Therapist narrowly scores “bittersweet” victory for Clement barn in First Defence Stakes

By Sarah Mace

Therapist, a 5-year-old chestnut gelding by Freud, put a seventh career stakes win on the board when got his head down just in time to capture Sunday’s $80,000 First Defence Stakes at seven furlongs over Belmont Park’s Widener turf course. One can only hope that the narrow victory provided some small ray of light on a dark day for the Clement barn, which is mourning a tragic loss.

A Sallee van en route from Florida to Belmont Park crashed on the New Jersey Turnpike early Sunday and caught fire, killing 10 horses from the Clement stable. In his post-race comments, Clement spoke of the stakes win by Therapist as a “bittersweet end to a difficult day.”

Therapist, who was co-bred by Richard Leahy’s Oak Bluff Stables and Clement and is campaigned by Oak Bluff, has a history of running well fresh. Returning from his winter break last year at four as a new gelding, he won the open Elusive Quality at Belmont by a neck. Consistent and competitive in five more 2019 starts, he did not manage to collect another win, though. A confirmed closer, Therapist frequently finds himself at the mercy of pace and trip.

Therapist was drawn in the outside post for his seasonal debut after 7 1/2 months on bench with Irad Ortiz, Jr. aboard. The First Defence drew a full, graded stakes-caliber field like so many contests this week as Belmont celebrated its opening week following the COVID-19 hiatus for NYRA. Therapist had strong credentials at this trip, with two wins in three tries at the distance and four wins in eight starts on the Belmont grass, but his post time odds made him just the fifth choice at 8-1

Relaxed in the early stages of the race, Therapist got over to the two-path and bided his time in eighth, seven lengths from the front where a pair of speedy longshots, 23-1 Nicodemus and 67-1 Vici dueled for the lead. Lonhtwist (78-1) also joined the fray. The pace was hot, with the opening fractions clocked in 22.42 and 45.52.

Spinning out five-wide while exiting in the far turn, Therapist launched his bid in tandem with Majestic Dunhill, directly to his inside. In late stretch the race came down to a two-horse hammer-and-tongs struggle between the pair.

In the final sixteenth, Therapist came in and appeared to just brush Majestic Dunhill. When the pair hit the wire with heads bobbing up and down, he had the edge.

Following a rider’s claim foul by Reylu Gutierrez aboard Majestic Dunhill, and a relatively short stewards’ inquiry, the result was declared official. Therapist’s margin of victory was a head. Flavius who rallied at the rail finished three-quarters of a length back in third.

After six furlongs in 1:09.36, the final time for seven panels over the firm turf was 1:21.39. [VIDEO REPLAY[3]]

Ortiz reported, “I thought he was going to go by easy, but he hung a little bit at the end. He got the job done. They went a little fast. I was sitting behind [Majestic Dunhill] and I wanted to just follow him through the stretch. When I tipped my horse out, he responded really well. I held my line pretty well. Right there, at the wire, it got close, but I controlled him right away.”

For Clement, Therapist’s victory was a second win on the day, after Pandamom, also a homebred for Oak Bluff Stables, broke his maiden at second asking going long on turf in a loaded New York-bred maiden special weight earlier on the card.

The conditioner was pleased with the performance of both charges. “The horses have been running well and we won two races today for the same owner, Oak Bluff Stable,” Clement said. “I thought Therapist ran a very game race. He really likes the seven-eighths. It was a bittersweet end to a difficult day after the accident this morning.”

Foaled at Berkshire Stud in Pine Plains, Therapist is the star foal out of Lady Renaissance, a winning Kentucky-bred daughter of Smart Strike who was purchased by Oak Bluff Stables for just $15,000 at the 2009 Keeneland November sale. At the 2018 Keeneland January sale she was resold to Dennis Yokum for $52,000. Lady Renaissance’s other winner is Gio’s Lady, a 2014 filly by Gio Ponti.

Therapist was offered once at public auction and, fortunately for his connections, he left the grounds as a $8,000 buyback.

A precocious runner, at two Therapist went a perfect three-for-three, including victories in the Laurel Futurity and Awad Stakes, for which he was voted champion New York-bred juvenile male in 2017. The following year brought three more black type wins in a pair of divisions of the New York Stallion Stakes Series and open Cutler Bay Stakes at Gulfstream Park. He has since added two more open stakes wins with the Elusive Quality and First Defence.

In 17 starts, Therapist has won eight times and finished third four times. With the First Defence victory his earnings now top a half-million dollars ($534,345).

Source URL: https://www.nytbreeders.org/news/2020/06/07/therapist-first-defence/

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