Eventing Exclusive: Huddersfield’s world no 1 Oliver Townend eyes another Kentucky Master Class

Yet as far as eventing’s newly-classed ‘five-stars’ are concerned, 2019 begins next Thursday in the USA with the Kentucky Three Day Event in which Townend and Cooley Master Class gloriously savoured victory last year.

One year on, the duo are back to defend to their title with Townend declaring maximum confidence in his 14-year-old gelding who the Yorkshireman says is just as good as Burghley hero Ballaghmor Class.

As far as British Eventing is concerned, all eyes on UK soil will be on Townend and Ballaghmor Class in a week and a half’s time when the pairing bid to add a victory at the Badminton Horse Trials to their bow.

Looking to land eventing’s richest price of the Rolex Grand Slam, Ballaghmor Class had to settle for finishing fifth at last year’s Badminton at which Townend and Cooley SRS finished second as the Yorkshireman was agonisingly denied.

Yet 2017 Burghley winner Ballaghmor Class went on to also finish runner-up at last year’s Burghley meaning the dashing grey has now finished in the top five of three CCI five-stars in a row – an unbelievable feat for any horse at that level.

Some going and some praise that Townend rates next week’s Kentucky hopeful and defending champion Cooley Master Class as his equal and there’s also special praise for a third budding contender in Cillnabradden Evo.

Cooley Master Class has just one five-star outing to his name and one victory – at Kentucky last year – but comparing him to Ballaghmor Class, Townend told The Yorkshire Post: “They are both different in their own rights but both very good horses and I’m lucky to have them since they were four years old.

“If you put them in a competition against each other, one would win one day and one would win the other – and there’s Cillnabradden Evo also.

“He’s been a very good year-round horse.

“He’s always been up against it one way or the other but I hope that he will go to the top level again like he did at Pau and hopefully he will pick his feet up but I like riding him a lot.”

Cillnabradden Evo and Cooley Master Class are also both entered for this year’s Badminton where Townend also has 12-year-old gelding Ulises engaged but it will be Ballaghmor Class that is regarded as the chief hope, not that you can really tell given the strength in depth at Towned’s disposal.

But Cooley Master Class is alone in heading to Kentucky with Townend and his mount is one of just two pairings making the journey from Great Britain.

Piggy French will also bid for glory on Quarrycrest Echo though American-based Brit Leslie Law also sends out Voltair De Tre.

Townend knows from experience that victory at Kentucky sets a rider up for the remainder of the year in the ultimate style and the Yorkshireman is hopeful that another opportunity to land eventing’s Grand Slam of successive wins of Burghley, Kentucky and Badminton will again soon come knocking.

Last year’s victory also banished the memory of his Kentucky outing in 2010 when the Yorkshireman was airlifted to hospital after falling ten fences from home on the cross country test on Ashdale Cruise Master.

Back then, Townend was also looking to land the final leg of the Grand Slam following the 2009 Badminton-Burghley double on Flint Curtis and Carousel Quest.

Eight years after the miserable end to his 2010 Kentucky bid, Townend and Cooley Master Class were savouring victory last April with the duo now eyeing a quick repeat.

“If you win one of those five stars in the spring it just starts your season in such an amazing confident way,” said Townend.

“Cooley Master Class is in great form and we are very, very happy with him – but you just need so much to go right for you over the week.”

Townend’s brilliant start to the season continued last weekend with the world no 1 enjoying a hat-trick of victories at Burnham Market International.

Ballaghmor Class and Cillnabradden Evo both won CCI short-format four-stars while Arklow Puissance scooped an Intermediate.

Ulises also finished second in an Advanced while Cooley Master Class warmed up for Kentucky with an outing at Open Intermediate.

Reflecting on when the next opportunity for a Grand Slam might arrive, Townend, who is still only 36, smiled: “I was on the phone to someone the other day and I was saying ‘God I am feeling a bit worn out’ as I had ridden and jumped a lot that day!

“They said you have only got another 32 years to go!

“Hopefully (the Grand Slam) is not too far away.

“I’m the only person that has been in that position twice and hopefully if I am lucky enough to be in that position again it will end better than the first time.”

Townend added: “We are probably a little short on horsepower at the top but the ones that we have got there are fantastic and capable of doing very well. We are actually not up in numbers hugely but at the same time we have got a lot of baby horses that are starting out.

“We have got some new owners which is fantastic and what we desperately need all the time – new investment, new enthusiasm.

“If they keep sending them I’ll keep taking them as long as we are all going in the same direction and the horse is the right horse.”