Class drop could be difference for 1 filly in Saratoga Oaks

A day after Soldier Rising finished second for him in the Saratoga Derby Invitational (G1), trainer Christophe Clément will have strong representation Sunday with Plum Ali in the companion race for fillies, the Grade 3, $700,000 Saratoga Oaks Invitational.

The deep-closing, First Samurai filly was a three-time winner last year, including a debut score at Saratoga, a comeback off a troubled start in the $500,000 Juvenile Fillies Stakes at Kentucky Downs and a 2 1/4-length victory as the 11-10 favorite in the Miss Grillo (G2) at Belmont Park.

She has lost her four starts since, including a fifth by 2 1/2 lengths last month in the Belmont Oaks Invitational (G1), so this represents a drop in class for Plum Ali (5-1), who will be ridden from post 4 by Joel Rosario.

Rocky Sky (3-1), a two-time stakes winner in Ireland for trainer Ross O’Sullivan, is the morning-line favorite in her first U.S. race and her first for the Chad Brown stable. The Saratoga Oaks is carded as Sunday’s ninth race at 5:39 p.m. EDT.

As for Saturday, Clément said he was pleased with Soldier Rising’s runner-up finish to deep-closing Irish shipper State of Rest in the Saratoga Derby.

“He ran very well,” he said. “I am very happy. We finished second last year with Gufo and second this year. We’ll have to find another one for next year.”

Clément finished the Belmont Park spring meet ranked third in wins (27) and earnings ($2,285,008) in the trainers standings behind Chad Brown and Todd Pletcher. He entered Sunday’s card in sixth place for the Saratoga meet, with eight wins and $831,629 in purses.

“I am delighted,” Clement said. “The stable has been doing very well since we came back to New York (from wintering in South Florida), and I’ve got a nice group of useful horses and some better ones. They’ve been running very well. We had a good Belmont meet, and so far we’re doing OK in Saratoga.”