Jockey David Cohen is ending his longtime business relationship with agent Bill Castle and teaming up with Doug Bredar after the current Oaklawn meet in Hot Springs, Ark., ends on May 8.
Bredar will continue to represent Florent Geroux, with both riders to be based at Churchill Downs in Kentucky for the spring-summer meet. Castle recently announced that Ramon Vazquez, who he's also been representing, would move his tack to Southern California starting April 8.
Vazquez is currently fourth in the Oaklawn jockey standings, with 38 wins from 263 mounts going into Saturday's races. Cohen is sixth in the standings, with 23 wins from 204 mounts.
“Billy and I have been together so long,” said Cohen, 37, who began riding in 2004 and missed several years due to complications from an injury between 2014 and 2017. “We're very good friends; more family than business partners. He's an ex-Wall Street guy who knows how to work the phones. When I was leading rider at Philadelphia Park (now Parx Racing) and Delaware Park in 2008-'09, I didn't see him much. COVID changed the game, changed the dynamics (at many tracks, agents were restricted from being in the stable area), but things are getting back to normal and it's good to have someone hit the pavement and go through the barns.
“Doug is out there every morning working his butt off, and he is well liked and has strong connections in Kentucky,” Cohen added. “That's where my home is and where I want to be. In order for me to get the best opportunity, i needed someone that knew that circuit really well.”
Cohen said Castle will book his Oaklawn mounts through the end of the meet though he may have occasional opportunities at Keeneland.
“I'm very excited about the opportunity when David came to me,” said Bredar. “I'm looking forward to putting him on some winners.”
Bredar has had dual riders previously, including Martin Garcia most recently. “I also had Florent and Sheldon Russell one summer at Arlington,” Bredar said. “They were about to go 1-2 in the standings until Sheldon got hurt.”
Cohen said he plans to ride at Saratoga at the conclusion of the Churchill Downs meet.
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