WEF reset for Ben Maher with Saturday Night Lights victory

Ben Maher and Enjeu de Grisien’s victory in the $140,000 3-star Grand Prix at Saturday Night Lights reset the stage for the British rider at the Winter Equestrian Festival, having sat out most of the 2023 winter season through injury.

“It was a very tough year for me last year,” said Ben, currently number two in the world rankings. A broken shoulder was the result of a freak accident in the warm up ring at the beginning of the year. “It was the most difficult time in my career I’ve had for sure,” he said. “And I sat watching here for 10 or 11 weeks, every time I wasn’t watching I was in physio or in a lot of pain to be honest but I had an incredible team of doctors and physios to get me back to fitness.”

Forty five competitors lined up for the Grand Prix and the bar was set by an opening clear from McLain Ward and First Lady. Seven went through to the jump off, which once again saw McLain lay down the gauntlet with a clear round in 37.49 seconds. Ben and Enjeu de Grisien responded by shaving increments off the clock with a time of 36.87.

The partnership between Ben and the 10-year old Selle Francais bay gelding was not always certain. “He was a difficult young horse,” said Ben, who partnered with Enjeu de Grisien as a seven-year old. “He was very active and almost had too much power for the body that he had and I struggled to get him under control. We were on a different path for a while and he didn’t really understand me or I didn’t really understand him and all of a sudden it just clicked just over a year ago.”

Currently the trajectory of the pair is soaring. “He was fantastic,” Ben said of the Grand Prix win at Wellington International. “He’s still relatively young but he’s got real confidence. He won his last competition in London [FEI World Cup at London International Horse Show] a few weeks ago and I really felt when he came out this evening that he’s grown up.”

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