Three-time Eclipse Award-winning jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. received a 30 calendar- day suspension from the board of stewards at Aqueduct on Sunday for two careless riding incidents at the South Ozone Park, N.Y., track on Friday and Saturday, Daily Racing Form's David Grening reported. Grening reported Ortiz Jr. does not plan to appeal and will begin serving the ban this week after signing a waiver.
Ortiz Jr.'s mount Gran Casique was disqualified from second and placed last after causing apprentice Omar Hernandez Moreno to be unseated from his mount, Ragtime Blues, in Friday's eighth race.
On Saturday, his winning ride aboard Mo Donegal in the Grade 2 Remsen Stakes survived a stewards inquiry and his win on Nest in the G2 Demoiselle faced an objection from jockey John Velazquez, who rode the second-place finisher Venti Valentine. Stewards upheld the order of finish in both cases. Ortiz Jr. won three graded stakes on Saturday's card and wrapped up the riding title for the fall meet.
Ortiz Jr. rode in his native Puerto Rico Sunday and had been named to ride at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla., on Wednesday.
The 30-day ban for causing Friday's spill is consistent with the suspension jockey Paco Lopez received from Gulfstream Park stewards in 2019 for his role in a two-horse accident that left two riders injured. A second incident at Gulfstream Park led to Lopez being banned 60 days.
Neither Hernandez Moreno nor Ragtime Blues suffered serious injury.
The NY stewards suspended Irad Ortiz Jr. 30 calendar days for careless riding Friday and Saturday at AQU. Ortiz is not appealing. Suspension to start this week, exact day unclear as Ortiz has to return and state has to accept a waiver of appeal. Ortiz rode in Puerto Rico Sunday.
— David Grening (@DRFGrening) December 5, 2021
The post Irad Ortiz Jr. Gets 30-Day Suspension For Careless Riding At Aqueduct appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
