Veteran jockey Guillermo Rodriguez needed to draw on every ounce of the experience he'd gained through 6,590 career starts to stay topside in a Sunday night $4,000 claiming race at Mountaineer Park in West Virginia.
His mount in the race, the 4-year-old colt Stealththirtyfour, appeared to break his bridle midway down the backstretch of the five-furlong sprint. Rodriguez gathered the bridle pieces and maintained his balance, but the colt began bearing out toward the center of the track as the field entered the far turn.
Luckily for Rodriguez, Luis Batista and Greenfelder were on his outside. Though Stealththirtyfour carried Greensfelder very wide, both jockeys' calm actions kept their mounts moving forward and in the race.
Straightening into the stretch, Batista made his move from the middle of the track aboard Greenfelder. Rodriguez found himself with a lot of horse, so he used his hands and heels to urge Stealththirtyfour on to the wire. The two horses battled nose-and-nose for the final 100 yards, with Greenfelder just prevailing over Stealththirtyfour by a nose.
Greenfelder paid $16.00 as the third choice, while Steaththirtyfour paid $2.40 to place as the heavy favorite.
Puerto Rico-born, Rodriguez has been riding since 2010 and had his best season yet in 2022 with 169 victories. He has won 127 races thus far in 2023 (91 of those at Mountaineer to be third in the current standings), bringing his career total to 781 victories.
Check out the video:
WATCH THIS HORSE ALMOST WIN WITH NO BRIDLE!!
#5 Stealththirtyfour's bridle broke on the backstretch and he took #8 GREENSFELDER ($16.00) out wide. The two battled back down the lane in an unbelievable ride by Guillermo Rodriguez on the 5 to lose by a whisker. pic.twitter.com/8ViDc14EVN
— TVG (@TVG) December 11, 2023
The post No Bridle, (Almost) No Problem: Guillermo Rodriguez Nearly Wins Aboard Bridleless Horse At Mountaineer appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
