Bellezza winning the Flower Bowl at Saratoga. (Janet Napolitano)
Miguel Clement took over training duties continuing his father’s legacy
Breeders’ Cup Closer Look
Five months after his death, trainer Christophe Clement lives on in the stable now managed by his son Miguel. The four horses entered in the Breeders’ Cup races this weekend all wear the blue blankets emblazoned on each flank with large yellow CCs. Though the patriarch is gone, the Clement stable is very much on the same path he established.
“To be honest, it’s the same routine, same protocol and same ideology as always,” Miguel Clement said. “It’s business as usual. All we did is change the name. It’s the same team, same horses, same ownership. It’s just the name.”
His father’s assistant for about eight years, Miguel Clement became the head trainer when his father died in late May at the age of 59 from a rare form of cancer. The stable’s success continued with the newly turned 34-year-old head trainer with loads of domestic and international experience. Topping his 53 wins from 257 starts are 12 graded stakes victories, including two Grade 1 scores by Deterministic. He has a 20.6 win percentage and his in-the-money strike rate is 47.8 percent.
Clement said he attended many Breeders’ Cups in his youth but was away from racing’s World Championships while he was working aboard and when he returned as his father’s assistant in 2017. Typically, he stayed in New York to handle the stable during Breeders’ Cup week.
BELLEZZA, @BreedersCup Filly & Mare Turf Contender, was accompanied around the paddock by @TheMichelleYu and trainer @ClementStable. pic.twitter.com/tJRniYaaw3
— FanDuel Racing (@FanDuel_Racing) October 30, 2025
“Dad and I also always compensated in that sense, where I covered for him and vice versa,” he said. “This is a busy week for us. We’re closing Saratoga. We always open Payson at this time of year so I would either be at Belmont, covering for them going to wherever the Breeders’ Cup was held, or opening Payson. My role shifted slightly, obviously, this year. The roles had to change. We all had to step up and change our roles a bit.”
Last year, he came out to Del Mar to help out. Now, the runs the operation.
The Breeders’ Cup always has been a goal for the Clement Stable, which has a heavy focus on turf racing. It has a 1-7-6 record from 49 starters. The single victory, delivered by Bobby Flay’s Pizza Bianca in the 2021 Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1), was cause for celebration after so many good performances that failed to produce a win.
Clement is making his Breeders’ Cup debut Friday with two 2-year-olds, Intricate Spirit in the Juvenile Turf Sprint (G1) and Bottas in the Juvenile Turf (G1). On Saturday, he will saddle Tawny Port in the Longines Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1) and Bellezza in the Maker’s Mark Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf (G1).
“You have a horse good enough at that time of year, you’d love to go for it,” Clement said. “I know we only had one winner, but they got a lot of horses that ran second or third. I think we ran second to the likes of Goldikova (IRE), Zenyatta, Wise Dan, some of the best Breeders’ Cup winners we’ve had in recent years. It’s exciting. We’ve got four horses here, and I think they’ll all have a chance. It’s just a question of do we get a good trip and if the horses show up. I think they will show up.”
Clement said that though he is the head trainer, the Clement Stable is a collective effort.
“It very much falls on the entire team,” he said. “It’s much bigger than one person or one name. That’s a big deal. When you have an operation the size of ours, it’s a lot bigger than one individual or one person. We have had a phenomenal team for years in place, and the most supportive and loyal ownership imaginable. So, as a result, it makes my job a lot easier.”
