Fortuna six-year-old gelding, Leaderboard (Street Cry – FlowerFairy) produced another determined, dogged staying performance when taking out the rating 74 2400 meter event at Te Rapa 1st of May. Backing up from a winning performance in the same grade over 2000m two weeks previously at Matamata, when ridden by Craig Grylls, Leaderboard (who carries the stable name “Tiger”) produced a similar type of performance, getting back in the running, coming into the race progressively from around the 700 meter mark and grinding his way to the front for a determined win.
With his charge being allocated 61.5 kg for the race, Trainer Jamie Richards had elected to claim with stable apprentice Joe Kamaruddin taking 3kg off the horse’s back. Kamaruddin was riding in good form, having produced a winner for the stable two races earlier on Summer Monsoon. Pre-race instructions were to go back from the wide draw, try and find a spot one out from the rail with four or five horses behind him and then start to come into the race from around the 800 meter mark. Young Joe followed these instructions to the letter, sliding in nicely one off the rail with five horses behind him, travelled comfortably in the run and at around the 700 meter mark he got Leaderboard going – he did seem to be under a bit of a ride at that point but this was due to the fact that quite a bit of pace had been injected into the race by other runners and the field was fairly humming along as they turned. Leaderboard was still a long way off the lead as they turned, but then mounted his typical sustained finishing run and got up to win by a short head on the line with 2.5 lengths back to the third horse.
Click HERE to see the race result and Video replay
Fortuna director John Galvin was on course along with Jessica and their three children, James Joshua and Jasmine, plus a big crew of around 25 of the Leaderboard ownership group – “that was a really big thrill for me personally” said John, “we have been syndicating horses now for 14 years, we are nudging 200 individual wins and had a lot of really good horses, but Leaderboard is the first horse that we bought out of Europe from the Tattersalls Horses in Training Sale with the intention of bringing him down here to aim at the big staying races. And while after racing very well in New Zealand in the early part of his career here, he then fell into a bit of a hole with his form but by being patient and with Jamie’s undoubted training skills, he’s been super this preparation and I think we can now start thinking seriously about making a path towards races like the New Zealand and Wellington Cups next season.”
A big group of beaming owners welcome Leaderboard back to scale
Jamie Richards, who brought up his 152nd win for the season with this win, said “that was a super run – he showed us quite a bit of Matamata last start and although had to carry a bit of weight in this race he was very strong to the line – it was a lovely ride by young Joe, who rode him to perfection”
John Galvin acquired Leaderboard at the Tattersalls Horses in Training sale in October 2018 for 70,000 Guineas and was ably assisted in this process by the International Bloodstock Agent Hubie DeBurgh
Leaderboard is raced by a big ownership group comprising 72 individuals and was strapped at Te Rapa by Trevor Stewart