Franco, Rice, Klaravich Close Out Aqueduct Spring Meet on Top

The 19-day Aqueduct Racetrack spring meet, which ran from Mar. 30 to Apr. 30, closed out with jockey Manny Franco and trainer Linda Rice repeat as the leaders in their respective divisions after taking the titles at this year's Aqueduct winter meet. Franco secured his second Big A spring meet riding title with 37 wins while Rice won her fourth Aqueduct spring meet training title with 17 wins.

Franco, a 28-year-old native of Carolina, Puerto Rico, earned the eighth riding title of his career.

“I'm very grateful for the help of every owner and every trainer,” said Franco. “I'm just happy to keep with the momentum. It means a lot and I try to take advantage of every opportunity I have. It's been paying off.”

Jose Ortiz finished second with a record of 65-16-17-10 while Kendrick Carmouche secured third with a record of 82-14-10-15.

Rice enjoyed a record of 66-17-13-7 with $1,055,253 in total earnings, giving her a strike rate of 25.76% and in-the-money percentage of 56.06%. It was the 10th overall training title for Rice.

“It's been a very good winter and spring,” she said. “New York is a tough place, so I'm very excited about it. Once we got through the winter meet I thought, 'well that will be it for a while,' but things fell into place and went well at the spring meet.”

Rob Atras finished second with a record of 37-9-5-4 while Chad Brown finished third with a 37-8-7-9 record.

Klaravich Stables ended the meet with a record of 18-4-4-3 and earnings of $270,622. It was a five-way tie for second between Peter Brant, Beast Mode Racing, Ten Strike Racing, Madaket Stables and Roger Cimbora, Jr., who each posted three wins at the meet.

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Jose Ortiz Claims Jockey Title During Aqueduct Spring Meet; Brown Tops Among Trainers

A short spring slate at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y., saw familiar faces finish atop the leaderboards for the jockey and trainer standings, as Jose Ortiz outlasted his brother, Irad Ortiz, Jr., by a 24-17 win margin after the boutique 11-day meet's finale on Sunday.

Trainer Chad Brown recorded 10 wins to pace all conditioners, while Peter Brant and Noda Brothers each compiled four wins to tie for the top owners mark.

The Ortiz brothers dominated the standings in the three-week meet, combining for 41 victories out of the 95 total races contested.

Jose Ortiz' winning campaign was bolstered by his April 11 effort in which he won with 5-of-6 mounts, including piloting Regal Glory to victory in the featured $100,000 Plenty of Grace. Ortiz won with his first four mounts on the day and teamed with Brown to capture the Plenty of Grace.

It marked the first meet title for Ortiz on the NYRA circuit since the 2020 Belmont Park fall meet. Ortiz, who was New York's leading jockey for the entire 2020 campaign, compiled a record of 24-10-10 in 68 mounts and earnings of more than $1.3 million for the spring meet.

Ortiz capped the meet on a high note by winning Sunday's $200,000 NYSSS Park Avenue aboard Shaker Shack.

“It's a big deal,” Ortiz said. “We're happy with where we are and it sets us up for the Belmont meet.”

Ortiz, 27, last won the Aqueduct spring meet in 2014, which was the first of his now 10 individual meet titles.

“It's nice to win and I'm also happy for Irad; he's had a great start of the year,” Ortiz said about finishing 1-2 with his brother. “He congratulated me earlier and said he's proud of me, and that means a lot.”

Ortiz, Jr. posted a valiant runner-up effort despite riding at Keeneland from April 7 – 11, traveling to Churchill Downs to breeze Kentucky Derby-contender Known Agenda on April 16 and to Oaklawn Park on April 17 to pilot Letruska to victory in the Grade 1 Apple Blossom.

The 28-year-old Ortiz, Jr. won with a record-tying 6-of-11 mounts on the Wood Memorial Day card, including the meet's lone Grade 1 aboard Mischevious Alex in the $300,000 Carter Handicap along with Grade 3 scores in the $250,000 Gazelle with Kentucky Oaks-contender Search Results and with Drain the Clock in the $200,000 Bay Shore.

“It's been more of the same from them: immense natural talent combined with tremendous work ethic,” said Brown of the Ortiz brothers' success. “When those two things meet, you're going to win a lot of races.”

Third-place finisher Kendrick Carmouche, who finished with 12 wins, guided the Pletcher-trained Calumet Farm homebred Bourbonic to a record 72-1 upset in the Grade 2, $750,000 Wood Memorial presented by Resorts World Casino to earn his first Kentucky Derby mount in the 100-40-20-10 point qualifying event.

Brown, a four-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer, also notched his first meet title since the Belmont fall, compiling a record of 10-4-4 with 31 starters for a 32.26 winning percentage. Brown's horses earned $766,450. Todd Pletcher was second with six wins while Linda Rice was third with five.

Brown, who last won the Aqueduct spring meet in 2018, got off to a quick start, saddling Search Results to victory in the Grade 3, $250,000 Gazelle for sophomore fillies on Wood Memorial Day April 3. Search Results, piloted by Ortiz, Jr., earned 100 qualifying points to the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks for her 2 3/4-length effort in the 1 1/8-mile contest. It was the third time in his career Brown won the Gazelle.

