Rodrigo Pessoa wasn’t the only rider pleased with tonight’s results in the $75,000 Fidelity Investments Grand Prix and USEF WEG Selection Trial 2. While the Brazilian rider may have taken the lion’s share of the purse in the class, Laura Kraut and Lauren Hough left the International Arena at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center with nothing—and they were thrilled.

The two U.S. Olympic team veterans from Wellington, Fla., now stand together at the top of the selection trials rankings with perfect scores of 0 after the first two rounds that concluded on Feb. 27 in Wellington, Fla.

After 13 clear rounds in Trial 1, it was no surprise to many observers that the course for Trial 2 was a bit tougher. Guilherme Jorge of Brazil set a 14-fence course with scope challenges, technical distances and a tight time allowed that thoroughly tested the riders. With several last-minute scratches—including Kelsey Thatcher, the junior star of Thursday’s trial—the starting field was whittled down to 49 starters from 54 entries.

In the end, eight horse/rider combinations jumped clear with five qualifying for the jump-off. Because the class was a combination grand prix and selection trial, only a rider’s first horse was eligible for the jump-off. Therefore, Urico/Mario Deslauriers, Mademoiselle/Beezie Madden and Skara Glen’s Davos/Candice King were unable to join in the tiebreaker.

Hillary Dobbs and Quincy B just exceeded the time allowed in the first round even with ample clucking from their in-gate fans, but their 1 time fault combined with a first-trial clear, puts them in third place in the standings just behind Kraut and Hough.

McLain Ward, Brewster, N.Y., and Rothchild rebounded from a refusal in the first trial to post a solid clear over the course described by the riders as a four-star challenge at the two-star level. Ward also set the pace in the jump-off with the game chestnut, but a rail left the door open (4/40.46).

Mexican rider and FTI Winter Equestrian Festival newcomer Nicolas Pizarro took the opportunity to claim the lead with his attractive mount Crossing Jordan (0/41.13). The 10-year-old German-bred stallion looked extremely comfortable in the arena, even though it was the first time the pair had ever contested a grand prix under the lights.

Pizarro and Crossing Jordan jumped impressively during the Spruce Meadows Masters (Alta.) in September and helped the Mexican team take third place in the BMO Nations Cup. Pizarro arrived in Florida last week and had jumped Crossing Jordan in two classes prior to this event. His ultimate goal is to qualify for the Mexican team for the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games (Ky.) this fall, and he’ll take a step toward that achievement when he represents his team during next week’s Nations Cup.

Hough and Quick Study went to work chasing Pizarro’s time, but a rail cost them. Their 4 faults in 40.64 seconds left them fifth, but Hough wasn’t disappointed as her focus is on the big picture.

“It’s a long road,” she said of the two weeks of trials. “He’s a horse with a lot of energy. With only five in the jump-off, I wasn’t going to go full speed, but I didn’t think it would hurt to jump another round tonight. He’s a horse where the more rounds he jumps, the better he is. I’m very pleased with where we’re sitting at the moment.”

It seemed everything was aligned in Champ 163’s favor for this class—an expansive arena, a flowing jump-off with lots of galloping—and Pessoa made the most of the opportunities. With a clear round in 39.41 seconds, the lead was theirs.

“He has a very big stride, so this was a good course for him,” said Pessoa of his initial impression when walking track. “There were a lot of places to open up and get going. When you open his stride, he covers a lot of ground.”

Kraut went last in the five-horse jump-off but decided not to challenge Pessoa’s leading time with Champ in an effort to save her mount for the second week of the trials, which start on Wednesday March 3.

“My goal was a nice double clear,” she said. “From [fences] 1 to 2 I was much slower than Rodrigo. I just wanted [Cedric] to get back into the ring and knock a little of the rust off.”

Pessoa began riding Champ 163, an 11-year-old Holsteiner, a year ago after he’d had a successful grand prix career with Anne Kursinski. The substantial bay is much different than Pessoa’s more famous partners such as Baloubet du Rouet and Let’s Fly, so there was an adjustment period.

“He’s a larger horse that what I’m used to,” he said. “The last couple of weeks we changed his way of going a little bit, and it seems to be working. I’m giving him more room to take off. I was coming too close to the jumps, and it wasn’t suiting him well. Now I’m riding him a little bit different, and he seems to like it.”

Kraut did pick up third-placed money as icing on the cake. But her performances in the trials this week with Cedric are particularly meaningful as she’s riding with an empty place in her heart after losing the horse’s owner, Peter Wetherill, just a week ago.

“He was a wonderful owner and friend,” she said. “We will miss him more than anyone can imagine. He put his complete faith in me. In the 12 years I’ve been riding for him, there was never one moment when there was a problem. But above and beyond that, he was a great man.”

Kraut may also be experiencing déjà vu, as she and Cedric are in a similar situation as they were two years ago when they won the Olympic Games Selection Trials at the same venue before earning team gold in Hong Kong. Two years have made a major difference, though, as Cedric’s often exuberant jumping of 2008 has become more consistent.

“I haven’t felt him better ever,” she said. “He’s now more seasoned, and I can rely on him, whereas before I had to help him a lot. Now he’s doing most of the work, and I just go along for the ride.”

