Christophe Clement | Horse Racing Free Tips

Candy Ride Colt Debuts a Winner at the Spa

5th-Saratoga, $85,000, (S), Msw, 7-18, 2yo, 5 1/2f, 1:04.38, my, 4 3/4 lengths.
SENBEI (c, 2, Candy Ride {Arg}–Sweet Aloha, by Western Cat), a $280,000 KEEJAN short yearling purchase in 2020, was sent off at 5-1. The chestnut colt was hustled out to the early lead and and was clear through a quarter in :22.38 and a half in :46.04. He extended his advantage down the lane and came home a 4 3/4-length winner. Longshot Gimmedamoney (Central Banker) chased throughout to finish second. Senbei is a half-brother to Filibustin (Bustin Stones), MSW, $309,140; and to Indy's Lady (Take Charge Indy), MSW, $202,378. Sweet Aloha has a yearling colt by Union Rags. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by TVG. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $46,750.
O-Reeves Thoroughbred Racing & Darlene Bilinski; B-Jerry Bilinski (NY); T-Christophe Clement.

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Bert Firestone Passes Away

Bert Firestone, who along with his wife Diana, enjoyed international success at racing's top level for decades, passed away Monday at JFK Medical center in West Palm Beach. He was 89.

Firestone, a successful industrial real estate developer, was a hands-on horseman–he spent a summer in the early 1950s galloping for trainer Charlie Whittingham–whose American racing successes led to seven Eclipse Awards. Honest Pleasure (What a Pleasure) earned the couple's first Eclipse statue as champion 2-year-old of 1971 and he was followed by 1977 champion sprinter What a Summer (What Luck).

In 1980, the Firestones enjoyed perhaps their greatest stateside success when Genuine Risk (Exclusive Native) became only the second filly to win the GI Kentucky Derby. The filly's victory on the First Saturday in May bettered the previous runner-up efforts of Firestone colorbearers Honest Pleasure and General Assembly (Secretariat) and earned the couple, not just an Eclipse statue as leading 3-year-old filly, but also contributed to a championship as leading owners.

Already a champion in France, April Run (Ire) (Run the Gauntlet) earned the Eclipse Award as the top turf mare in the U.S. in 1982 and the great Theatrical (Ire) (Nureyev) reeled off six Grade I victories in 1987 to become the first Eclipse champion and Breeders' Cup winner for future Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott.

“They are great horse-people,” Mott told TDN's John Berry last year. “They understand horses, understand racing. They are people who are passionate about the horses themselves and when people are passionate about the horses as individuals, then it makes it easy for everything to go well.”

Firestone's Eclipse champions also include Jimmy Lorenzo (GB) (Our Jimmy), the top steeplechaser of 1988.

The Firestones success in the U.S. was matched or exceeded by their achievements in Europe, where they enjoyed their first top-level victory when King's Company (Ire) (King's Troop {GB}) won the 1971 Irish 2000 Guineas. The following year, the colt retired to the couple's newly purchased the 1,200 Gilltown Stud in Co. Kildare.

A year after Genuine Risk was named the top 3-year-old filly in the U.S., the Firestones ran the table in that division in Europe when Blue Wind (Ire) (Lord Gayle) was named champion in both England and Ireland, while April Run was named top 3-year-old filly in France and Play it Safe (Ire) (Red Alert {Ire}) was that country's champion 2-year-old filly.

The Firestones, who owned both Gulfstream Park and Calder Racecourse from 1989 to 1991, began scaling back their racing ventures in the late 1980s, selling Gilltown back to the Aga Khan in 1989. They also downsized from their 2,000-acre Catoctin Stud in Waterford, Virginia and acquired Newstead Farm in Upperville in 1991.

The Firestone homebred Winchester (Theatrical {Ire}) became the couple's final top-level victor with four Grade I wins from 2008 to 2011 and they completed the dispersal of their bloodstock in January 2020.

Christophe Clement, who trained Winchester for three of those Grade I victories, told TDN last year, “Very rarely will one train for people who have been a leading owner and breeder in both the States and Europe. It was also a touch intimidating, as Mr. Firestone had a great knowledge of racing through his time as a trainer and in racetrack ownership. Mr. and Mrs. Firestone are wonderful owners. They are great horse-people and the horses always come first.”

Both Bert and Diana Firestone were avid showjumpers and hunted in Virginia with the Piedmont and Middleburg Hunts and were Joint-Masters of the Kildare Foxhounds in Ireland. Two of his children, Matt and Alison, rode for the U.S. Equestrian team.

Firestone is survived by his wife, Diana; his four children, Matt, Greg, Ted and Alison; his three stepchildren, Lorna, Chris and Cricket and several grandchildren.

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Call Me Love Gets First North American Stake Win In River Memories

Trainer Christophe Clement's persistency paid off Sunday as Call Me Love notched her first win in seven starts against North American stakes company, edging favorite Virginia Joy by a neck in the $150,000 River Memories – the Belmont Park spring/summer meet Closing Day feature race at the Elmont, N.Y. track.

