New South Wales professional Craig Barrett, leader after the Cross Country in Adelaide (AUS), produced a classy performance with Mr and Mrs Keith Osborne's Sandhills Brillaire in today's final Jumping phase to clinch the title at the second leg of the HSBC FEI Classics™ 2012/2013.

This was Craig's first 4* event, for which he earned the HSBC Training Bursary, which is awarded at every leg of this prestigious series to the highest placed rider never to have previously completed a 4* event. It is the first time that the winner of the HSBC Training Bursary has been top of the line-up.

The mare Sandhills Brillaire and its parents were also bred and produced by the Barretts. Craig bred the sire, Staccato by Salute out of a Thoroughbred mare by King of Babylon, and Craig's wife, Prue Barrett, Australia's Eventing coach, bred the dam that is by Galveston. Twenty-year-old Staccato, a former number one WBFSH/FEI Eventing Stallion has now sired two Adelaide 4* winners, including last year's winner Panamera. "I don't know if that has ever been done before", commented Craig. "I have a paddock full of them; I'm not sure if they are as good as Brillaire, but we have to look at purpose breeding horses."

Barrett is now second in the HSBC FEI Classics™ 2012/2013 standings behind New Zealand's Andrew Nicholson. "I think it is a fantastic initiative from HSBC and the FEI to do this. It really encourages young riders to get to the level they need to get to. I've had a couple of goes here, but this is my first completion and I'm very happy to be in the winner's seat and take home the first-timers award," declared Craig.
Barrett and the 10-year-old Sandhills Brillaire were fifth after the Dressage and just kept improving from there. They produced an almost perfect Cross Country run over Wayne Copping's testing track, with the terrain in the Parklands adding to the difficulty.