Le General in no rush to make stakes debut

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Le General, an impressive New York-bred allowance winner here on Dec. 9, was conspicuous by his absence from the nominations for Monday’s $100,000 Damon Runyon Stakes for 2-year-old statebreds and Tuesday’s $150,000 Jerome Stakes for newly turned 3-year-olds.

Trainer Michelle Nevin said there is nothing amiss with Le General, she just didn’t want to run him back too soon after he posted blowout victories three weeks apart this fall.

“We’re just giving him some time to bulk back up and get ready to go,” Nevin said Friday.

Le General, a son of Lemon Drop Kid, finished second at Belmont in June in his debut. Nevin felt the colt would benefit from some time off, and she was right, as Le General returned with a 6 3/4-length maiden win going six furlongs at Aqueduct on Nov. 17. Twenty-two days later, he successfully stretched out to a mile, winning a first-level allowance by 3 1/4 lengths. His last two starts produced Beyer Speed Figures of 85 and 86.

Nevin will have plenty of options for Le General when she and owners Jeffrey Kellenberg, Sol Kumin, and James Covello sit down to map out a plan. Le General could fit in the $250,000 Withers Stakes going 1 1/8 miles here on Feb. 2 or the $150,000 Jimmy Winkfield going seven furlongs on Feb. 2.

“We’re not deciding anything for him right now,” Nevin said. “We’ll see how we go training-wise and then make a decision.”

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