For the second year in a row, Italy’s Gianluca Munarini rode the Open champion in the Mercuria NCHA World Series of Cutting in Lyon, France. Munarini, who won last year on Robert Cuoghi’s Push To Play, marked 225.5 on Impresa Agricola Cuoghi’s Spooks Smokin Cat to win this weekend.
The $25,000-added Open attracted 64 entries, with the winner collecting $9,815.
Spooks Smokin Cat is a 6-year-old son of High Brow Cat out of $154,000 earner Smokin Spook Rio. He was bred by Ross Jenkins, and was an NCHA Futurity and Derby semi-finalist before heading to Europe.
Munarini and Spooks Smokin Cat posted the top qualifying score in the Open, a 221 that led 13 finalists who represented Italy, the United States, France, Germany and the Czech Republic.
In the $25,000-added Non-Pro division, Marco Sacchetti of Italy marked 222.5 on Coupe Dualville, to win over his countryman Davide Tresoldi on Playlite.
Bred by Bar H Ranche, Coupe Dualville is a 7-year-old gelding by Dual Pep out of $128,000 earner Bingo Legacy. Â He was reserve champion of the 2009 Gelding Stakes with Paul Hansma and earned over $42,000 in the USA.
Sacchetti was reserve champion in the 2011 Amateur Super Stakes with Smart Freckled Cat. He has also been a finalist in the United States in the NCHA Futurity, NCHA Derby, Abilene Spectacular, Bonanza and Tunica Futurity.
He marked 217 in the go-round at Lyon, for the third highest score behind Geoffroy Guilliaume on Spoonful Of Lena with 224 and Davide Tresoldi on Playlite with 220. Sacchetti’s winning check in the finals was $6,861.