Wendell Fong would be appropriate first winner for trainer Natalia Lynch

ELMONT, N.Y. – Natalia Lynch has always had an affinity for Wendell Fong. She helped prepare the horse for his career debut, which he won at Laurel in December 2018, and for his first stakes victory, the Gold Fever at Belmont in June 2019.

An assistant trainer and exercise rider for Jeremiah Englehart then, Lynch, 26, is now training on her own. Wendell Fong is now in her care and, if Mother Nature helps out, he could give Lynch her first victory in Thursday’s third-level allowance feature at Belmont.

:: Want to get your Past Performances for free? Click to learn more.

The $88,000 race is scheduled for six furlongs on turf. But Thursday’s forecast calls for a lot of rain, and if the race is transferred to dirt, Wendell Fong could be the beneficiary. Entered for the main track, Wendell Fong is 2 for 2 over a wet surface, including the Gold Fever Stakes win at Belmont.

“We’re hoping we get lucky,” said Lynch, who has two seconds from eight starts since she saddled her first horse Aug. 30. “It looks like it might work out. He does like the slop. I had the horse for a lot of really good races. He’s special to me. He’s got a presence about him. When you’re around him, he leaves something with you.”

Wendell Fong has already made one start for Lynch, a fourth-place finish in the Mr. Prospector Stakes on Sept. 12 at Monmouth.

“I thought he ran really good,” Lynch said. “It was a tough race. His numbers came back good. If I could get this horse back to a win, it would be so important to me.”

Lynch grew up on a farm in Potomac, Md. Her father was a horse dentist. A family friend, Cindy Newberry, came to live on the farm and she helped Lynch get into show horses. Lynch forgot about horses when she attended college, but the horses soon called her back and she went to work at the track. Among the trainers she worked for in Maryland were Brittany Trimble Russell and Phil Schoenthal.

Lynch said she galloped one summer at Saratoga for trainer James Bond and knew she wanted to get back to New York someday. In addition to Englehart, she has worked for trainer Ray Handal in New York.

:: Enhance your handicapping with DRF’s Belmont Clocker Report

Lynch, who gallops her own horses in the morning, said she rode four amateur races last year but decided she didn’t want to pursue becoming a jockey, preferring to have more constant contact with horses. Also, she has a 4-year-old son and didn’t want to risk injury.

“I thought training was the better way to go,” Lynch said.

Lynch’s first starter, Square Shooter, finished second for $12,500 claiming on Aug. 30 at Saratoga. On Oct. 17, Momza, a 2-year-old by Not This Time, looked like a winner in an off-the-turf maiden race only to get run down late by Texas Basin.

“He hit the wire, everyone thought he won,” Lynch said. “My heart was in my stomach. I didn’t know what to do. It was a little bit disappointing he didn’t get up.”

Lynch has nine horses. Thegoddessofsnakes, a 2-year-old filly by Street Boss, is entered Friday in a maiden $50,000 claiming race, though she could scratch if the track comes up sloppy. Duckphat, a 2-year-old by Quality Road, is entered in a maiden turf race. Lynch said she could run on turf or dirt.