The popular Japanese rider recently celebrated his 10,000th career mount. Take was Japan's leading rider 10 times, in 1989-90, and from 1992-99, and he holds more individual records than any other Japanese jockey. In 2000, he attempted to break into the Southern California jockey colony but had little luck. He enjoyed much greater success in Europe last year.
Champion Japanese jockey Yutaka Take will be out three to six months as the result of a spill at Nakayama race course on Sunday. Three horses and jockeys were involved in the spill, which took place on the third turn of the grass course. Take was thrown to the ground after his mount, Kids World, went down in a maiden race. He was taken to a nearby hospital, where doctors diagnosed the injury as a fractured pelvis.Take, who turns 33 on March 15, said he hopes to resume riding in France this summer. It was recently announced that Take would ride Japanese Horse of the Year Jungle Pocket throughout his 2002 campaign, which was expected to begin March 17 in the Hanshin Daishoten, a gr. II prep for the spring Emperor's Cup (Jpn-I). Jungle Pocket is being pointed to European campaign this summer, including the King George and Queen Elizabeth Stakes (Eng-I) at Ascot July 27.
