Clement atop standings thanks to six juvenile winners

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Six of trainer Christophe Clement’s meet-leading 10 victories at the Aqueduct fall meet have come with 2-year-olds, giving him much to look forward to in 2021.

Perhaps Clement’s most impressive juvenile victory came Sunday when Brattle House, a filly he co-bred with Richard Leahy and who was purchased for $775,000 at auction by Larry Best’s OXO Equine, won a one-mile New York-bred maiden race by 5 1/4 lengths under Joel Rosario. Brattle House was assigned a 65 Beyer Speed Figure for her win.

“Rosario came back and said he was always in control and to look at visually I always thought she looked best in the race,” Clement said. “I don’t have a clue as to what she beat, but she could not have been more impressive.”

While Brattle House showed significant physical ability, Clement said she still has some strides to make mentally. Brattle House was shipped to Payson Park on Monday and will get some time do just that while Clement and Best design a plan for her 3-year-old season.

“She’s still very immature mentally,” Clement said. “I’d love to maybe put her aside and come back in the spring and treat her like a really nice horse.”

Brattle House is the only horse Clement has for Best. Clement said he sought out Best to train the filly because Clement had trained the dam, Savvy Sassy, who won her first two starts before a suspensory issue interrupted her career.

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Brattle House is by Malibu Moon. Harper’s in Charge, another daughter of Malibu Moon, won her debut by 6 1/2 lengths here Nov. 15. Clement is eyeing either an allowance at Aqueduct in December or the $75,000 Glitter Woman Stakes on Jan. 2 at Gulfstream.

“She always trained well, always showed plenty of speed, I always liked her,” Clement said. “Sometimes, with the Malibu Moons the toughest thing is to keep them sound.”

Hit the Woah (by Vancouver), and turf winners Straw Into Gold (Hard Spun), Kokopelli (Into Mischief), and Little Dutch Girl (Data Link) are the other juvenile winners sent out by Clement in the first 11 days of the Aqueduct fall meet, which runs through Dec. 6.

While the future appears bright for Clement’s stable, so too does the present. Clement is 10 for 29 at Aqueduct and figures to have a big presence this weekend in the final seven turf stakes of the year to be run in New York.

In Friday’s $100,000 Forever Together, Clement has the trio of Simplicity, Sorrentina Lemon, and Feel Glorious – who drew posts 2, 3, and 4 respectively – in the 1 1/16-mile race for fillies and mares, which drew a field of 12. Feel Glorious is 2 for 2 at Aqueduct with victories in the Memories of Silver and Winter Memories last year. She’s coming off a fourth-place finish in the Grade 3 Athenia.

Sorrentina Lemon was second to Feel Glorious in last year’s Winter Memories and has only run twice this year. Simplicity also has run just twice this year, winning a first-level allowance and running second in a second-level allowance.

“Maybe a touch ambitious, they’re very sound, they look great, they’ve been under-raced this year,” Clement said.

Clement entered City Man in Friday’s $100,000 Gio Ponti Stakes for 3-year-olds at 1 1/16 miles on turf. The race is named for the most accomplished horse Clement has trained. Gio Ponti was a seven-time Grade 1 winner who earned more than $5.3 million.

City Man has run well on turf and dirt, and Clement is considering running him in the Gio Ponti and then wheeling him back on Dec. 12 in the Alex M. Robb Stakes for New York-breds on dirt.

“I always wanted to run him on the grass long with a pair of blinkers on and then I might wheel him back in a race called the Alex Robb on dirt for older horses,” Clement said.

Saturday, Clement could run as many as three in the Long Island – Mutamakina, Wegetsdamunnys, and Traipsing. The latter had been nominated to the Forever Together, but would have to be supplemented to the Long Island.

Also Saturday, Clement is considering Therapist and/or Maxwell Esquire in the Aqueduct Turf Sprint Championship at six furlongs. Therapist is coming off a win in the one-mile Artie Schiller here Nov. 14, while Maxwell Esquire is a New York-bred who has won three of his last four starts.

In Sunday’s $100,000 Autumn Days for female sprinters at six furlongs, Clement is considering running both Madeleine Must, who won a second-level allowance race here Nov. 14, and Rose Flower, who is 0 for 2 this year after running third in last November’s Autumn Days.