October 27, 2023 
If he was looking to have a good week for his up-and-coming horses, Shane Sweetnam came to the right place.
The Irish rider took home a string of wins and top placings last weekend at the Otomí Club Hípico CSI5* in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico (October 19-22), among them a seventh place in the 1.40m and a win in the 1.60m Grand Prix on Saturday with Cjoxx Z. Aboard RR Combella, Sweetnam came away with a 5th place and a win in two 1.50m classes, including the ranking class on Sunday.
Sweetnam, a longtime rider for Spy Coast Farm, is renowned for his ability to produce promising horses from the middle-ranks up to the top of the sport. And both of these horses—Cjoxx Z, a 9-year-old Belgian Warmblood, and the Argentinean-bred 9-year-old mare RR Combella—have only been under Sweetnam’s saddle for a few months. But, according to Jumpr App, both already boast some pretty impressive stats, and their performance in Mexico was no exception.
“Cjoxx Z is a horse I’ve owned for a while, actually. A rider of mine was riding him until two months ago, and then I took over the ride. Since we started, we really got going quickly and have had some success,” Sweetnam said. “The Ottawa Grand Prix was very good, [so was] Traverse City, and we won a good class in Kentucky. Now to go win a CSI5*, that’s pretty special.”
It’s clear that Sweetnam sees future potential in Cjoxx Z, and by the numbers, it does appear that the gelding is destined for the bigger sport.
Of the 27 rounds the pair jumped together since the end of August, the bulk have been at 1.45m, where they are clear 33% of the time. But at 1.50m, where they’ve competed four classes, that number jumps to 50%, finishing in the top-10 60% of the time. Their percentage improves even more at 1.55m, where they finished their three rounds in the top-10 100% of the time; ditto for their single round together at 1.60m.
A similar case can be made for RR Combella, who Sweetnam began riding in June.
“Combella, she’s pretty special—she’s improving all the time,” Sweetnam said at San Miguel de Allende. “[She’s] still getting her feet wet at this level, but she did great again [on Sunday], and lucky enough, we won the class.”
Together this year, the pair boast an overall clear round percentage of 63%—impressive when you consider that James Kann Cruz, Sweetnam’s “main horse” jumps clear at 53%.
Despite the Irish rider having less of a hand in Combella’s development over the years compared to, say, Cjoxx Z, they’re quickly making up for lost time. In 14 rounds together at 1.45m, the pair jumped clear and finished in the top-10 57% of the time; at 1.50m, they’re clear at 89% and finished in the top-10 67% of the time.
If things continue as they are, look for these two coming-10-year-olds to make a big splash with Sweetnam this winter season.
