Fortuna Racing flagbearer Leaderboard has the opportunity to contest showpiece jumps races on both sides of the Tasman over the coming weeks, beginning with a shot at the A$400,000 Ecycle Solutions Grand National Steeplechase (4500m) at Ballarat on Sunday.
The American-bred son of Street Cry has been an outstanding performer for Fortuna since his purchase for 70,000 guineas by De Burgh Equine at the 2018 Autumn Horses in Training Sale in Newmarket. Throughout the ensuing six years he has recorded eight wins in the Fortuna colours and banked more than $450,000, headed by victories in the Gr.3 Wellington Cup (3200m) and Listed New Zealand St Leger (2600m).
Leaderboard relocated to trainer Mark Walker’s Cranbourne base earlier this year and has seamlessly switched to jumping with a series of impressive performances.
The gelding won a maiden hurdle by almost four lengths during the Warrnambool carnival at the end of April, then finished second in the Australian Hurdle (3900) on June 2. He returned to Warrnambool for another runaway victory on June 23, this time in a maiden steeplechase, then recorded highly creditable placings in the Thackeray Steeplechase (3450m) on July 7 and the Grand National Hurdle (4200m) on August 4.
The 10-year-old will be ridden by expat Kiwi jockey Aaron Kuru in Sunday’s Grand National Steeplechase, for which the TAB rates him a $9.50 third favourite behind Stern Idol ($1.60) and Port Guillaume ($6).
“It’s going to be a huge thrill to see him carrying our colours in the Grand National at Ballarat this weekend,” Fortuna director and racing manager John Galvin said.
“He’s done a fantastic job since heading over to Australia earlier in the year. His six starts have produced two wins, two seconds and two thirds. He’s done us very proud, especially considering it’s his first season in the jumping game and the quality of opposition he’s been racing against. We could have gone for easier races, but we’ve had a throw at the stumps in big races and he’s shown that he’s up to it.
“Mark has been very happy with him since his last start placing. We all know that Mark doesn’t gild the lily, but he’s genuinely excited about what Leaderboard has been showing him in his work, his appetite and his demeanour.
“I saw a video clip last Tuesday of him doing interval training, which is a 1200m gallop, then five minutes’ rest and another 1200m gallop, and he was jumping around like a two-year-old.
“I think he’ll be suited to switching back to steeplechasing this weekend and stepping up from 4200m to 4500m. Another factor that might be in his favour is a wetter track. He’s been racing well on tracks in the Soft5 to Soft7 range, but is yet to strike one that’s really genuinely wet, and that’s a surface we know he’ll love. Ballarat has been a Heavy8 this week and there are showers in the forecast.
“We obviously have a lot of respect for Stern Idol, who’s won 10 of his 19 starts over jumps. But he’s giving us 9kg, which is quite a significant amount of weight.”
All going to plan, Leaderboard could be seen back on home soil before he goes out for a summer break.
“He’ll come back to New Zealand on Wednesday, and the plan was always that he would spell at Te Akau over the summer,” Galvin said. “But the timing works out quite well for us to have a go at the Great Northern Steeplechase (6500m) at Te Rapa on September 15 before he does that.”