Hough is also enjoying a more seasoned mount during these trials in 11-year-old Quick Study. While she said the trials and the road to the WEG via a summer in Europe is a long path to travel, she believes in the selection process.

“I am where I am in my career because of the idea that in America, everybody has a chance, and I think that’s important,” she said. “Kelsey Thatcher had the highlight of her career the other night, and that’s great. I believe in our process, and I think we have a lot of good riders here. Everybody should have a chance to make it to Europe, and then you have to prove yourself again.”

Many leaders from Thursday’s first trial fell down in the rankings in Trial 2, including class victors Todd Minikus and Pavarotti who dropped two rails late in the course.

Likewise, Margie Engle and Hidden Creek’s Campella finished with 8 faults after two mistakes on course, including a disappointing rail at the final fence.

Rich Fellers hinted on Thursday that Flexible’s shorter stride posed some challenges for him, and it appeared that fact rang true as the pair had difficulty getting through the scopey oxer-vertical-oxer triple combination. Their 16 faults on course now stands them in the middle of the pack.

The remaining USEF WEG Trials include: the $40,000 1.60-meter class on March 3 at 3 p.m. at The Stadium; the $30,000 1.60-meter CSIO on Friday, March 5, at 12 p.m. in the International Arena, while the FEI Nations Cup, presented by CN, follows that evening at 7 p.m. The fifth trial will run in conjunction with the $150,000 CN U.S. Open Grand Prix, CSIO 4*, on Sunday, March 7, at 1 p.m.

$75,000 Fidelity Investments Grand Prix

1. CHAMP 163: 1999 Holsteiner stallion (by Kornblume) RODRIGO PESSOA (Brazil), LEGACY STABLES: 0/0/39.41
2. CROSSING JORDAN: 2000 warmblood stallion (by Champion du Lys) owned and ridden by NICOLAS PIZARRO (Mexico): 0/0/41.13
3. CEDRIC: 1998 KWPN gelding ridden by LAURA KRAUT (USA), HAPPY HILL FARM: 0/0/42.16
4. ROTHCHILD: 2001 warmblood gelding (by Artos) ridden by MCLAIN WARD (USA), SAGAMORE FARMS: 0/4/40.46
5. QUICK STUDY: 1999 Selle Francais gelding (by Quick Star) ridden by LAUREN HOUGH (USA), LAURA MATEO: 0/4/40.64
6. CRISTALLO: 1998 Holsteiner gelding (by Carentino) ridden by RICHARD SPOONER (USA), SHOW JUMPING SYN.: 1/91.56
7. QUINCY B: 1996 Holsteiner gelding (by Quidam De Revel) ridden and owned by HILLARY DOBBS (USA): 1/91.81
8. ATHENA: 2000 Belgian Warmblood mare (by Toulon) ridden by CHARLIE JAYNE (USA), THE LOUDON GROUP: 4/ 85.79
9. GRAF LANDO: 1997 Hanoverian gelding (by Graf Grannus) ridden by ROBERT KRAUT (USA), MEGHAN KRAUT: 4/89.93
10. PRESLEY BOY: 1997 KWPN stallion (by Concorde) ridden and owned by JAIME AZCARRAGA (MEX): 4/90.00
11. TORONTO: 2000 KWPN gelding (by Furore) ridden by CANDICE KING (USA), AAA EQ LLC: 5/91.33
12. FIEDI 3: 1998 Hanoverian gelding (by Graf Top) ridden by GEORGINA BLOOMBERG (USA), GOTHAM ENTERPRIZES: 6/95.59

CLEAR FOR THE USEF WEG TRIAL #2

URICO: 2001 KWPN gelding (by Zandor Z) ridden by MARIO DESLAURIERS (USA), JANE CLARK: 0/87.41
MADEMOISELLE: 1997 Holsteiner mare (by Libertino I) ridden by BEEZIE MADDEN (USA), ABIGAIL WEXNER: 0/90.18
SKARA GLEN’S DAVOS: 2000 Zangerscheide gelding (by Carthago Z) ridden by CANDICE KING (USA), SKARA GLEN STABLES: 0/90.95

Standings After Trial No. 2

Top 20

1T. Quick Study/Lauren Hough—0
1T. Cedric/Laura Kraut—0
3. Quincy B/Hillary Dobbs—1
4T. Skara Glen’s Davos/Candice King—4
4T. Mademoiselle/Beezie Madden—4
6. Cristallo/Richard Spooner—5
7. Fiedi 3/Georgina Bloomberg—6
8T. Urico/Mario Deslauriers—8
8T. Hidden Creek’s Campella/Margie Engle—8
8T. Ralvesther/Brianne Goutal—8
8T. Athena/Charlie Jayne—8
8T. Pavarotti/Todd Minikus—8
8T. Tristan/Nicole Shahinian-Simpson—8
14T. Graf Lando/Robert Kraut—9
14T. Rothchild/McLain Ward—9
16T. Danny Boy/Beezie Madden—12
16T. Kasoar D’Uxelles/Laura Teodori—12
18T. Metropolitan/Georgina Bloomberg—13
18T. Coral Reef Via Volo/Beezie Madden—13
20. Chivas Z/Ashlee Bond—14.