In a colony known for its production of talented young riders, Maclovio Enriquez Jr. is looking to add his name to the list.
Maryland-based riders have captured 12 Eclipse Awards as champion apprentice, the most recent being Alexander Crispin in 2020. Teenage sensation Charlie Marquez was a finalist in 2021, despite spending half the year as a journeyman.
Enriquez, 22, rode his first professional race Nov. 2, 2021 at Mountaineer Park in his home state of West Virginia aboard Tiger Shark, finishing eighth. Five days later he broke through with his first win on Petal, and later on the card also won with Bobbobsbaby, his third and fourth career mounts.
After going 12-for-82 at the Mountaineer meet that ended Dec. 15 and included three other multi-win days, Enriquez made his Laurel Park debut Dec. 16. His first win came in Maryland came Dec. 19 on Steely Band, a 4-year-old Maryland-bred daughter of Grade 3 winner Bandbox racing first off the claim for trainer Anthony Farrior.
“I started very quickly and the riders around me at Mountaineer were telling me, 'You only have one apprenticeship; make it last. You want to make it worth it. You want to be somewhere where you're going to be around great people and great horses and just make the most out of the experience,'” Enriquez said. “It was, 'You should just go see the world while you can right now.'”
Enriquez began his journey to becoming a jockey in late 2018, working on a farm in exchange for getting on horses.
“We would go by and do stalls and stuff like that. When the time came to pay us, I told my mom, 'I don't want [any] money. Just tell [them] to let me get on a couple horses.' About a month later, I was ready to keep going with it and just take things full speed.
“Were there any doubts? Yes. For sure. Absolutely. A lot of people see the smiles and how far you can level up to the next spot just by working hard and showing up,” he added. “A lot of people didn't see the times I would fall off three or four times in one day, the times that it is tough and you're exhausted and I'd call my mom and say, 'I don't know if I can do this.' Thankfully I always had that backbone. My mother has always been my biggest supporter.”
This year, Enriquez has ridden primarily at Laurel, often riding an evening card the same day at Charles Town. He finished with 12 wins and $486,163 in purses earned during Laurel's 2022 winter meet that ended March 27. For his career, he has 37 wins and purse earnings of more than $930,000.
On March 4, Enriquez rode stakes winner Eastern Bay to victory in his comeback race at Laurel for Maryland's five-time leading trainer Claudio Gonzalez, then won twice at Charles Town to mark a career first.
“One of my goals was to win three races in one day. To actually do that it was out of this world,” he said. “That's one of those things that kind of keep me going. Now it's, maybe I could win four, I could win five.”
Enriquez is one of four apprentices at Laurel riding with a seven-pound weight allowance, along with Yan Aviles, Jeiron Barbosa and Bryson Butterfly. Jean Alvelo, who had two winners Thursday, is another apprentice who rides with a five-pound bug.
The post ‘Working Hard And Showing Up’: Apprentice Rider Maclovio Enriquez Jr. Brings Talent to Maryland appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
