Far Bridge stretches back out in G2 Bowling Green

LSU Stables’ multiple Grade 1-winning millionaire Far Bridge will look to add to his impressive credentials in Saturday’s Grade 2, $200,000 Bowling Green, an 11-furlong inner turf test for older horses, at Saratoga Race Course.

Trained by Miguel Clement, the 5-year-old English Channel bay will stretch back out in distance from a neck third in the nine-furlong Grade 1 Resorts World Casino Manhattan on June 8 during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival at Saratoga.

There, he exited the outermost post 8 and was quickly taken to a ground-saving position by Hall of Fame jockey Joel Rosario. He tracked in third down the backstretch and was game when asked down the lane but could not reel in his pacesetting stablemate Deterministic, who scored by a head over a rallying Integration in a dramatic finish. The solid performance earned Far Bridge a 99 Beyer Speed Figure.

“Maybe the distance was a touch short at that level, but I think he ran a gallant race,” Clement said of the Manhattan effort. “He ran a terrific figure and came out of it in great order. He ran probably too good of a race to lose, but that’s racing for you.”

Far Bridge [post 7, Joel Rosario, 124 pounds] has arguably shown his best at extended distances with Grade 1 scores traveling 12-furlongs last year in the Resorts World Casino Sword Dancer in August at the Spa and the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic one month later at Belmont at the Big A as part of a tremendous campaign that concluded with an off-the-board finish in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Turf in November at Del Mar.

Far Bridge made a successful return to the races in March with a neck score over returning rival Corruption in the 12-furlong Grade 3 Pan American and added the 11-furlong Grade 2 Man o’ War to his ledger in May at Belmont at the Big A ahead of his Manhattan try.

Far Bridge worked a half-mile in 49.15 seconds July 4 over the Oklahoma training turf in company with Tawny Port, who is also entered in the Bowling Green.

“Top class,” Clement said of the work by Far Bridge. “He’s a very good horse. He looks out for himself, he knows the drill and where every pole is, and he breezes himself. He’s just poetry in motion.”

Far Bridge, who captured the Grade 1 Belmont Derby as a sophomore at Belmont Park, is out of the winning Kitten’s Joy mare Fitpitcher. His second dam is the winning A.P. Indy mare Teenage Temper, whose half-sister Pleasant Song produced Grade 2-winning millionaire Long Range Toddy.

Clement will also send out Peachtree Stable’s Tawny Port [post 3, Flavien Prat, 120 pounds], who will look to secure his first win since capturing the 2023 Listed John’s Call, a restricted event contested over 1 5/8-miles of firm Spa turf.

The 6-year-old Pioneerof the Nile dark bay has banked in excess of $1.3 million via a 25-5-3-5 ledger topped by Grade 3 dirt scores in 2022 as a 3-year-old in the Lexington at Keeneland and the Ohio Derby at Thistledown while in the care of trainer Brad Cox.

Tawny Port joined the barn of the late Christophe Clement in time for a fifth-place finish in the 2023 edition of the Grade 2 Bowling Green ahead of his aforementioned John’s Call score. He has raced exclusively in graded company through his last 10 outings, including close third-place finishes last year at Monmouth Park in the nine-furlong Grade 3 Monmouth and 11-furlong Grade 2 United Nations.

Clement said to draw a line through Tawny Port’s most recent off-the-board outing in the off-the-turf Grade 3 Belmont Gold Cup contested over 1 3/4-miles of sloppy and sealed footing on June 6 here.

“He’s doing great. He had no chance last time. He’s doing better than people think,” Clement said.

Tawny Port, a half-brother to the graded stakes-placed Broadway Lady, is out of the multiple graded stakes-placed Macho Uno mare Livi Makenzie. His second dam, Greta’s Joy, is a half-sister to multiple graded stakes-winning millionaire Surf Cat.

Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse will be represented by D.J. Stable’s graded stakes-winning millionaire Webslinger [post 5, Jose Ortiz, 120 pounds], who will look to go one better from a last-out three-quarter length second in the 1 1/16-mile Grade 2 Eclipse on May 31 over the Woodbine Tapeta.