“I'm very appreciative; it was a long winter just preparing for this meet,” Brown said. “Our program is tailored around NYRA, mostly, just getting the horses ready all winter. After missing a lot of last year, this year's start has been more traditional for us. It feels good and gives us a sense of normalcy to get back on track with how we point our horses to begin their seasons in April in New York.”

The 42-year-old Brown also compiled stakes wins on back-to-back days, starting with Delaware's triumph in the Danger's Hour on April 10 and following with Regal Glory in the Plenty of Grace. Brown is the defending leading trainer in New York for the last six years, finishing atop the standings in every campaign since 2015.

“New York is our home base, so we try to have the horses ready to run here,” Brown said. “All the credit goes to my team for having these horses ready for this meet. I'm also thankful for our owners, who have been extremely patient. They pay a lot of bills all winter to not run much, but they trust the process of coming up to New York and running for generous purses on nice, fresh racing surfaces.”

Brant saw half of his starters earn winner's circle trips, compiling a 4-1-2 record in eight starts with earnings of $205,950. The meet-leading troika of Brant-Brown-Ortiz made up the winning connections of Regal Glory in the Plenty of Grace. Brown trained all of Brant's winners, including non-stakes scores with Brazillionaire, Kuramata and Flighty Lady.

Noda Brothers, comprised of trainer Orlando Noda and Jonathan Noda, went 4-0-2 in 10 starts for earnings of $111,185. Orlando Noda trained all of the partnership's winners, with Choose Happiness, Vintage Hollywood and Daria's Angel giving the duo three wins in three days from April 15-17 to secure a tie with Brant.

Thoroughbred action shifts to Belmont Park for the 48-day spring/summer meet that runs from Thursday, April 22 through Sunday, July 11.

The spring/summer meet will offer its highest ever overnight purse schedule supported by significant monetary increases across most race categories, including maiden special weight races featuring a purse of $90,000, while horsemen participating in the claiming ranks will compete for purse money ranging up to $100,000.

A total of 59 stakes races worth $16.95 million in purses will highlight the meet, including the Grade 1, $1.5 million Belmont Stakes set for June 5.

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NYRA: Beginning April 1, Fully Vaccinated Jockeys No Longer Required To Undergo COVID Tests

The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) today announced COVID-19 health and safety protocols for jockeys competing at the 2021 Aqueduct Racetrack spring meet, which will run April 1 through April 18.

The 11-day Big A spring meet will include 13 stakes worth $2.7 million in purses highlighted by the 96th running of the Grade 2, $750,000 Wood Memorial presented by Resorts World Casino on Saturday, April 3. Live racing will be conducted on a Thursday-Sunday schedule with a 1:20 p.m. first post.

NYRA will continue to permit out of town jockeys to compete at Aqueduct during the 2021 spring meet. Those jockeys must provide a negative COVID-19 PCR test taken in New York State within 48 hours of the day they intend to compete at Aqueduct. Out of town jockeys will be provided isolated jockey quarters at Aqueduct.

Members of the regular NYRA jockey colony who travel to ride at any other racetrack during the Aqueduct spring meet will be required to provide a negative COVID-19 PCR test taken in New York State within 48-hours of the day then intend to compete at Aqueduct. Jockeys who have traveled and returned to Aqueduct will be provided isolated jockey quarters at Aqueduct.

Beginning on April 1, all jockeys who have been fully vaccinated will no longer be required to undergo COVID-19 testing in order to compete at Aqueduct. Vaccinated jockeys traveling to ride at Aqueduct, as well as members of the NYRA jockey colony who travel outside of New York State, will continue to be provided isolated jockey quarters at Aqueduct.

According to current Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidance, individuals are considered fully vaccinated 14 days or more after receiving the second dose in a two dose series (Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna), or 14 days or more after they have received a single-dose vaccine (Johnson & Johnson / Janssen). NYRA will adhere to the current CDC guidance regarding COVID-19 vaccination standards.

Beginning on April 1, all jockeys who have been fully vaccinated to the satisfaction of CDC guidelines will be permitted to enter NYRA barn areas for morning training. Jockeys who have not been fully vaccinated will not be permitted in the barn area but can continue to meet horses in the Belmont paddock and utilize the main track.

In accordance with current CDC guidelines, jockeys who have traveled internationally will be required to quarantine for seven days upon their return. Four days after arrival in the United States, the jockey must be tested for COVID-19. Upon receipt of a negative COVID-19 PCR test, and completion of the seven-day quarantine, the jockey may compete at Aqueduct. All jockeys who have traveled internationally will be provided isolated jockey quarters.

In addition to race day safety protocols which include standard health screening and temperature checks, the jockey quarters at Aqueduct have been substantially altered to provide maximum social distancing and reduce density. All areas accessed by jockeys during the regular course of a race day are closed to outside personnel, including credentialed media, and are cleaned and disinfected throughout the day.

Jockey agents must produce a negative COVID-19 PCR test in order to gain access to the barn area. Races will continue to be drawn via Zoom.

Beginning on April 1, jockey valets who have been fully vaccinated to the satisfaction of CDC guidelines may enter the barn area for morning training. In addition, jockey valets that have been working in the barn area and only saddling horses in the afternoon that have not been fully vaccinated may re-enter the jockeys quarters after completing a 10-day quarantine and providing a negative COVID-19 PCR test taken within 48-hours of their intended return.

For additional information, and the complete stakes schedule for the 2021 Aqueduct spring meet, visit NYRA.com.

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