Tonkawa Triumphant In World Polo League Triple Crown Of Polo Final; Juan Martin Nero Sweeps MVP, BPP Honors
- Candace Ferreira
- 9 minutes ago
- 4 min read
WELLINGTON, FL., April 21, 2025---Tonkawa rallied in the sixth chukker to capture the World Polo League season-ending Triple Crown of Polo Saturday at windswept Grand Champions Polo Club.
By Sharon Robb
Photos by Candace Ferreira
In front of large festive crowd on a perfect day for polo, Tonkawa (Jeff Hildebrand, 0, Mackie Weisz, 6, Tommy Panelo, 10, Juan Martin Nero, 10) held off Casablanca (Grant Ganzi, 3, Hilario Figueras, 6, Rufino Bensadon, 8, Sapo Caset, 9) for an 11-9 victory.
It was Tonkawa's second WPL title after also winning the Palm Beach Open. Tonkawa finished the tournament 3-1. Casablanca, winners of the first two WPL tournaments, finished 2-2.
Argentine great Juan Martin Nero was the Most Valuable Player.
During the post-game festivities, Daniel A. Hostettler, President and CEO of The Boca Raton, a luxury resort destination, was presented with a framed polo jersey from Grand Champions President Melissa Ganzi for his endless support of the club and 26-goal polo.
Three Best Playing Pony blankets were also awarded.
Catwoman, a 9-year-old gray mare played by Nero and bred and owned by Santa Rita Polo Farm, was the American Polo Horse Association BPP.
Oriental Oklahoma, owned and played by Panelo, was the Argentine CCP Best Playing Pony.
Girl Power, a 14-year-old dark bay thoroughbred mare, played by Ganzi and owned by Santa Rita Polo Farm, was the World Polo League Best Playing Pony.
Casablanca handed previously unbeaten Tonkawa its' first loss of the highly-competitive tournament in Thursday's 12-9 semifinal and came close again in the final.
After a slow start, Casablanca found its momentum and cohesiveness in the second half, clawing its way back from a 7-3 halftime deficit and outscoring Tonkawa 6-4, in the final three chukkers.
In the fourth chukker, Sapo scored back-to-back goals on penalty conversions to trail, 7-5. Hildebrand converted a 40-yard penalty to extend his team's lead, 8-5. That goal was selected Goal of the Game.
Casablanca continued its comeback in the fifth chukker finally tying the game at 8-8 with 40 seconds left on Caset's third goal of the chukker.
Nero opened the sixth chukker with a quick goal after a long pass from Weisz, who won the throw-in, to regain the lead for Tonkawa, 9-8. After Nero deflected a Casablanca goal out of the air, Caset converted a 30-yard penalty to tie the game, 9-9.
Tonkawa turned it on in the final three minutes with Weisz scoring from a standstill through three defenders for a 10-9 lead. After a missed scoring opportunity by Casablanca, Panelo scored off a broken play, one of five by Casablanca, with 1:25 left for a two-goal cushion and then saved Bensadon's goal attempt in the closing seconds.
For the game, Tonkawa led shots on goal, 17-15, throw-ins, 12-9, and fouls, 10-6. Casablanca led knock-ins, 6-5.
Tonkawa dominated the first half, transitioning quicker than Casablanca, unable to get a consistent offensive attack going mainly because of Tonkawa's stingy defense led by Nero. Tonkawa built a 4-1 lead after two chukkers, shutting out Casablanca 2-0 in the second chukker.
Tonkawa took advanatage of two change of possessions and three broken plays to take a four-goal lead, 6-2 midway through the third chukker. With 45 seconds left in the half Panelo scored off a broken play for another four-goal lead and 7-3 advantage going into halftime.
In the first half, Tonkawa outshot Casablanca, 11-5. Tonkawa led throw-ins, 6-4 and Casablanca led knock-ins, 4-2. The teams combined for five fouls.
Tonkawa got balanced scoring from its lineup. Panelo led with five goals and finished with 18 goals. Weisz had three, Hildebrand had two and Nero one goal.
For Casablanca, Caset scored a game-high seven goals, including four penalty conversions. Caset finished with 26 goals. Ganzi and Bensadon each had one goal.
During the game, fans of all ages were treated to an egg-cellent guest appearance by the Easter Bunny and his Easter egg hunt tradition. There was also a spirited two-chukker Wheelie Polo Exhibition Game featuring Inda Pieres, Santos Valent, Antonio Villamil, Inaki Gonzalez, Florencio Melos and Celestino Merlos. The game ended in a 1-1 tie.
The coveted Triple Crown of Polo trophy is comprised of three separate trophies that fit perfectly together to create an entire polo scene that is breathtaking in sterling silver.
Tonkawa will have its players' names inscribed on the trophy, adding to an impressive list of teams that feature several top players including Sebastian Merlos, Mike Azzaro, Tommy Biddle, Adam Snow, Nic Roldan, Matias Magrini, Jeff Hall, Mariano Gonzalez, Michel Dorignac, Kris Kampsen, Gringo Colombres and Jeta Castagnola.
The much-anticipated WPL Triple Crown of Polo was the fourth and final tournament of the winter season. The WPL, now ending its seventh season, continues to make history as the only 26-goal tournament polo played outside of Argentina.
In last year's Triple Crown of Polo, Park Place (Andrey Borodin, 0, Juan Britos, 9, Hilario Ulloa, 10, Joaquin Panelo, 6) held on for a thrilling 12-11 victory over defending champion and previously undefeated Audi (Marc Ganzi, 1, Nacho Figueras, 5, Jeta Castagnola, 10, Pablo MacDonough, 10). Panelo was MVP.
The 2025 WPL tournaments thrilled fans and livestream viewing audience. The WPL kicked off its seventh season on Feb. 16th making history with a first-of-its kind matchup. Casablanca captured the first-ever WPL 32-Goal All-Star Challenge Riemenschneider Memorial.
In front of a packed house, Casablanca (Sapo Caset, 9, Grant Ganzi, 3, Tommy Panelo, 10, Juan Martin Nero, 10) led from start to finish to defeat Santa Rita (Nic Roldan, 7, Tomacho Pieres, 6, Pablo MacDonough, 10, Juan Martin Zubia, 9), 8-5. Caset led Casablanca with a game-high five goals and was named MVP.
Casablanca made it two in a row capturing the Founders Cup with a hardfought 14-12 win over Alegria (Jason Crowder, 5, Fred Mannix, 7, Nic Roldan, 7, Tommy Collingwood, 5). Caset earned his second MVP award.
Tonkawa (Jeff Hildebrand, 0, Mackie Weisz, 6, Pablo MacDonough, 10, Juan Martin Nero, 10) defeated Travieso (Tony Calle, 3, Pipe Vercellino, 7, Juan Martin Zubia, 9, Fred Mannix, 7), 13-12, to win the Palm Beach Open and finished undefeated at 4-0.