Ben Maher’s London Knights Win in Split Second GCL Duel with New York Empire
Saturday 18 May 2019
A fraction of a second split the fortunes of the top two teams in the GCL of Madrid with the London Knights triumphing ahead of New York Empire in a nail-biting finish.
The win by the Knights dynamic duo of Ben Maher and Martin Fuchs propelled the team up the overall ranking after the fifth leg of the 2019 season, but Shanghai Swans remain on top as a ferocious battle develops in the top end of the GCL grid.
The home team Madrid In Motion, owned by Marta Ortega, fielded father and son Eric and Maikel van der Vleuten and the family-friendly combination pulled off a third place on the podium to the delight of the local crowd. All three teams on the podium kept impressive clean sheets in both rounds of the GCL competition.
The large grass arena is happy hunting ground for the London Knights, who were also victorious here last year.
Today, it was supersonic clear rounds from both Martin Fuchs riding Chaplin and Ben Maher on Explosion W that secured pole position ahead of the overnight leaders. With teams tied on points, time was critical, so riders had to be bold and take tight lines to be remain in contention.
It was a welcome turnaround for the Knights who were eliminated from two of the first four GCL events of 2019. Martin said: “I was very pleased to be here with Ben, who is always a great teammate and he made a double clear like he usually does.”
Ben said: “Martin’s round yesterday on his second horse was great, and we played it right today; we both went quick for the class and we needed to — we were just quick enough. Both of our horses jumped good and we had a difficult decision today because our other team member Emily [Moffitt] was also clear but we’re very happy to be coming from behind this year so far.”
The overnight leaders, New York Empire, were last to go and were bolstered by a clear in the fastest time of the competition from the 22-year-old rider Spencer Smith with Theodore Manciais, but Scott Brash’s relatively inexperienced Hello Shelby couldn’t quite hit the pace required to put the team ahead of the London Knights despite a classy clear.
Spanish course designer Santiago Varela Ullastres presented a flowing 475m track over this undulating terrain. The 76-second time allowed caught out riders who dallied and the triple combination set on an uphill incline took the most victims, with the vertical first element falling more than any other fence on the course. GCL Co-Founder Jan Tops said: “It was amazing sport here with the three top teams riding double clear. These things don’t normally happen.” Alvaro Arrieta Konyay, President of Organising Partner Oxer Sport, said: “We are proud to have the opportunity to host a leg of the GCL here in Madrid.”
The series leaders, the Shanghai Swans, were kept off the Madrid podium by a single time fault, and they finished in fourth. They sit on top of ranking on 109 points. St Tropez Pirates are in second on 89 points followed closely by Monaco Aces and Miami Celtics both on 87 points.
The GCL now turns to Hamburg, Germany, for the sixth round of the Championship race. For full results and further information on the Global Champions League visit www.gcglobalchampions.com
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