WHILE World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses rankings start updating from early summer, Hippomundo’s prizemoney-based database shows which horses are the current biggest earners of 2023.

Big hitters were busy on the Global Champions Tour and Grand Prix circuits. Other horses, in the run-up to the main outdoor season, a European championships and five-star shows, have had a more low-key campaign which often did not include World Cup qualifiers or eyes on Omaha.

Did the World Cup Final have an impact on Hippomundo’s dressage and show jumping results? Of course. TSF Dalera BB consolidates her place as the leading dressage horse (€112,615 to date this year) and King Edward leapfrogs to the top of the show jumping horse’s leaderboard (€530,495).

The current top-10 dressage horses list also includes a number of Omaha final-ists, whose earnings were bolstered by their World Cup prize money.

TSF Dalera BB is followed by Blue Hors Zepter (€91,810) and DSP Quantaz (€91,265), then Heiline’s Dancer (€48,025), Hartsuijker (€38,640), Touchdown (€35,025), Bluetooth OLD (€34,445), Suppenkasper (€30,105), Hermès N.O.P (€29,750) and Hexagon’s Ich Weiss (€24,725).

TSF Dalera BB and Hermès N.O.P, the only two offspring listed for Easy Game (TRAK. €142,365), place the stallion at the top of the dressage sires table, followed by Quaterback (Berlin-Brand. 26 offspring. €135,318) and Blue Hors Zack (KWPN. 25. €125,623).

This ‘David and Goliath’ scenario in dressage breeding is also seen in the current studbook rankings. With just seven competing Trakehners recorded on Hippomundo’s database, the studbook still end up in fifth place on €114,195, courtesy of its two stars.

Leading the dressage studbook table is the KWPN (€421,835. 338 competition horses), followed by its Oldenburg (€314,638. 172 horses), Hanoverian (€220,136. 233 horses) and DWB (€151,536. 93 horses).

Depth in numbers

The same depth in numbers is seen in the present show jumping studbook rankings, where the Irish Sport Horse lies in ninth place. Here, the Selle Français studbook is in top place, having earned just under €5 million to date (€4,984,343. 3,737 horses).

Next in line is the KWPN (€4,564,818. 3,116 horses), ahead of the BWP (€4,322,050. 2,017), Zangersheide (€2,968,900. 2,324), Holsteiner (€2,927,299. 1,442), Oldenburger Springpferd (OS) (€1,861,795. 1,311), Westfalian (€1,490,390. 571), Irish Sport Horse (€1,189,166. 432) and the sBs, another of Belgium’s studbooks, on €1,078,602 earned by its 485 horses.

Top average prize money won per horse by studbook? The Irish Sport Horse strike rate fares best on €2,753, followed by the Westfalian (€2,610) and sBs (€2,224).

And the ISH chief earners? Both James Kann Cruz (Kannan. Breeder: Patrick Connolly. €147,075) and Pacino Amiro (Pacino. Breeder: Simon Scott. €123,090) have won six-figure sums so far this year after their Wellington campaign.

Another Pacino-sired Irish Sport Horse, EIC Cooley Jump The Q (€90,600. Breeder: Pam Walshe) completes the top-three Irish Sport Horses of the current rankings.

He is followed by HHS Calais (€62,575. Cavalier Royale. Ita Brennan), HHS Washington (€43,838. Tinarana’s Inspector. Miguel Bravo), Catwalk Harry (€43,340. Verdi TN. Anne Marie Blessington), Express Trend (€39,682. Future Trend. Liam Nicholas), FTS Killossery Konfusion (€37,640. SIEC Livello. Frank and Laura Glynn), Rincoola Milsean (€34,320. Aldataus Z. Harold McGahern) and GRS Lady Amaro (€32,832. Amaretto d’Arco. Denis Hickey).

King Edward’s Omaha payday places the 13-year-old in a comfortable lead in the show jumping horse rankings. Next in this week’s updated rankings are HH Azur (sBs. €354,480), Donatello D’Auge (SF. €283,51), Monaco N.O.P (HOLST. €274,345), Stargold (OLD. €233,225), Cepano Baloubet (BAD-WÜ. €222,325), Vancouver de Lanlore (SF. €196,671), Callas (HOLST. €186,410), Mr Tac (BWP. €171,730) and Theo160 (HOLST. €158,990).

James Kann Cruz (14th) is the highest-earning Irish Sport Horse on this overall leaderboard with Pacino Amiro (24th) also appearing in the top-25.

ISH on top

In eventing, it’s an early lead for the ISH studbook, which has topped the Hippomundo eventing studbook rankings since they began. The ISH studbook is the numerically-strong equivalent of the Selle Français in the show jumping rankings with 301 Irish-breds competing and €34,056 in earnings.

Second is that same French studbook with its 125 horses having won €24,849 to date, followed by the Hanoverian Verband (€12,694).

The current top earning event horse is the Marion Hughes-bred Cooley Be Cool (€8,055. Heritage Fortunus), ahead of Chin Tonic 2 (HOLST. €6,61) and Miks Magic (SWB. €4,667).

Two more Irish Sport Horses - Galwaybay Blake (€4,386. Tolan R. Justin Burke) and Pfun (€3,734. Tadmus. Tracy Priest) also appear in eventing’s top-10 horses in this ‘early days’ glimpse into the 2023 rankings.

While it’s far too early in the eventing year for six-figure prize money results, the disparity in off-season prize money between eventing and the other two Olympic sports is pretty evident.

However, Hippomundo’s rankings will transform completely once results from Adelaide, Kentucky and Badminton - the first of this year’s lucrative five-star events - start to be factored in.