Clement Duo Looks Tough in Intercontinental

Trainer Christophe Clement will be double-handed for the $150,000 Intercontinental Stakes June 4 at Belmont Park, when he sends out stakes winners Marbre Rose and Zindaya.

 

The Intercontinental drew a full field of older distaffers for seven-furlong turf test, set to run on the first day of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival.

 

Marbre Rose, group III-placed in France, has not started since finishing sixth in the Honey Fox (gr. IIT) March 28 at Gulfstream Park. Two starts back, the bay filly won the 7 1/2-furlong South Beach Stakes at Gulfstream.

 

Zindaya is coming off an impressive score in the six-furlong License Fee Stakes May 1 at Belmont. The daughter of More Than Ready   dominated the License Fee, drawing off to win by 2 3/4 lengths.

 

Trainer Wesley Ward will send out 2015 Monrovia Stakes (gr. IIT) winner Shrinking Violet, who was third in The Very One Stakes May 16 at Pimlico Race Course on the Preakness Day undercard.

 

Also entered is A Little Bit Sassy, trained Michael Matz for Ramona Bass. The 4-year-old More Than Ready   filly finished first in the 2014 Regret (gr. IIIT) at Churchill Downs before being disqualified to fourth during her sophomore campaign. In her 2015 debut, she was ninth in the mile Dahlia Stakes April 18 at Pimlico and comes in the Intercontinental off a runner-up finish in a 1 1/16-mile allowance/optional claiming race May 31 at Monmouth Park.