Mallorca Trotting Races: Son Pardo and the 2026 Gran Premi del Criador

Mallorca trotting races: what happened at the Gran Premi del Criador 2026

Mallorca trotting races are harness races: the horse never gallops but trots flat out while pulling a light two-wheeled cart, the sulky, with a driver seated behind. On October 12, 2026, Spain's national holiday, the big race was the Gran Premi del Criador at the Hipòdrom de Son Pardo in Palma, and Magic Mar, driven by Joan Antoni Riera, won it.

The race is for Spanish-bred four-year-old trotters and was run over 2,650 meters from an autostart. Magic Mar, from the C'as Bombero stable, clocked 1'14''70 and earned €35,236 from a total purse of €77,400, according to the Consell de Mallorca.

• 1st Magic Mar (J. A. Riera), 1'14''70
• 2nd More Mio (J. C. Rotger), 1'14''8
• 3rd Mesquinet SP (G. Andreu), 1'14''9

The Consell reported 16 runners, while the Palma daily Última Hora counted 15, so call it a field of about 16. Última Hora also noted that the time equaled the race record held by Gin Tonic Duran, and that Magic Mar is the sixth horse to win both the Gran Premi Nacional and the Gran Premi del Criador.

Why this win matters

The Gran Premi Nacional is Balearic trotting's most famous race. It has run more than 90 times and is for three-year-olds. Magic Mar won it with Riera in May 2025 in 1'14''60, so winning the four-year-old championship a year later shows it was no fluke.

The Criador is organized by the Institut de l'Esport Hípic de Mallorca (IEHM), part of the island government. Its stated purpose is to promote the breeding of trotters in the Balearic Islands. Under the Federació Balear de Trot's rules, the race is open to four-year-olds born in Spain and registered in the Spanish trotter stud book, not only island-born horses. Even so, big prize money for Spanish-bred horses helps support the whole chain: mares, stallions, breeders and racing stables.

How harness racing in Spain's Balearic Islands works

If you know Thoroughbred racing with jockeys, trotting looks different from the very first stride. These are the basics.

The sulky and the driver

• The sulky is a very light two-wheeled cart with bicycle-style wheels. The horse pulls it with a special harness.
• The driver sits almost on top of the horse's hindquarters, with long reins and a whip whose use is regulated.
• The stable (cuadra) is the ownership team. Results list the horse, the driver's initial and surname, and the time.

Ridden trotting, with a rider in the saddle, also exists. In the Balearics, though, the sulky version is the norm.

Stay at the trot: the gallop rule

The trot is a two-beat gait where the legs move in diagonal pairs: right front with left hind, then the reverse. At top speed, many horses instinctively want to switch to a gallop, which is faster.

That's not allowed. A horse that breaks into a gallop must be slowed and steered wide until it trots again, losing ground. If it gallops too long, gains places while galloping or crosses the line at a gallop, the stewards can disqualify it. That's why a trotter that holds its gait under pressure is worth as much as a fast one.

What about pacing, which dominates North American harness racing? Pacers move both legs on the same side together. We explain the difference in our Little Brown Jug 2026 story.

Autostart vs standing start

Big races like the Criador use an autostart. Posts are set before the race: at the official presentation on October 7, Magic Mar was given post 7.

What the per-kilometer time ('reducción kilométrica') means

This is the number that confuses newcomers most. That 1'14''70 isn't how long Magic Mar took for the whole race. It's the horse's average time per kilometer, known in Spanish as the reducción kilométrica.

The math is simple:

1. 1'14''70 equals 74.7 seconds per kilometer.
2. Multiply by the distance: 74.7 × 2.65 km ≈ 198 seconds.
3. The total time was about 3 minutes 18 seconds.

For American fans, 74.7 seconds per kilometer works out to roughly a 2:00 mile. The advantage of the per-kilometer system is that you can compare horses that raced different distances.

Lower is faster. Magic Mar (1'14''70) and More Mio (1'14''8) are just one-tenth of a second apart per kilometer, a little more than a quarter of a second over the full 2,650 meters.

Why trotting is so rooted in Mallorca and Menorca

In the Balearics, trotting isn't a niche sport. It is horse racing. A 2023 report in the Menorca daily Es Diari said five of Spain's six trotting tracks were on the islands: two in Mallorca (Son Pardo and Manacor), one in Ibiza and two in Menorca (Maó and Torre del Ram in Ciutadella).

What keeps the tradition alive:

• Long history. Maó has held trotting races since 1930, and its municipal racecourse opened in 1973. Son Pardo's Gran Premi Nacional has passed 90 editions.
• Local breeding. The big races are restricted to Spanish-bred horses of one age group. Each foal crop's names share a first letter, which is why this year's four-year-olds are full of Ms.
• Family atmosphere. Menorca runs pony 'mini trot' for children from age 6, and race days mix racing, a restaurant meal and long afternoons with friends.
• Year-round calendar. In summer the racing moves to night meetings. In 2026, Son Pardo closed for track work and Manacor hosted night racing through September 12.

How to visit the Son Pardo racecourse

Son Pardo sits on Palma's northern edge at Carretera de Sóller, km 3.5. It's run by the IEHM, which also manages the Manacor track. Its mallorca.com tourist listing says admission is free, with plenty of parking, a café and a restaurant.

Quick checklist for your first visit

1. Check the calendar on the Institut Hípic de Mallorca website, which posts programs and results for each race day.
2. Check the start time. Autumn meetings run in daytime: the September 26 card started at 11:15, and the Criador was scheduled for 15:35.
3. Arrive early to watch horses warm up with their sulkies. It's the best way to see the trot up close.
4. Bring a cap and sunscreen. The Mallorca sun is strong even in autumn.
5. With kids, stay behind the rails at all times. A moving sulky can't stop or swerve. Review our safety basics.
6. Grab the race program to follow posts, drivers and stables. Our glossary covers the terms.

There are betting windows on site. Horse Academy doesn't give tips, and a race day is just as fun without a wager.

What to watch next at Son Pardo

The autumn calendar published in September 2026 lists these dates:

• November 8: Critèrium dels 3 Anys and Critèrium dels 4 Anys.
• November 22: Memorial Bartomeu Estelrich.
• December (date to be confirmed): Critèrium dels Dos Anys and Gran Premi Egües.

Whether Magic Mar runs in the four-year-old Critèrium hasn't been confirmed. Worth watching: whether a rival from the same crop, such as More Mio, can close the gap before the year ends.

Want more? Compare trotting with other equestrian disciplines or learn what makes a Grade 1 race.