Now We Can seeks to get back in winning groove

From May 25, 2012 through June 2, 2013, Now We Can was unbeatable. Perfect in

five starts at three French courses -- Saint-Cloud, Chantilly and Longchamp --

the four-year-old son of Martillo was a top stayer over both turf and synthetic

surfaces.

A slow starter, Now We Can went unraced as a two-year-old making his debut on

May 3, 2012, in a one-mile turf maiden at Longchamp, finishing seventh over very

soft going.

"He was a backward one," acknowledged trainer Nicolas Clement, whose brother

Christophe is a well-regarded conditioner in North America. "Now We Can made his

first start as a three-year-old at Longchamp, but I got the distance wrong and

he finished seventh."

Despite the result, Clement knew he had a talented colt and brought Now We

Can back three weeks later at Saint-Cloud at a more comfortable distance of 1

1/2 miles and watched as the colt scored a two-length win at odds of 18-1.

Now, the colt will take his first trip abroad to start in Sunday's Canadian

International at Woodbine, and Clement feels the bay is ready for another

breakthrough on a turf course that often favors European form.

"This horse is good mentally so I don't think traveling will take much out of

him," Clement said. "It's a bit of a gamble to travel so far but we like the

track, it's European style and provided he travels well I look forward to a good

performance."

The four-year-old, whose signature win came in the Grand Prix de Chantilly in

June, gets regular Thierry Thulliez, who is best known in North America for his

ride aboard Domedriver in the 2002 Breeders' Cup Mile at Arlington.

In other Canadian International news:

Temeraine is another potent member of the U.S. invasion set for Sunday's

Canadian International

It almost didn't come to be.

The four-year-old son of Arch was entered in last Friday's Sycamore at

Keeneland, but the heavy rains in Lexington rendered the turf unraceable and the

$100,000 event was offered over Polytrack. That's all trainer Tom Proctor needed

to make his decision to run at Woodbine. He scratched out of the Sycamore on the

morning of the race.

"We were going to run (Temeraine) at Woodbine or (at Keeneland)," he said.

"We wanted to kind of come there and (the Sycamore coming of the grass) pushed

us in that direction."

The Kentucky-bred has put together three straight strong races, including a

win in the Kentucky Turf Cup after a fifth-place finish in the Arlington

Million.

"He's really stepped up," Proctor said. "He's run well the last three races.

There are some real nice horses in (the International) and he fits in, but he

has to keep running well."

The German runners for the Canadian International day card arrived in Toronto

from Frankfurt at approximately 8:20 p.m. (EDT) Monday and were settled into

their stalls at Woodbine at about 11 p.m.

Seismos, a German Group 1 winner, was accompanied on the trip by Kevin Gately

in preparation for the International, while Samba Brazil, who will compete in

the $500,000 E.P. Taylor for fillies and mares, came with Cilla Riese.

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