Fayeq under consideration for Travers

Shadwell Stable's regally bred Fayeq exited his impressive allowance victory on Wednesday in good order and will be "under discussion" for the Grade 1, $1.25 million Travers on August 26, trainer Kiaran McLaughlin said Thursday morning.

By Malibu Moon, the 3-year-old half-brother to 2009 Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra posted a 3 ½-length victory in Wednesday's fourth race, beating a talented group of 3-year-olds at 1 1/8 miles. The win was the second straight for Fayeq, who broke his maiden by 2 ¾ lengths in his third try on June 11 at Belmont Park.

"He ran well even without switching leads. He didn't switch leads in his last two races," said McLaughlin. "I'll speak to Shadwell and Rick Nichols and discuss the Travers. It's a big step up but we've got a lot of respect for him and we'll see what the options are. We think he wants the distance and he likes the track."

McLaughlin said the bay colt has matured since making his debut in March, most significantly making progress to get over his initial disinclination to stand in the starting gate, largely due to the efforts of his brother Neal and sister-in-law Trish McLaughlin.

"He almost injured himself the first time we took him to the gate, kicking the back door really bad," he said. "He didn't like someone up around his head, so Neal moved his straw up above his stall and then Trish started working with him. She would step on a bucket next to him and get up to try to get him to be more comfortable with people up above his head. The gate crew here and in Florida all did a great job with him. He wore a Monty Roberts blanket because of his gate issues, but he's come a long way."

Godolphin's Grade 3 Ben Ali winner Watershed breezed on the main track Thursday morning for a possible bid in the Grade 1, $1.2 million Whitney on August 5. Exiting a fourth-place finish in the Grade 2 Suburban on July 8, the 5-year-old son of Bernardini worked a half-mile in 48.76 seconds.