Thermal, Calif. – November 4, 2026 – For an impressive second year in a row, the National Sunshine Series 2 Welcome Speed win went to Mariano Alario. This time, Alario partnered with Aircraft One to take home the victory in the $10,000 ShowMD 1.35m Welcome Speed held on Wednesday, November 4, at Desert International Horse Park.
Alario – who is certainly no stranger to speed class success at DIHP – was the 28th of 50 entries to take on the course in the Grand Prix Stadium, and he and Aircraft One shot straight to the top of the leaderboard with a time of 55.321 seconds. Second place with a time of 56.050 seconds went to a fellow Mariano, Mariano Maggi aboard his own Casavita PS. Rounding out the top three on a time of 56.939 seconds were early leaders Camilo Rueda and Gucci van fil Horses Z, owned by Sherry Gardner.
Mariano Alario and Aircraft One. Photo by High Desert Sport Photo
“Sometimes I get a little too comfortable at this height and going fast, and I want to leave one or two strides out all the time!” said Alario. “But I knew I could be fast in the turns and leave a stride out because [Aircraft One] has a massive stride.”
That massive stride has helped the 12-year-old Hanoverian, owned by Juan Pablo Jimenez, to already achieve numerous top results in the short six months that the mare has been partnered with Alario.
Dr. Barb Blasko of ShowMD presented Mariano Alario as the winner of the $10,000 1.35m Welcome Speed. Photo by High Desert Sport Photo
“It took me a little bit of time to figure her out, but we had a really good summer together,” said Alario. “We won a bunch of welcome classes. She placed in several grand prix. We almost won the CSI2* grand prix in Woodside a couple weeks ago. Unfortunately, we had the last rail down with the faster time. It’s a phenomenal horse. She has a lot of experience with the owner; she’s jumped a lot of 1.50-1.55m classes.”
The mare is one of Alario’s sale horses, so her future with him is uncertain. “At some point she’s going to find her other half,” he said. “But if she doesn’t get sold, she’ll come back in December and do the CSI2*.”
Mariano Alario and Aircraft One. Photo by High Desert Sport Photo
To view complete results from the $10,000 ShowMD 1.35m Welcome Speed, click here. National Sunshine Series 2, presented by Frank & Eileen, continues through Sunday, November 8, with featured highlights including Saturday night’s $117,000 Frank & Eileen CSI3* Grand Prix. To view the full competition schedule and learn more about Desert International Horse Park, visit deserthorsepark.com.