Take Charge Indy is set for a return to action Saturday at Gulfstream Park,
where last year’s Grade 1 Florida Derby winner will look to join an exclusive
club in the Grade 1 Donn Handicap.
Should he prevail in Gulfstream’s premier event for older horses, the Patrick
Byrne-trained four-year-old would join Quality Road (2009-2010), Harlan’s
Holiday (2002-2003) and Cryptoclearance (1987-1988) as Florida Derby winners
that came back to win the Donn the following year. More importantly for his
connections, Take Charge Indy would position himself as a major force in the
handicap division for the remainder of the 2013 racing season.
“Obviously, he’s got to step up off his three-year-old form. One never knows
how much they’ve developed until they start racing. The Donn’s a good start,”
Byrne said.
“We know he likes the track, obviously. It will be nice to see him get going.
Hopefully, he’ll have a good trip and no excuses, so we get a true evaluation
where he’s going to fit down the road.”
Take Charge Indy stepped up his game last season when he posted a
front-running victory in the Florida Derby by a length, upsetting heavily
favored Union Rags, who finished third. However, a chip was discovered in his
left front ankle after a 19th-place finish in the Kentucky Derby, resulting in a
layoff of almost six months.
The son of A.P. Indy returned to the races at Keeneland in late October to
finish third in the Grade 2 Fayette, in which he set the pace before tiring. He
came back less than a month later to finish second behind Shackleford in the
Grade 1 Clark Handicap at Churchill Downs in his 2012 finale.
“The race at Keeneland off a six-month layoff was fantastic. I mean, you can
get them only so fit. We had to come back in three and a half weeks to run in
the Clark,” Byrne said.
“We were a little tight for space there regarding time. It wasn’t the most
perfect situation, but we were second best that day and we beat a good horse in
Bourbon Courage (third in the Clark), who’s running Saturday.”
Take Charge Indy will race for the first time in the colors of WinStar Farm,
LLC, which purchased 100 percent of the Kentucky-bred colt’s breeding rights and
will campaign him in 2013 in partnership with Chuck and Maribeth Sandford.
“(The Clark) was a big effort for Take Charge Indy. I think the class he
showed gave Elliott Walden and the WinStar people enough confidence to go ahead
and keep him in training for another year,” Byrne said.
John Velazquez will ride Take Charge Indy for the first time, replacing the
injured Calvin Borel.
“Take Charge Indy is tactical. Johnny’s riding style is that he tends to put
one into a race. That doesn’t necessarily mean that he’ll be on the lead,” Byrne
said.
“John Terranova’s horse (Citrus Kid) has speed; the California horse
(Ultimate Eagle) has speed; so there’ll be plenty of spice up front. Johnny will
ride his race off the break. He’ll probably have him forwardly placed and we’ll
just see how it unravels for us.”
In addition to Bourbon Courage, Citrus Kid and Ultimate Eagle, Take Charge
Indy is set to take on Flat Out, the two-time Jockey Club Gold Cup winner, and
Pool Play, the Grade 1-winning eight-year-old who finished second in the Grade 3
Hal’s Hope at Gulfstream last time out.
“We’re going to get our horse started and see where he fits in the handicap
division. All we can do is worry about our guy,” Byrne said. “We’re eager to get
him started. It will be nice to get him started under the WinStar banner and in
the WinStar colors. We look forward to a nice year with him.”
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