An Open Final full of emotion, first of all because of the long pause away from the show arena due to the pandemic, closed with 24-year-old Nico Sicuro claiming his first Futurity title: The

€138.750- added Level (L) 4 Open Championship. Sicuro and Dance Wimpy Spook, a mare by NRHA Twelve Million Dollar Sire Wimpys Little Step out of Dance Little Spook (by NRHA Six Million Dollar Sire Smart Spook), owned and bred by Pietro Marseglia’s Quarter Dream, scored a 223 for the win which also earned Quarter Dream the International Reining Horse Breeder Association (IRHBA) 2020 Breeders Award. “This is incredible, it’s every professional’s dream, and it certainly has always been mine,” said Sicuro. “I am very happy and still can’t believe this happened. My mare was great and couldn’t give any more than she did. What makes this win even more special is that I started working for Quarter Dream in 2019, and this mare comes from the first string of horses that I trained from the start. I could not have done this without Pietro Marseglia and the team behind me, and of course my family.”

Tying for the Reserve honors was Giuseppe Prevosti aboard BH Walla Whiz On Top (NRHA Three Million Dollar Sire Walla Walla Whiz x ARC Jersey Lil BH), owned by Ambrosini Quarter Horses and bred by Hubert Bosin, and Francesco Barbagli on Jerzy Szumanski’s Lil Jo Gunner (NRHA Million Dollar Sire Lil Joe Cash x Designed By Gunner), bred by Green Valley Ranch, scoring 220.

On home turf, Barbagli laid down a great performance tonight that also earned him and the flashy palomino blue-eyed mare the €37.500- added L3 as well as the €18.750- added L2 Open Championships. “This has been a dream that I’ve had ever since I was a kid,” he said. “There are no words to describe how amazing this mare is. She has never said no: She’s always tried to do everything to the best of her ability putting her whole heart into what she’s doing. I’ve had her for a while now and she loves reining—I simply had to ride her. I didn’t train her…I found myself in her path, and I didn’t have to do anything other than respect her.”

Stefano Angelucci and Capitain Sparked (Frozen Sailor x Sparked In the Shade), a mare owned by Giulia Rossi and bred by Tiziana Rancitelli, closed with the Reserve Championship in the L3 Open with a score of 218. Pierluigi Chioldo & RTR Whizard Of Oak (My Showbiz Whiz x Hickory Penny Oak) bred and owned by Massimiliano Rossi scored 217 for their L2 Reserve Champion finish.

The €9.000- added L1 Open Futurity Champions were determined after the conclusion of the first section of the Open Finals. Draw #13, Fabio Russo and Valerie Zozin’s Great Gunna Whiz, a gelding by NRHA Four Million Dollar Sire Gunnatrashya out of Great Dudes Whiz, posted a 215.5 which held and was enough to capture the L1 Open Futurity Championship. “The horse was really great today,” said Russo, Italian professional Pierluigi Chioldo's assistant trainer. “He has been with us for almost a year and here his performance improved consistently from the first qualifying go round up to the finals. He is always willing to work at home and only needs to be ridden 15 minutes a day. He is a really special horse and I would like to thank the owners and Pierluigi [Chioldo] who has always been close to me helping me throughout this amazing journey.”

The titles and the reserve spots in the top three levels all went to Italian professionals. In the L1, Czech Jonáš Bujnoch rode Lucky Valley Ranch’s PL Not Trashy, a mare by NRHA Four Million Dollar Sire Gunnatrashya out of Nu Chex Donna, to a 214.5 and Reserve honors. “I really like this mare and I’m happy with our run today. We plan to show her at other futurities in Europe this season, such as the Austrian Futurity, and then come back to Cremona for the European Futurity in the fall." The long haul was well worth it!

Following strict COVID-19 and EHV-1 protocols, the first major show of the season was held behind closed doors. It could not have been done without the joint effort of IRHA, NRHA, CremonaFiere, the local authorities, the staff, and Giancarlo Doardo’s organizing committee, TfY.

A special thank you to Andrea Bonaga, the man behind Bonaga Communication. It is thanks to Bonaga and his team that reining fans worldwide could be part of the event thanks to the great images and videography!

• For complete results click HERE
• For further information: www.itrha.com

NRHA European Futurity Media Contact
Simona Diale / International Horse Press