Owned by R Unicorn Stable, Call Me Love, a dual grouped winner in Italy, went 0-for-5 in a 2020 campaign, where she solely ran against graded stakes company. The 5-year-old chestnut mare has displayed a turnaround in form for her past two starts, defeating allowance optional claiming company going 1 1/16 miles on May 23 at Belmont Park ahead of Sunday's engagement.

Call Me Love broke from post 2 under jockey Junior Alvarado in the 1 ½-mile contest for older fillies and mares as graded stakes-winning stable mate Mutamakina assumed command in the early stages over the good going on the Widener turf course. Last year's winner, Civil Union, tracked to her outside in second with Call Me Love along the rail in third position.

Mutamakina maintained her advantage as she slowed the tempo down through a half-mile in :47.80, while Alvarado had a tight hold aboard Call Me Love, with 6-5 favorite Virginia Joy inching closer to her outside.

Around the far turn, Call Me Love found herself last of five in the tightly packed field as Virginia Joy joined Mutamakina and Delta's Kingdom in pursuit on the front end. Alvarado weaved Call Me Love several paths wide at the top of the stretch as Mutamakina, Virginia Joy, and Delta's Kingdom all battled for control. The latter threw in the towel just past the furlong marker as Mutamakina and Virginia Joy duked it out on the front end.

In the final strides, Call Me Love prevailed, completing the 12-furlong journey in 2:27.59. Virginia Joy finished a head to the better of Mutamakina, who rounded out the trifecta. Delta's Kingdom and Civil Union completed the order of finish.

Pallas Athene, Luck Money, and main track only entrant Thankful were scratched.

Call Me Love, who returned $17 for a $2 win wager, registered her second consecutive victory for the first time since capturing the Group 3 Premio Verziere Memorial Aldo Cirla at San Siro and the Group 2 Premio Lydia Tesio at Capannelle to close out her 2019 season. The River Memories conquest upped her lifetime earnings to $613,121 through a 16-7-2-3 record.

Clement said the stretch out in distance benefitted Call Me Love.

“Call Me Love has been a bit unlucky in the past,” said Clement, who closed out the meet with five stakes victories. “I've probably been running her a bit shorter than I should have done looking back at today's performance.

“Mutamakina always gives a good account of herself and even if she got beat today, I thought she ran a good race,” Clement added. “The plan was for Junior to be comfortable on the lead or close to the pace and for Rosario [aboard Mutamakina] to wait and be comfortable as well. But the other horse didn't break that well and Joel ended up on the lead and was very comfortable.”

Alvarado, who also captured his fifth stakes win of the meet, said he was hoping to be on the lead, but he had to call an audible when Call Me Love broke a touch slow.

“This is the kind of race that you have to figure it out when they open the gate,” Alvarado said. “I was supposed to be on the lead – even Christophe said I could be the speed of the race – but she broke a little flat-footed. Going a mile and a half, I didn't want to rush her to go to the lead. She did it nice and quiet. Turning for home, she started picking up very nicely.”

Bred in Great Britain by Grundy Bloodstock SRL, Call Me Love is by multiple Group 1 winner Sea The Stars and is out of the Rainbow Quest mare Fresnay.

Live action resumes on Thursday afternoon for Opening Day at Saratoga Race Course. The first day of racing for the prestigious 40-day meet is spearheaded by the Grade 3, $120,000 Quick Call for 3-year-olds going 5 ½ furlongs over the Mellon turf course and the Grade 3, $150,000 Schuylerville for juvenile fillies going six furlongs over the main track. First post is 1:05 p.m. Eastern.

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Sunday’s Insights: Malibu Moon ‘Rising Star’ Returns at Belmont

7th-BEL, $92K, Alw, N1X, 3yo/up, f/m, 6f, post time: 3:47 p.m. ET
The rail-drawn HARPER'S IN CHARGE (Malibu Moon) makes her first start since posting a runaway wire-to-wire 'TDN Rising Star' performance on debut at Aqueduct Nov. 15. The $220,000 KEESEP yearling purchase's unraced dam Azara (More Than Ready) is a half-sister to the brilliant Tepin (Bernstein) and MGSW Vyjack (Into Mischief). Harper's in Charge has a pair of bullets on her worktab for this at Christophe Clement's Saratoga base. Even-money morning-line favorite Bella Sofia (Awesome Patriot), runner-up behind the unbeaten Australasia (Sky Kingdom) in the Jersey Girl S. at second asking June 6, is cross-entered in Saturday's GIII Victory Ride S. at Belmont. She previously romped by 11 1/4 lengths with a gaudy 94 Beyer on debut May 6. TJCIS PPs

4th-ELP, $51K, Msw, 2yo, 7f, post time: 3:14 p.m. ET
Winchell homebred GUNTOWN (Gun Runner) looks to become the eighth winner for his red-hot freshman sire. Trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, the bay is a half-brother to these connections' champion Untapable (Tapit) as well as GISW Paddy O'Prado (El Prado {Ire}). Guntown was listed as selling for $750,000 (co-second highest of 46 sold from his sire's first crop) to L & N Racing at last year's Keeneland September sale. TJCIS PPs

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