Clement Puts Faith In Pizza Bianca Bouncing Back From Ascot Disappointment

Christophe Clement has revealed that his first runners at Royal Ascot did not perform as he had hoped but shared how G1 Coronation S. disappointment Pizza Bianca (Fastnet Rock) could bid to bounce back to form at Saratoga later this month.

Pizza Bianca, whose owner-breeder is celebrity chef Bobby Flay, has returned to America after her eighth-place finish in the Coronation. 

Clement admitted that he was “slightly disappointed” with that effort but is confident that there is more to come from his Breeders' Cup winner back on home soil.

“Of course, I was slightly disappointed, but I do not think she ran that bad a race,” Clement reflected. “I just thought she was a few lengths behind the form I was expecting her to show.

“She's back in the States and is doing well. I'm planning on giving her her first work back in the coming week and we will go from there.”

On last season's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf heroine, he added, “There are plenty of races for her to run in, but at the moment she will most probably run in a group race at Saratoga, the first one is the Lake George, which is a group 3 on July 22 and also a race maybe on August 1.”

Clement had no luck with his other runner at the royal meeting as Slipstream (More Than Ready) finished down the field in the G1 Commonwealth Cup.

However, he had nothing but praise for the experience and was grateful for all the assistance he received during his time in the United Kingdom, which included reliving his days as assistant to Luca Cumani as both Pizza Bianca and Slipstream were stabled in the Bedford House Stables his former boss operated from.

“Everything was done to make our life as easy as possible and it was a great experience,” he explained.

“I had five days in Newmarket to train the horses, everything was very smooth and both horses were stabled at Bedford House, which I know very well having spent four years there before and everything was as easy as could be.

“Unfortunately, the two horses were just a bit below form, so if I come back, I will need to find a way to be more competitive.”

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International Cast Eye Royal Meeting

Entries from nine countries appear on course for the eight Group 1 races at Royal Ascot, headlined by the world's three highest-rated sprinters: Nature Strip (Aus) (Nicconi {Aus}) (Australia, 124), Golden Pal (Uncle Mo) (USA, 121) and Home Affairs (Aus) (I Am Invincible {Aus}) (Australia, 120). The Australian pair–who may face Golden Pal in the G1 King's Stand S. or contest the G1 Platinum Jubilee S.–are joined by fellow Australian invader Artorius (Aus) (Flying Artie {Aus}) (Anthony & Sam Freedman), set to run on the final day of the meeting.

Last year's G1 Everest winner Nature Strip has annexed eight Group 1 victories, including the G1 T J Smith S. at Randwick Apr. 2. Home Affairs took the G1 Lightning S. at Flemington in February. The race has been a key stepping-stone for Australia's five Royal Ascot winners–Choisir, Takeover Target, Miss Andretti, Scenic Blast and Black Caviar all winning the five-furlong King's Stand.

“We have nominated both Nature Strip and Home Affairs for the King's Stand S. and the Platinum Jubilee S. This is to keep our options open as anything can happen with horses but we should have an exciting Royal Meeting, that is for sure,” said Chris Waller's assistant trainer and racing manager Charlie Duckworth. “Nature Strip has just come back into the stable after a short break following a busy racing preparation, while Home Affairs is back in work and going well. The plan is for both horses to do the majority of their work on home soil prior to travelling to England.”

Standing in the way of the Australian runners in the King's Stand is Golden Pal, sparkling winner of last fall's GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint. The four-year-old kicked off this season with a win in the G2 Shakertown S. at Keeneland Apr. 9.

“Golden Pal is doing great, he really is,” said trainer Wesley Ward. “It was a powerful performance from him in the Shakertown–but it was a comeback and I really think his next run is going to be something special. He is a once in a lifetime horse–certainly the best I have ever had–and I think he will stamp that with his performance at Ascot if he runs like I am expecting him to.

“Physically, he is an awesome specimen now and mentally he is really coming into his own. I am just so excited to get him back over there.”

