Will Take Charge goes for redemption in Foster Handicap

By: SPORTS NETWORK

Louisville, KY (SportsNetwork.com) - Champion colt Will Take Charge seeks a rebound effort Saturday night at Churchill Downs in the $500,000 Stephen Foster Handicap.

The 4-year-old colt, trained by D. Wayne Lukas, will take on eight other older thoroughbreds in his first start since finishing sixth last month in Churchill's Alysheba Stakes. Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens is again the rider and the pair will start the 1 1/8-mile stakes from post 4.

"I think we're sitting right on a big one, hopefully. He's had a really good month," Lukas said. "We're hopeful that he'll get back to top form, and I think he will."

Will Take Charge was the 3-5 favorite in the Alysheba, but offered no response down the stretch in the 1 1/16-mile stakes.

"He came to me a little bit flat in the paddock that day. I think we'll just forget it happened and go on to the next one," Lukas said.

Owned by Willis Horton and Three Chimneys Farm, Will Take Charge has four starts this year with a win in the Oaklawn Handicap and a pair of seconds in the Donn and Santa Anita Handicaps. As a 3-year-old, he won the Travers and Pennsylvania Derby and was second to Mucho Macho Man in the Breeders' Cup Classic.

In 19 career starts, the 2013 champion 3-year-old colt has seven wins and five seconds for $3,668,568.

Alysheba winner Moonshine Mullin has drawn post 3 with Hall of Fame jockey Calvin Borel in the saddle. The 6-year-old is trained by Randy Morse for Randy Patterson.

Moonshine Mullin set most of the pace in the Alysheba and prevailed by a half- length at odds of 6-1.

"If he never wins another race, beating that field in the Alysheba was tremendous," Morse said.

The Alysheba was the horse's fourth straight win and eighth in 31 lifetime starts. He has banked $685,513.

Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith will again be aboard Revolutionary in the Foster. The 4-year-old colt, trained by Todd Pletcher, will break from the inside post

Owned by WinStar Farm, Revolutionary is coming off a neck victory in the Pimlico Special the day before the Preakness Stakes. The colt opened the season with an allowance win followed by a seventh in the Donn Handicap and runner-up to Will Take Charge in the Oaklawn Handicap.

Revolutionary has posted five wins in 12 career starts for $1,347,600.

From the rail out here is the field for the Stephen Foster: Revolutionary, Mike Smith; Jaguar Paw, Shaun Bridgmohan; Moonshine Mullin, Calvin Borel; Will Take Charge, Gary Stevens; Mylute, James Graham; Departing, Robby Albarado; Golden Ticket, Julien Leparoux; Long River, Irad Ortiz Jr. and Prayer for Relief, John Velazquez.

Post time for the Foster will be approximately 9:39 p.m. ET.