Speed Shopper charges forward to take the Christophe Clement, Coglianese photo
Gulfstream Park Press
HALLANDALE BEACH, FL – Gary Barber, Bridlewood Farm and Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners’ Speed shopperunder a rollicking ride from Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez, moved into the lead at the halfway mark and then recorded her first graded-stakes victory in Saturday’s $175,000 Christophe Clement (G3) presented by Don Julio Tequila at Gulfstream Park.
The 1 ½ mile Clement for older fillies and mares on the turf was the second of 10 stakes, seven valued, worth $5.675 million in purses on a blockbuster Pegasus World Cup Day program anchored by the 10th anniversary of the $3 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1).
Known as the La Prevoyante since its inception in 1974, it marked the first edition of the race since it was renamed after the late trainer of 2,576 victories who died last May aged 59 from a rare form of eye cancer. Clement won the La Prevoyante six times, a record.
Velazquez took care of Speed Shopper ($16.60) in third place down the rail with a long shot of 15-1 Arya Stark took the early initiative and led half a mile in 50.20 seconds, flanked by her outside Weighted average of Venice racing in fourth place.
Favorite No show Sammy Jo moved to the far outside after leaving the field behind and loomed a threat in third midway through the far corner, while Speed Shopper patiently stayed inside. Velazquez tapped off the rail as he set up for home and split horses to set his sights on the leaders, going 1 ¾ lengths clear in 2:26.76 over a grass course judged to be firm.
Arya Stark remained stubbornly second by a neck above the weighted average, followed by Venencia, Ramsey Pond, FionNo show Sammy Jo, Seductive angel And Brave Greta.
Speed Shopper improved her record to 3-2-1 from nine starts. She made her 5-year-old debut after finishing second to head in the 2025 Rodeo Drive (G2) and winning the Florence on December 20 at Turfway Park, both at a distance of 1 ¼ miles.
$175,000 Christophe Clement presented by Don Julio Tequila (G3) Quotes
Winning trainer Will Walden (Speed Shopper): “It’s usually where she travels. The plan was to get out of there, which Johnny did, and stick her to the railing. We drove there so we might as well stay there, and the rest was textbook.”
“Christophe was important in many people’s lives, but he was especially important in mine. I grew up with his son Miguel, our fathers both trained at Payson Park [and] spent many nights at his house. Moreso when I started training, Christophe was always looking after the next generation. He wanted to see this sport continue and grow and he knew the next generation would be the ones carrying the backpack. He has put a lot into us and into me personally, so winning this race in recognition of him means a lot to the world.”
Winning jockey John Velazquez (Speed Shopper): “Pretty easy, simple. We went after the speed, and that’s kind of what we wanted to do. We sat there and wanted to be careful with how much I used her on the track. It worked perfectly.”
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