Also slated to contest the Royal meeting for Ward, Platinum Jubilee S. contender Campanelle (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) will bid to join a select group of horses to have won three different Royal Ascot races in successive years. The 4-year-old captured the G2 Queen Mary S. in 2020 and last year was second past the post in the G1 Commonwealth Cup before the placings were reversed due to interference.

“Barbara Banke [owner] and her team are so excited to get Campanelle back over there,” added Ward. “She had a strong performance on her comeback win at Keeneland the other day. If you watch that race against some of the fastest fillies in the country, what she did was pretty impressive.”

Representing Japan in the G1 Prince of Wales's S., G1 Dubai Sheema Classic winner, Shahryar (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) may accompanied from Japan by fellow Group 1-winning contender Grenadier Guards (Frankel {GB}), who will target the Platinum Jubilee.

Hideaki Fujiwara, trainer of Shahryar, said: “I discussed with the owner [Sunday Racing Co Ltd] about future plans after Shahryar won the Dubai Sheema Classic and we agreed that the next target for Shahryar must be the races with the highest profile in the world. I believe the Prince of Wales's S. is the ideal spot for the horse.”

There are 16 entries representing the USA at today's Group 1 entry stage. Among them is a host of runners trained by Graham Motion (Spendarella (Fr) (Common Grounds {GB}), G1 Coronation S. and Sy Dog (Slumber {GB}) (G1 St James's Palace S.) in addition to Brad Cox (Caravel (Mizzen Mast) (G1 King's Stand S.) or G1 Commonwealth Cup). Christophe Clement, who is responsible for last year's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf winner Pizza Bianca (Fastnet Rock {Aus}), is targeting the Coronation S. The 3-year-old filly is owned by celebrity chef, Bobby Flay.

Clement said, “All options are open for Pizza Bianca after her second at Aqueduct last weekend. I am yet to have a discussion with the owner and suspect we will make a decision in the next two or three weeks. There is another stakes race in four weeks at Pimlico that she could go for and then from there you can go to Ascot. The filly will tell us what she wants to do but at the moment all options are wide open.”

Clement may also be represented by Slipstream (More Than Ready) and stakes winner Derrynane (Quality Road).

“Slipstream is very much on course for the Commonwealth Cup,” he confirmed. “He won [the Listed Palisades S.] impressively at Keeneland in April and I don't think I will run him back before Ascot. This horse has a very good mind and goes on any ground. He is very mature as well having been a good 2-year-old last year. I think he is a good horse.”

“I have also nominated a very fast filly called Derrynane. She is top-class but needs the ground on the firmer side. Similarly with Pizza Bianca, there is a stakes race for her [in the US] in late May and we may go there before deciding about the Commonwealth Cup.”

 

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Slipstream Bests Twilight Gleaming in Palisades

Slipstream (More Than Ready) could do no better than sixth in last year's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf at Del Mar, but closed furiously up the rail to best favored Stonestreet filly Twilight Gleaming (Ire) (National Defense {GB}) in Sunday's Listed Palisades S. at Keeneland.

Quickly into stride from an outside alley, 'TDN Rising Star' Twilight Gleaming outsprinted her male rivals and galloped them along on a drying-out turf course as Slipstream, last year's GIII Futurity S. hero, bided his time at the tail of the field. As her stablemate Golden Pal (Uncle Mo) did in Saturday's GII Shakertown S., Twilight Gleaming was kept well off the rail in upper stretch, and that presented an inviting inside opening for Slipstream, who first rallied underneath Pure Panic in upper stretch and quickened home impressively to post a comfortable victory.

Slipstream defeated future GIII Kitten's Joy S. winner Grand Sonata (Medaglia d'Oro) by 5 1/2 lengths to break his maiden over seven furlongs Sept. 18, then cut back in trip to annex the Futurity by a tight length after racing freely in the early stages. It wasn't the cleanest of trips in the Juvenile Turf Nov. 5 and by the time he could let down, Modern Games (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) had put the race to bed and Slipstream was forced to settle for a close sixth.

