Leader In The Park

The two wins tell a clear story about what suits him. The first came at Kempton Park on Boxing Day 2024, on a flat, fast track where his jumping — consistently described as exceptional — gave him a real edge. The second arrived at Warwick in January 2025, where jockey Ben Jones described him as landing on the front foot at every fence and simply taking control. Jones has been on board for 10 of his 12 races, winning 2 of them, which works out at roughly 1 in every 5 — a solid partnership that has clearly helped the horse grow in confidence. At Class 3 level, the tier just below the very biggest races, he has won 2 from 6, which is 1 in every 3 — a genuinely strong record at that grade.

What makes Leader In The Park particularly interesting is the detail around what he likes. Pauling has noted that he doesn't seem to enjoy tracks that go uphill, but put him on a flat, left-handed course and he is a different animal. Kempton and Warwick both fit that description. His jumping is his weapon — clean, quick, and confident — and that matters enormously over fences, where a horse that jumps well can steal a length at every obstacle without the jockey doing a thing. Pauling also believes he will stay a longer distance in time, which opens up more options as his career develops.

He has had a 46-day break since his last race, which Pauling has explained was forced by a stone bruise that ruled him out of a planned run at Newbury. The target now looks like Bangor on 12 November — another flat track, which is exactly the kind of place where Leader In The Park has shown he can produce his best. Given what Pauling said on a stable tour this month — that he's better now than he has ever been — this feels like a horse worth paying attention to.