“He ran great his first start back at Woodbine,” Casse said. “I've been very impressed with him. I think he's training better than I've ever seen him. The key with him is he'll sit back and make his run. I'm expecting a big year out of him.”

The 5-year-old Constitution gelding made the grade as a sophomore in the 2023 Grade 2 American Turf, besting Far Bridge by a nose in the 1 1/16-mile test over firm footing at Churchill Downs.

While Webslinger exited that effort to capture the nine-furlong Listed Audubon at Churchill, Far Bridge avenged his narrow loss with a Belmont Derby score where Webslinger closed from last-of-11 to finish a 1 1/2-length fourth. The familiar foes squared off once more that year here in the 1 3/16-mile Grade 1 Saratoga Derby Invitational with Webslinger missing by a head to Program Trading and Far Bridge settling for third.

Webslinger hit the board in 4-of-6 starts last year led by a win in the 11-furlong Chorleywood over firm Churchill turf. He has banked in excess of $1.4 million through a 20-5-6-4 record.

Casse will also send out Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Harry Colburn’s Corruption [post 8, Javier Castellano, 120 pounds], who will look to build upon a fourth-place finish last out in the Grade 1 Manhattan.

The 4-year-old Medaglia d’Oro gelding has improved steadily through his eight-race career, winning a maiden-claiming turf mile at third asking on January 12 to kick off a three-race win streak at Gulfstream Park that included a one-mile allowance win on January 26 and a 12-furlong optional-claiming score on March 2.

Corruption proved his class with a neck second to Far Bridge in the aforementioned Pan American, a race he exited to wire a nine-furlong optional-claimer in May at Churchill Downs ahead of his Manhattan try.

“He's definitely improved. He's our most improved child for the year,” said Casse, with a laugh. “He likes to get in a rhythm and the farther you go, the easier it is to accomplish that.”

The $220,000 OBS Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds-in-Training Sale purchase is out of the multiple graded stakes-placed Sky Mesa mare Thundering Sky.

Averill Racing’s Harrow [post 6, Irad Ortiz, Jr., 122 pounds] fulfilled a lifelong dream for Barbados-born trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr. when he captured the Sandy Lane Barbados Gold Cup in March at the Garrison Savannah.

Harrow, with Rasheed Hughes up, won the nine-furlong event by one-length over Grade 3-winner Smokin’ T with graded stakes-placed Jerry the Nipper in third as part of a strong field that included the multiple graded stakes-placed 2024 Barbados Gold Cup winner Portfolio Company.

Joseph, Jr. said Harrow exited the Barbados Gold Cup in strong fashion, landing a prominent three-quarter length second last out in the Listed Cape Henlopen over 12-furlongs of firm footing on June 14 at Delaware Park.

“Obviously, I'm from Barbados, and I had never won it. For the ownership group, that was good,” Joseph, Jr. said. “I thought he was going to need that run last out, but I was pleased with the effort. He ran better than I thought. This race is coming up tough, but I feel like he will run quite well for himself. He always tries." 

The hard-knocking 7-year-old Lea gelding was haltered for $16,000 from a winning effort in April 2024 at Tampa Bay Downs and has won three times since to go along with a 1 3/4-length fifth in the 12-furlong Grade 3 W. L. McKnight in January at Gulfstream Park in his lone graded stakes start for Joseph, Jr.

A solid field includes Grade 3-winner Starting Over [post 1, Manny Franco, 124 pounds], who enters from a three-quarter-length third in the Cape Henlopen for trainer Brittany Russell; as well as a pair from Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher in Shadwell Stable’s Kentucky homebred El Rezeen [post 2, Dylan Davis, 120 pounds], who was a three-quarter length third behind the victorious Carson’s Run and runner-up Deterministic in last year’s 11-furlong Grade 3 Jockey Club Derby Invitational, and WinStar Farm and Rock Ridge Racing’s three-time winner Tucson [post 4, Luis Saez, 120 pounds]. Yo Daddy, Kuchar and Game Warden are entered for the main-track only.

The Bowling Green is slated as Race 8 on Saturday’s 12-race card, which is headlined by the Grade 1, $500,000 Dunkin’ Diana in Race 11. First post is 12:35 p.m. Eastern.

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