Matt King Coal eyes Gotham Stakes

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Matt King Coal, an impressive maiden winner last fall at Belmont, returned to the work tab Sunday for the first time in 10 weeks, breezing a half-mile in 49.93 seconds in company over the training track. He galloped out five furlongs in 1:02.19 and six furlongs in 1:15.10.

If he continues to train like this, Matt King Coal could run in the Grade 3, $400,000 Gotham on March 5, trainer Linda Rice said.

“It’s possible,” Rice said. “He worked better than I really hoped. He hasn’t been off very long, and he certainly looks good. His weight and his conditioning are good.”

Matt King Coal, a son of Cool Coal Man, won a one-mile maiden race at Belmont by 5 3/4 lengths on Oct. 29 in his third start. Rice was planning to run Matt King Coal in the Jerome Stakes at Aqueduct on Jan. 3, but the colt suffered from a respiratory illness. Instead, Rice turned him out at Dr. Patty Hogan’s farm in Cream Ridge, N.J., for about a month.