Thermal, Calif. – The first win of the week in the Grand Prix Stadium at Desert Circuit 7 went to Pablo Astolfi and Qualoubet DW. Astolfi and the 10-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding, owned by Shayne Wireman, topped a field of 37 horses to take home the victory in the $10,000 Western Alliance Bank 1.35m Welcome Speed at Desert International Horse Park.
Pablo Astolfi and Qualoubet DW. Photo by High Desert Sport Photo
Astolfi, a 22-year-old Spanish rider, came from Spain to California three months ago to begin riding for David Bustillos’ Durango Farms, and in that time, he and Qualoubet DW have proven to be quite a successful partnership. When they entered the ring on Wednesday, February 18, they easily took over the top of the leaderboard, setting the time to beat at 66.344 seconds.
It was not until the penultimate rider to jump that anyone came within even a second of Astolfi’s time, and Brazil’s Cassio Rivetti proved to be the only one to do so. He and Chalina’s Clou PS, owned by Monarch Farms LLC, cleared the course in 66.882 seconds to take second place. Third place with a time of 67.574 seconds went to Guillermo Obligado of Argentina and Komtessa de la Loge, owned by Gretchen Privett.
Pablo Astolfi and Qualoubet DW in their winning presentation. Photo by High Desert Sport Photo
“I love the horse,” said Astolfi of Qualoubet DW. “The horse came from Spain; I know because he was from a friend of mine. He’s a really good horse.”
Astolfi continued, “My uncle came last week to help me, so I think the win is for my uncle! I want to say thank you to David Bustillos, to my uncle and all the team.”
For full results from the $10,000 Western Alliance Bank 1.35m Welcome Speed, click here.