McLaughlin holds strong hand in Futurity; Jones hopes to repeat in Matron

McLaughlin holds strong hand in

Futurity; Jones hopes to repeat in Matron

On Saturday's Gazelle S. (G1) card, Belmont will stage two historic events

for juveniles, the $250,000

Futurity

S. (G2) and the $250,000

Matron S.

(G2). Each seven-furlong contest features the customary crowd of

well-related, well-regarded maiden winners. In the 119th Futurity, trainer

Kiaran McLaughlin will send out the uncoupled duo of CHARITABLE MAN (Lemon Drop

Kid) and GIROLAMO (A.P. Indy), while in the 102nd Matron, horseman Larry Jones

hopes that ON THE MENU (Canadian Frontier) will follow up on Proud Spell's

(Proud Citizen) success one year ago.

Charitable Man and Girolamo had contrasting experiences in their lone career

starts at Saratoga. In a 6 1/2-furlong maiden on August 10, Charitable Man broke

sharply, set the pace, and widened his margin to an eye-popping 11 1/2 lengths

at the wire. Girolamo lined up in a seven-furlong maiden on August 16, where he

did not get away quickly, but rallied to win going away by 3 1/4 lengths.

McLaughlin tried to size up the pair.

"In one respect, Girolamo is a little more experienced because he had it all

in one race -- he broke slow, took the dirt, circled wide and went on to win,"

the trainer said. "Charitable Man won on the lead, but his problem is we haven't

found anyone to put dirt in his face in the morning. He's very fast."

Alan Garcia rode both colts, but chose to stick with Charitable Man in the

Futurity. He will break from the outside post 7, just to the right of stablemate

Girolamo, who has drawn post 6 with new pilot John Velazquez.

"It's very exhilarating to run back two-year-olds after breaking their

maidens," McLaughlin said. "We all learn a lot, whether it's good or bad, next

time out or next couple of times out."

Jones will also saddle two sharp debut winners in the Futurity -- FRIESAN

FIRE (A.P. Indy) and HIGH MESA (Sky Mesa) -- who each rolled to victory at

Delaware Park. Their respective jockeys will stay aboard. Gabriel Saez will

guide High Mesa from the rail, and Terry Thompson teams up with Friesan Fire

from post 4.

The ever-dangerous Steve Asmussen will be represented by KENSEI (Mr.

Greeley), a first-out winner at the Spa, and Shug McGaughey will dispatch GONE

ASTRAY (Dixie Union), a Phipps Stable homebred who won second time out at

Saratoga.

While seven colts are entered in the Futurity, a total of nine fillies will

test their claims in the Matron. On the Menu will try to emulate Proud Spell,

another Brereton Jones homebred trained by Larry Jones, who captured the 2007

Matron on the way to becoming the nation's top three-year-old filly this season.

Like Proud Spell, On the Menu takes an unbeaten record from Delaware into her

New York debut. Unlike Proud Spell, who already had a stakes victory to her

credit, On the Menu has just the maiden score on the books. Thompson picks up

the mount on the bay, who has landed in post 2.

"They're all pretty inexperienced," Jones said of On the Menu and his

Futurity pair, "but they're also high-quality horses, and we need to find out if

they are Breeders' Cup kinds of horses. We got a little later start than we

wanted with them, and found ourselves all dressed up with no place to go, so

we're coming to Belmont."

McGaughey is another with the chance at a Futurity-Matron double. His

representative in the fillies' affair is Phipps homebred PERSISTENTLY (Smoke

Glacken), who came charging from last to break her maiden in her second try at

the Spa. Garcia will be back in the saddle as the chestnut leaves the gate from

post 8.

"Gone Astray is more of a 'now' horse," McGaughey said of his Futurity

entrant, "but Persistently might be something good, looking ahead. She's a big,

gangly thing and from her first two races, she looks like two turns might be

more to her liking. She seems to take more after her mother's side (being out of

a Deputy Minister mare), than her father's."

Other well-bred maiden winners aiming to take a step forward are the Bob

Baffert-trained HEAVENLY VISION (Forestry), MISS OCEAN CITY (Mineshaft) from the

Nick Zito barn and ARGYLE PINK (Sky Mesa).

The most experienced member of the Matron field is DOREMIFASOLLATIDO

(Bernstein). After taking a New York-bred maiden at Belmont, the Jimmy Jerkens

pupil finished a distant second in the Adirondack S. (G2) to Mani Bhavan (Storm

Boot), who went on to score in the Spinaway S. (G1). Doremifasollatido has drawn

the rail with regular pilot Eibar Coa.