Saratoga trainer Miguel Clement has formed a special bond with multiple Grade I winner Far Bridge, who enters Saturday’s $200,000 GII Bowling Green Stakes at Saratoga Race Course with impressive credentials.
The 5-year-old son of English Channel has compiled eight wins from 17 career starts with three seconds and three thirds, amassing $2,262,980 in earnings.
“He is very consistent,” Clement said Thursday morning outside his barn at the Oklahoma Training Track. “He is a hard tryer; as long as you do well by him, he will reward you. Consistent, versatile. He is everything you want in a racehorse.”
The connection runs deeper for the 34-year-old trainer. Far Bridge was the last horse his late father, Christophe, saddled — winning the GII Man o’War Stakes by a length on May 10. Christophe Clement passed away just 15 days later at age 59 from a rare form of eye cancer.
“He loved Far Bridge,” Miguel Clement said. “He thought he was the best turf stayer in the country.”
Far Bridge has won two of three starts this year, capturing the GIII Pan American Stakes at Gulfstream Park on March 29 at 1 1/2 miles before his Man o’War victory at 1 3/8 miles. In his most recent outing, he finished a close third in a three-horse photo in the 1 1/8-mile GI Manhattan Stakes on June 8.
“[Far Bridge] ran a gallant race and nearly won it anyway,” Clement said. “That is what a tough horse he is. Regardless of the surface or the distance, he tries very hard.”
The Manhattan was won by stablemate Deterministic, giving Miguel Clement his first Grade I training victory.
Clement initially considered training Far Bridge up to the $750,000 GI Sword Dancer on August 9, but the horse’s excellent condition prompted the Bowling Green entry. Stablemate Tawny Port is also entered but may be redirected to the $600,000 GII United Nations Stakes at Monmouth on July 19.
## Pletcher Hopeful But Doesn’t Think He’ll Win Spa’s Training Title
Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher acknowledges the challenge of reclaiming Saratoga’s training title after a four-year drought dominated by Chad Brown.
Pletcher, who holds a record 14 training titles at the Spa — the first in 1998 and most recent in 2020 — has watched Brown capture the last four championships. Last season, Brown tallied 45 wins while Pletcher tied with Mike Maker for second with 22 victories each.
“Our stable is unbalanced,” Pletcher said outside his office at the Oklahoma Training Track. “We had a disappointing 3-year-old crop this year–colts and fillies–and that kind of puts the emphasis on a few older horses and a lot of 2-year-olds.”
Pletcher’s older stars include Mindframe and Fierceness, who could potentially face off in the GI Whitney Stakes next month.
The training title race at Saratoga has traditionally garnered significant attention from racing enthusiasts who follow the standings daily.
“I agree with you, people follow it more here than anywhere else,” Pletcher said. “When you have a streak going, it’s pretty cool. We had a good streak here at one time; we had a streak at Gulfstream.”
Pletcher’s Gulfstream Park dominance included 15 consecutive titles beginning in 2004.
Despite Brown’s favored status, Pletcher remains cautiously optimistic about his chances.
“You are always hopeful it can happen,” he said. “We would have to have a real tremendous 2-year-old season to even be competitive, I think. But look, we are going to participate, for sure.”
## Brisset Looking For Another Solid 2-Year-Old Filly
After capturing the listed Schuylerville Stakes with Kingsolver during the Fourth of July Festival, trainer Rodolphe Brisset is eyeing another juvenile filly opportunity at Saratoga.
While Kingsolver won’t return for the GIII Adirondack on August 3, Brisset is considering TDN Rising Star Meringue for that race. The daughter of Frosted broke her maiden by a neck in a five-furlong turf contest at Churchill Downs on June 19.
“That could be the spot,” Brisset said outside his barn on the Oklahoma Training Track. “She has been breezing pretty good on the dirt and you want to find out sooner than later if they like it.”
Meringue, owned by Elements Racing LLC, could alternatively remain on turf for the listed Bolton Landing on August 17, a 5 1/2-furlong grass event.
“If she were to win that, you would obviously look at the Spinaway or another big one on the dirt,” he said. “If she doesn’t perform the way you want to and you find she wants turf, you can rest and get ready for Kentucky Downs.”
Kingsolver, meanwhile, will remain at Saratoga with Brisset considering the Bolton Landing for her next start. Owned by a partnership including Storyteller Racing, Michael Schroeck, and Open Gate Horse Ventures, Kingsolver rebounded from a fifth-place finish in her Churchill Downs debut to win the Schuylerville.