One of two winners from the stakes-placed Cake Baby, both black-type winners, Slipstream has a yearling half-brother by Catalina Cruiser and his dam was most recently covered by Game Winner. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

PALISADES S., $188,788, Keeneland, 4-10, 3yo, 5 1/2fT, 1:02.80, gd.
1–SLIPSTREAM, 120, c, 3, by More Than Ready
1st Dam: Cake Baby (SP), by Stormy Atlantic
2nd Dam: Dharma Girl, by French Deputy
3rd Dam: Cashelmara, by Key to the Mint
($170,000 Ylg '20 KEESEP). O-Jump Sucker Stable; B-Burleson Farm & McKenzie Bloodstock (KY); T-Christophe Clement; J-Joel Rosario. $120,900. Lifetime Record: 6-3-0-1, $288,500. *1/2 to Too Sexy (Quality Road), SW, $319,635.
2–Twilight Gleaming (Ire), 118, f, 3, National Defense (GB)–
Thames Pageant (GB), by Dansili (GB). (£75,000 Ylg '20 GOFOR). 'TDN Rising Star' O-Stonestreet Stables LLC; B-Pier House Stud (IRE); T-Wesley A Ward. $29,250.
3–Pure Panic, 118, c, 3, Summer Front–Shock the World, by Hansen. ($24,000 RNA Wlg '19 KEENOV; $42,000 RNA Ylg '20 KEESEP; $170,000 RNA 2yo '21 OBSMAR). O-Pravin A Patel; B-Kendall E Hansen MD Racing LLC (KY); T-Juan Munoz Cano. $19,500.
Margins: 3/4, 5HF, 1 1/4. Odds: 2.70, 0.90, 34.90.
Also Ran: Circle Back Jack, No Nay Franklin (Ire), Classicstateofmind, Baytown Frosty. Scratched: Kaufymaker.

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‘Incredibly Special’: Jump Sucker’s Slipstream Brings Duncker And Friends Back To Breeders’ Cup

When Jump Sucker Stable co-owner Steven Duncker goes to Del Mar for the Breeders' Cup World Championships, he will be doing so with a chance at redemption. Jump Sucker's Slipstream is seeking to give the ownership group a breakthrough victory in the Grade 1, $1 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf on Nov. 5 at Del Mar.

Trained by Christophe Clement, Slipstream will stretch out to one mile in the World Championships. He enters the race off a victory in the G3 Futurity over six furlongs on Oct. 10 at Belmont Park.

Duncker, a former NYRA chairman and current member of the NYRA Board of Directors, arrived at the 1999 Breeders' Cup as the standalone owner of Middlesex Drive, who went to post in the Mile as the 6-1 third-choice in a field of 14.

Unfortunately, the three-time graded stakes winner suffered a bad trip throughout, finishing tenth beaten five lengths.

“He was a speed horse who broke last and that was it for him,” Duncker recalled.

Duncker will not be flying solo this time around as he will be joined at the Breeders' Cup by his Jump Sucker Stable co-owners George Walker, George Loening, and Kevin Warsh.

Duncker's introduction to racing began in St. Louis: he and childhood friend Ted Levis took trips across the Mississippi River to Fairmount Park in eastern Illinois, igniting a lifelong love affair with the sport.

Duncker bought his first racehorse with Levis, purchasing a filly named Informal Affair during their senior year of high school with money earned tarring driveways.

Informal Affair broke her maiden at Fairmount at first asking in May 1976.

“She had been running unsuccessfully at Keeneland and we thought she would be very competitive at Fairmount,” Duncker said. “Ted and I went to Cahokia Downs and had the third leading trainer [Michael Fingerhut, Jr.] paged to come into the racing office. When he got there, we stuck out our hands and asked if he wanted to train for us. We were 17 and he thought it was a joke.”

With the money earned from Informal Affair, Duncker bought Cordial Affair, who won at Cahokia Downs in the first parimutuel wagering event to be called by legendary track announcer Tom Durkin – the former longtime voice of the NYRA circuit.

“The next day the newspaper said, 'Energetic young Irishman Tom Durkin made quite an impression on the fans. We think he'll be around to stay,' and they were right about that,” Duncker recalled. “When Tom was inducted in the Red Jacket Ceremony at Saratoga, I was honored to introduce him.”

