(From Saratoga)
Trainer Kiaran McLaughlin confirmed Aug. 20 that Mr. and Mrs. William K. Warren Jr.’s Charitable Man, third in the Jim Dandy (gr. II), would make his next start in the Shadwell Travers (gr. I) on Aug. 29.
“The race is coming up extremely tough,” said McLaughlin. “We talked about the Pennsylvania Derby (gr. II, Sept. 7 at Philadelphia Park), but if we can win the Travers or run well in it, it will be a big deal for the horse.”
A son of Lemon Drop Kid , Charitable Man won the Futurity (gr. II) at Belmont Park last fall and the Peter Pan (gr. II) this spring before finishing a well-backed fourth in the Belmont Stakes (gr. I).
“We had always been pointing towards the Travers, having prepped in the Jim Dandy, but it’s an extremely tough field, everyone’s going,” said McLaughlin. “Now, if Rachel Alexandra does decide to enter, then we’ll look at other options.”
A decision on where the 3-year-old filly will make her next start is expected from owner Jess Jackson early next week.
Other likely starters besides Mine That Bird and Summer Bird for the 1 1/4-mile “Mid-Summer Derby” are the Nick Zito-trained Our Edge, Jim Dandy runner-up Warrior's Reward , and possibly Jackson’s Jim Dandy winner, Kensei, depending on where his stablemate Rachel Alexandra winds up. Questionable is Winstar Farms’ Hold Me Back .