Clement not ready to commit Gufo to Breeders' Cup Turf
ELMONT, N.Y. - Trainer Christophe Clement said he is in no hurry to make a decision regarding a start in the Breeders’ Cup Turf for Gufo, who finished third in Saturday’s Grade 1 Joe Hirsch Stakes.
Clement was disappointed with the trip Gufo got in the Hirsch, believing that jockey Joel Rosario may have made a premature move toward the lead in the 1 1/2-mile race.
“With a better-timed ride, he would have finished second,” Clement said. “The jockey more or less agreed.”
By virtue of his victory in the Grade 1 Sword Dancer at Saratoga on Aug. 28, Gufo has a fees-paid berth into the BC Turf. Clement said the race would be very much considered, but he wants to train the horse out of this race before making a firm commitment.
“Let’s train him for the Breeders’ Cup, you work him, then after the work you decide for sure,” Clement said. “We created a horse, with the blinkers, who shows a little bit more early speed than he used to, so we created that problem, if it is a problem. But that may not be a bad thing, if you go to Del Mar, to show a little more speed. I just have to think about all this.”
At the moment, Clement is considering three other horses for Breeders’ Cup races.
Slipstream, who won Sunday’s Grade 3, $150,000 Futurity Stakes at Belmont Park, will be aimed at the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf on Nov. 5.
Derrynane, winner of the Woodbine Cares Stakes on Sept. 19, is pointing to the Juvenile Turf Sprint.
Pizza Bianca, runner-up in the Grade 1 Natalma at Woodbine on Sept. 19, is pointing to the Juvenile Fillies Turf.