Duncker has enjoyed great success as an owner. In addition to Middlesex Drive, he campaigned stakes-winner and multiple graded stakes-placed Cloak of Vagueness.

With his stock dwindling, however, Duncker was contemplating leaving the ownership game. He was eventually convinced to join forces with Walker, whom he met years earlier when working at Goldman Sachs. Both were partners in the company and bonded through their St. Louis roots and memories of attending races at Fairmount Park to cheer on future Hall of Fame rider Dave Gall.

“Of all the kids who grew up in St. Louis, Steve and I are amongst the few who, as soon as we turned 16, would find a way to make the 30-minute drive to Fairmount Park in Illinois,” Walker said. “He and I grew up watching Dave Gall win races.”

Through Walker, Duncker met Loening and Warsh, and in 2006, Jump Sucker Stable was born.

“He said, 'I'll buy horses but only if you come in with me.' Then we wooed in our other two friends,” Walker said.

Several years before forming Jump Sucker Stable, Duncker met Clement through NYRA co-chairman Peter Karches, who owned horses with the veteran conditioner at the time.

“The questions Christophe would ask about racing were so educated that I said to myself, 'This is a really smart guy',” Duncker said. “I said if I ever got back into the game in a bigger way, this would be my guy.”

Jump Sucker Stable made their first trip to an American Classic when Governor Malibu finished fourth in the 2016 Belmont Stakes. One month later, they earned their first graded stakes victory when Blacktype won the G3 Oceanport at Monmouth Park.

“He's the best communicator I've ever seen as a trainer,” Duncker said of Clement. “He realizes that a lot of the fun in owning a horse isn't just showing up on race day. His whole operation is geared toward winning. The second most important thing are their owners getting the full experience of ownership. I appreciate the extra effort that his team goes through to make it a great experience.”

Duncker and company are indeed having a great experience with Slipstream, who won third-time out sprinting seven furlongs at Belmont Park.

Although the son of More Than Ready earned a “Win and You're In” entry into the five-furlong Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint via his Futurity score, Slipstream will instead compete in the one-mile Juvenile Turf.

“Going from the deeper turf courses of the east, to out west, it's a lot easier to carry speed and Christophe would rather have a horse stretching out into the mile race than cutting back,” Duncker said. “I'm not sure if Slipstream is a classic stayer by any means but Christophe feels that a mile should hit him right between the eyes. Christophe has always liked Slipstream. He didn't run too well in his first two races, but Christophe kept saying he was such a nice horse.”

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Duncker said he credits his experience with Jump Sucker Stable for rejuvenating his enthusiasm for owning Thoroughbreds.

“This group got me energized again,” Duncker said. “The amount of fun I've had with these guys is ten times more fun than I ever had by myself. They're passionate, they're good sports, and it's so much fun to have good partners. I wouldn't own horses right now if it weren't for those three. It's so much fun, more fun than owning on my own.

“It's incredibly special. It's magical to be able to be able to share this with people you love spending time with,” Walker added.

Duncker said he hopes Slipstream will have a much cleaner trip than that of Middlesex Drive.

“The way I see it, if the racing Gods are up there, they may owe us one,” Duncker said. “It just shows how important it is to break going a mile. Hopefully, Joel Rosario gets him out of there in fine fettle and we can run our race with a big chance.”

Clement said Slipstream is entering the Breeders' Cup with a winning chance.

“It's a fun group and they're a good group of owners to train for,” Clement said. “It's been a while since we've had a really good horse, so I'm delighted about this one. The horse is doing well at the moment, so it's exciting.”

While Jump Sucker Stable makes their Breeders' Cup maiden voyage, Clement has registered 40 Breeders' Cup starters and is still in search of a Breeders' Cup win – a stat that Duncker said he would dearly love to help change.

“It's going to happen someday, and I'd love for it to be with us,” Duncker said. “Christophe is at the very top of his profession in every way. I've loved owning horses that he trains. His whole team is sensational. His son and assistant Miguel has been a huge part of the team as well. He's the head man, but the exercise riders, grooms and everything is all first class.”

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