news Sierras Future enjoys career high aged 18 with Royal Highland Show victory

The 18-year-old gelding Sierras Future achieved a new career high when crowned Champion following the final of the Tattersalls RoR Scottish Show Series at the Royal Highland Show on Thursday 23^rd June.

Owned and ridden by Lauren Thomson, the pair also took the highest placed veteran in a very competitive class comprised of fourteen former racehorses, each combination having qualified for the final in their bid to be crowned Tattersalls RoR Scottish Show Series Champion 2022.

A son of the Kentucky Derby winner, Fusaichi Pegasus, and bred by Newsells Park Stud, Sierras Future did not distinguish himself in a four-race career, with his best effort being a third place at Hamilton Park.

Since retiring from racing in 2008 he has enjoyed a long and rewarding second career, however, his success at the Royal Highland Show is the high point of his showing career to date. On the back of being crowned Tattersalls RoR Scottish Champion, Sierras Future and Lauren Thomson can look ahead to competing for the title of Supreme Champion at The Jockey Club RoR National Championships at Aintree Equestrian Centre in August.

Runner-up and Reserve Champion for the second year in a row was the ten-year-old gelding, Festive Fare ridden by Poppi Shepherd, with third place going to Livi’s Little Bro and Diane Wilson. Among the other horses in the class were Lightning Cloud, who was a promising horse on the Flat amassing over £80,000 and Even Smarter, now aged twenty.

This is the first year that Tattersalls have sponsored all six of the RoR showing series. In total over 170 showing qualifiers are held annually in Great Britain, with a geographical spread from Aberdeenshire to Cornwall. Qualifying classes are held at county and Royal shows, including Royal Windsor and the Royal Welsh Show, as well as at smaller venues, such the Blakesley Show and Wincanton Horse Show.

Di Arbuthnot, Chief Executive of RoR, said: “Tattersalls are wonderful supporters of RoR and have been involved with the charity’s showing classes from the very beginning. The turnout for the Scottish Championships improves each year and it never ceases to warm the heart seeing the horses so wonderfully turned out and the pleasure evident among the riders from just competing at these championships.”