Singletary Heads to Sidelines for Rest of Year

La Jolla Handicap (gr. IIIT) winner Singletary will head to the sidelines for the remainder of the year following the bay son of Sultry Song's fifth-place finish in the Del Mar Derby (gr. IIT) on Sept. 6, trainer Don Chatlos Jr. said .

"He'll go to Alamo Pintado (Equine Medical Center) in Santa Ynez where (they) will go over him with a fine-toothed comb, just to be sure everything's OK, and then he'll go right next door to Magali Farms for a few weeks," Chatlos said. "He's earned it. He's been training for a year straight now and a break will be good for him."

Singletary, who was a $3,200 yearling purchase at Keeneland in October of 2001, races in the colors of Little Red Feather Racing. From 10 career starts, he has reached the winner's circle three times and has three seconds and a third, for earnings of $246,922. The La Jolla was the colt's biggest victory, although he also won the Academy Road Stakes at Santa Anita earlier in the year and placed in four other black-type events.

In the Del Mar Derby, Singletary set the pace but gave way in the stretch as Fairly Ransom went on to victory.

"I guess he'll be back around Thanksgiving," Chatlos said. "I don't need to bring him back any sooner than that. The first goal for him next year is the Shoemaker Mile (gr. IT, at Hollywood Park next May) so there's no reason to have him ready much before then."