Grade 1 Winner Will Take Charge to Stand in Japan

Darley has announced that two-time grade 1 winner Will Take Charge  will join its Japan roster in 2023.

A stud fee has not yet been announced for the 12-year-old son of Unbridled's Song.

Will Take Charge earned champion 3-year-old male honors in 2013 after victories in the Travers Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course and against older rivals in the Clark Handicap (G1) at Churchill Downs. In between those races, Will Take Charge nearly won the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1), as he finished second, nosed out by Mucho Macho Man  , in that memorable race at Santa Anita Park.

Will Take Charge retired to stud at Three Chimneys Farm in 2015 and sired Manny Wah , a grade 2 winner who finished a close fourth in the Qatar Racing Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1) earlier this month, in his first crop. He is also the sire of There Goes Harvard , who claimed the Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes (G1) this year.

Will Take Charge's progeny have shown an aptitude for racing in Japan, where four of his five progeny to race in that country have won two or more races.

Will Take Charge is one of more than 20 grade 1 winners by Unbridled's Song, also sire of four-time grade 1 winner Arrogate, whose top-flight victories include the Dubai World Cup Sponsored by Emirates Airline (G1) and Breeders' Cup Classic. Unbridled's Song has sired a number of successful horses in Japan, including the well-known racemare La Verita , winner of eight stakes in Japan.

As broodmare sire, Unbridled's Song boasts five grade 1 winners to date in Japan, including Triple Crown winner Contrail, Suave Richard , Danon Platina, Toho Jackal , and Notturno  and he continues to have a significant impact on Japanese horse racing even after his death.

Will Take Charge comes from an outstanding female family with his dam Take Charge Lady  winning three grade 1 races, including two editions of the Overbrook Spinster Stakes (G1). He is a half brother to fellow grade 1 winners Take Charge Indy   and As Time Goes By , while his half sister, Charming , has produced grade 1 winners Omaha Beach   and 2014 champion 2-year-old filly Take Charge Brandi .

"We are very pleased to be able to stand this stallion whose progeny have already shown suitability for Japanese racing at a time when his reputation has been further enhanced by (There Goes Harvard's) grade 1 win in the USA this year," said Harry Sweeney, president of Darley Japan. "The great Unbridled's Song already has influence in Japan as a broodmare sire, and we are confident that Will Take Charge will be a valuable successor, siring many successful horses in Japan."