Nations Cup – an impressive line-up. ‘‘In the first three editions, there was always a lot of suspense until the end and the result was often decided by the last duel’’, recalls Riders USA team leader Robert Ridland. ‘‘We were very close to winning last year in New York and the Europeans eventually beat us, but the competition was great. We intend to reverse the trend this year. We have a strong team on paper, with experienced riders like McLain Ward and Beezie Madden, as well as Devin Ryan who was already part of the first team in Paris. Laura Chapot will be our wildcard. She is one of the fastest riders of the moment and a major asset for our team. Lillie Keenan is of course a priceless asset as a representative of the Under 25. I think it’s a good line-up, but we’ll see.’’ Beezie Madden, caught after the Longines FEI World Cup Final where, although she couldn’t retain her title, she remained the United States’ best rider (6th), told us: ‘‘Now the goal is the Riders Masters Cup, and I promise you we will do everything we can to win it this time!’’ When asked (by text message) about this surprise move by Robert Ridland and if he thought that it would become an advantage for Riders Europe not to reveal their five riders until the last moment, Philippe Guerdat answered us with a simple winky smiley, full of optimism – the battle of nerves is undoubtedly underway!