Podium Horse vs. Winning Horse: James Kann Cruz, Greya and the Greatness Debate

Charlotte is back behind the mic after a packed run of show jumping (and a few weeks without a voice), and she's brought the EquiRatings James Kann Cruz Fan Club with her. Emma Blumenkrantz and Annie Bishop, on loan from the eventing side, join her to unpack Shane Sweetnam's grey's latest World Cup podium at Traverse City, his 22nd career podium in a 5* Grand Prix or World Cup. The trio digs into the numbers behind the "podium machine," the Greya question, and whether there's still more to come from a horse only just hitting his peak.

• The milestone. Second place at Traverse City, the opening leg of the North American World Cup League, gave James Kann Cruz his 22nd podium in a 5* Grand Prix or World Cup. He's done it from just 44 starts, a 50% podium rate.
• The historical context. Since 2010, only two horses on EquiRatings records have matched or bettered that podium tally: Hermès Ryan (22) and Rolf-Göran Bengtsson's Casall Ask (35). No combination with more than 20 starts at this level has a higher podium rate.
• The hot streak. Seven podiums since last year's Highlands Cup, including a career-defining win in the Rolex Grand Prix at Falsterbo, where he beat a fast field that included Steve Guerdat and Richard Vogel.
• The Greya question. Charlotte tackles the elephant in the room. James Kann Cruz is the podium horse; Kent Farrington's Greya is the winning horse. Her 11 wins from 34 starts dwarf his three, yet he has beaten her in a jump-off before, at Tryon. Annie makes the case that they're simply built differently: he can jump day after day at a championship, she's campaigned carefully and unleashed when it counts.
• Maturity and speed. Annie brings an eventer's eye to how Shane has managed all that power, and Emma recalls watching Shane school him quietly over a 1.30m–1.35m track in Wellington last winter. Is the horse getting faster because he's learned he doesn't have to go flat out every time?
• The guest perspective. Annie tells the story of falling for James Kann Cruz on a Saturday night at Defender Kentucky two years ago, the night someone dared call him a donkey. Emma shares how his power and his partnership with Shane hooked her during Wellington's Saturday Night Lights. The verdict on who runs the fan club? Co-presidents, all three.