A VERY consistent top-class performer who won eight of his 12 lifetime starts, Leading Light was a champion stayer for two seasons and is now standing his first stud season as a National Hunt stallion at Coolmore’s Grange Stud in Co Cork at a very reasonable fee.

Trained by Aidan O’Brien after being bought for 520,000gns as a yearling, Leading Light raced only twice as a two-year-old, when he was fourth on his debut, then was a winner by a length and a half in a maiden race at Tipperary in October 2012.

He soon added to that success the next season, running up a winning sequence of five races. His reappearance was in a minor event at Navan over 10 furlongs in May, where he romped home seven lengths clear, then three weeks later he scored in the Group 3 Gallinule Stakes over the same trip at the Curragh.

In mid-June he was asked to race over six furlongs more in the Group 3 Queen’s Vase over two miles at Royal Ascot, but Leading Light was up to his task, enjoying the strong pace and staying on well under top-weight to win by a length and a half from Feel Like Dancing, who is now a stallion in France.

After Ascot, Leading Light was given three months rest until the Group 1 St Leger Stakes at Doncaster in September. He went to the front early in the straight and never looked like being caught, coming home a length and a quarter clear of the Epsom Oaks heroine Talent, while third and fourth were Galileo Rock and Libertarian, who had been the two placed horses behind Ruler Of The World in the Epsom Derby.

Leading Light was supplemented for the Arc de Triomphe, but was unplaced behind Treve over the shorter distance. In the 2013 World Rankings he was assessed as the champion three-year-old stayer in Europe.

Once again in 2014 Leading Light began his season at Navan in May, this time in the Group 3 Coolmore Vintage Crop Stakes and he won easily by three lengths from Royal Diamond.

A month later his great stamina and courage gained him a hard fought success in the Group 1 Ascot Gold Cup over two and a half miles at the Royal Ascot meeting, just holding off the 2013 winner Estimate and Missunited, and then he completed his hat-trick in the Group 3 Irish St Leger Trial Stakes at the Curragh in August, again at the expense of Royal Diamond.

However, in the Group 1 Irish St Leger in September, he had to be content with second prize behind Goodwood Cup winner Brown Panther. At the end of the year Leading Light was rated the champion four-year-old stayer in Ireland.

Apart from his own outstanding racing record, Leading Light is a son of champion sire Montjeu, who sired four winners of the Epsom Derby and four winners of the Irish Derby. Montjeu is also the sire of one of the greatest hurdlers of all time, Hurricane Fly, winner of over 20 Grade 1 races, while sons of Montjeu have already sired top hurdlers such as Douvan, easy winner of the Grade 1 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham this week, last year’s Triumph Hurdle star Tiger Roll and two more Grade 1 winners in Nichols Canyon and Petite Parisienne.

Dance Parade, the dam of Leading Light, was a speedy filly who won the Group 3 Queen Mary Stakes at Royal Ascot and the Group 3 Fred Darling Stakes at Newbury, before being sent to California, where she won three more graded stakes, including the Grade 2 Buena Vista Stakes at Santa Anita.

This daughter of Gone West has produced seven winners, among then Leading Light’s own-brother Warwick Avenue, who won five races and was third in the Group 2 Royal Whip Stakes. Dance Parade is half-sister to California stakes winners Ocean Queen and Jig, also to the dam of Toylsome, whose 16 wins included the Group 1 Prix de la Foret at Longchamp and who is now sire of winners in France.

LEADING LIGHT (IRE)

Race record: Champion three-year-old stayer in Europe in 2013, champion four-year-old stayer in Ireland in 2014. Winner of eight races and £760,981, from 2 to 4 years, from 9-20 furlongs, inc. St Leger Stakes, Doncaster, Gr.1, Ascot Gold Cup, Royal Ascot, Gr.1, Gallinule Stakes, Curragh, Gr.3, Queen’s Vase, Royal Ascot, Gr.3, Irish St Leger Trial Stakes, Curragh, Gr.3, and Coolmore Vintage Crop Stakes, Navan, Gr.3; second Irish St Leger, Curragh, Gr.1.

Stud record: Retires to stud in Ireland in 2015.

Stands at: Grange Stud, Fermoy, Co Cork, Ireland. Enquiries to David Magnier or Albert Sherwood on (353) 25 33006. Emails: info@grangestud.com. Web: www.coolmore.com.

Fee: €4,500.