“When I was working her, I thought she didn't need to be on the lead,” said winning jockey Hector Diaz. “But she has so much speed, that she gets it. She got a little tired late because we moved a little early. I think she's going to keep improving.”

Maximus Mischief is the second Spendthrift freshman sire to pick up his first stakes winner following Omaha Beach earlier in the day Sunday. A half-sister to another Florida-bred stakes winner in It's High Time (Gone Astray), Let Them Watch is out of a half to GI Vosburgh S. winner Black Seventeen (Is It True). Her dam foaled an Awesome Slew filly last year and was bred to Uncle Chuck again for 2024 afer not producing a foal this year. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.

Favored #6 LET THEM WATCH ($3.60) couldn't be caught today in @GulfstreamPark's Sharp Susan Stakes! Congratulations to the connections! pic.twitter.com/sln9mPzsag

— TVG (@TVG) August 13, 2023

SHARP SUSAN S., $90,000, Gulfstream, 8-13, 2yo, f, 6f, 1:12.73, ft.
1–LET THEM WATCH, 120, f, 2, by Maximus Mischief
                1st Dam: My Rolex, by Proud Accolade
                2nd Dam: Fuzzy Navel, by Strike the Anvil
                3rd Dam: Silent Shield, by Admiral's Shield
($55,000 RNA Ylg '22 OBSOCT; $55,000 2yo '23 OBSAPR).
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN. O-Case Chambers; B-Tracy Pinchin (FL);
T-Michael J. Maker; J-Hector Rafael Diaz, Jr. $63,220. Lifetime
Record: 2-2-0-0, $97,220. *1/2 to It's High Time (Gone Astray),
SW, $234,040.
2–Kiss, 120, f, 2, Army Mule–Nasty Noozie, by Partner's Hero.
($27,000 Wlg '21 KEENOV). 1ST BLACK TYPE. O-Arindel;
B-Theta Holding I, Inc (KY); T-Juan Alvarado. $12,740.
3–Epona's Hope, 120, f, 2, Adios Charlie–Alotofappeal, by
Trippi. ($295,000 2yo '23 OBSMAR). 1ST BLACK TYPE. O-Leon
Ellman, Glassman Racing LLC and Laurie Plesa; B-Ocala Stud,
Edward Wiest & William J. Terrill (FL); T-Edward Plesa, Jr.
$7,644.
Margins: 2 3/4, 3/4, 1 1/4. Odds: 0.80, 9.50, 5.20.
Also Ran: Florindia, Avellino, She Has Class, Kitty's Pretty.

The post Maximus Mischief Gets First Stakes Winner In Gulfstream’s Sharp Susan S. appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Diaz was taken by ambulance to Monmouth Medical Center “for observation and sutures,” Dr. Chinnici said.

“He will need time for the stitches to heal – maybe seven days,” Dr. Chinnici said.

Diaz is currently fifth in the Monmouth Park jockey standings with 14 wins. Monmouth Park is located in Oceanport, N.J.

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“Some horses work fast and some don't, but you know how they do it and how they feel,” said Diaz, who made the most of his chance in Wednesday's ninth race at Tampa by riding Nancy Work to her maiden victory going a mile on the turf. “When I work a horse, I want to know how much they have galloping out after they hit the wire, and she did it easy and comfortable and came off the track happy. That's the main thing.”

Nancy Work finished last in her Gulfstream effort in a race that was taken off the turf, showing as much liking for the sloppy racetrack as a mother whose 4 and 5-year-olds just returned from frolicking in a mud puddle. Neither that effort nor a subsequent fifth-place finish here on the grass on March 19 lessened Diaz's enthusiasm for the chance to team up with her in a race for the first time.

As if sensing her pilot's confidence, Nancy Work relayed to Diaz her desire to graduate into the ranks of winners before the start.

“When I got on her, she was on the toes. I knew she was ready to run,” he said.

The come-from-behind, 3 ½-length victory from Estilo Elegante and eight others capped a three-victory performance Wednesday by Diaz, earning him the Salt Rock Tavern Jockey of the Month Award. After winning twice today, Diaz is in third place in the standings with 57 victories, and his win percentage of 19.7 is the track's second-best, behind Antonio Gallardo's 22.5.

Diaz's victories today came on 3-year-old filly Flash Town in the fourth race for owner Sabal Racing Stable and trainer Darien Rodriguez and in the sixth on the turf on 5-year-old gelding Joy City for owner Francis Paolangeli and trainer Bobby Raymond. Flash Town was claimed for $8,000 by trainer Rafael Schistl for new owner Endsley Oaks Farm.

Also on today's card, no bettor hit the late 50-cent Pick-5, creating a carryover pool of $39,302.87 into Saturday's late Pick-5. That wager will begin with the sixth race.

“It's gone better than I expected. It's tough to come to a new place and do this well,” said the 31-year-old Diaz, who is in his first season at Tampa Bay Downs. “To be in the (top three) with all the good riders here is a great accomplishment for me. I have to praise God and thank all the owners and trainers and everyone who supported me.”

Winning races is rarely easy, even when you're on the best horse. Hall of Fame jockey Eddie Maple said he nearly flew off the saddle when Secretariat unleashed his ungodly acceleration on the turn for home in the legend's final career race, the 1973 Canadian International at Woodbine in Toronto.

Along the backstretch in Wednesday's finale, Diaz and Nancy Work were inside and relaxed in mid-pack when long shot Abuela Cori made a bold move directly outside, forcing Diaz into decision mode. His knowledge of Nancy Work, the rapport they had established, simplified the rider's decisions.

“You can't get scared when you are on the rail stuck behind horses,” said Diaz, referring to the impulse to make a premature move rather than stay patient to preserve a strong finishing kick. “I just relaxed there and waited, because I didn't have any room. I think it worked out perfectly, because I put my filly on the outside nearing the quarter-mile pole and she kicked on.”

That kind of savvy decision-making, especially on the turf, has made Diaz a fan favorite here, and he says the feeling is mutual. Set to head north next week, Diaz plans to return to Oldsmar next fall and build on his solid foundation.

“I love it here,” said Diaz, who lives with his fiancée Deyanyra and 3-year-old son Andrew.

Diaz plans to depart in time to ride on the April 22 Opening Day card at Belmont Park before moving his tack to Monmouth Park for its spring-summer meeting. His agent, Shawn Klotz, said riding here for such top trainers as O'Connell, Michael Stidham, Arnaud Delacour, Christophe Clement and George Weaver can pay long-term dividends for his rider, especially at tracks with higher purse structures than Tampa Bay Downs.

“Look at all the stables that ship horses to Tampa for maiden special weight races on the turf. Stidham, Clement, Todd Pletcher, Chad Brown, Graham Motion. … the list goes on and on. It's insane,” said Klotz, who is based in Seaford, New York. “Those are opportunities to ride for bigger barns, and the benefit comes when Hector goes to the bigger tracks and has earned the trust and confidence of those trainers.”

Klotz said that is why Tampa Bay Downs is an ideal place for Diaz at this stage of his career.

“I call it opening doors,” the agent said. “Getting in with some of those bigger outfits at Tampa is only going to help him in the long run.”

A strong measure of confidence, along with his talent, work ethic and analytical approach, especially after a defeat, will do the rest.

“Sometimes I'll get to the finish and think I was just second-best, but I still watch the replay and look for something I could have done different to win,” Diaz said. “I don't watch my replays when I win. I watch the ones I lose.”

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All that remains is the pure joy of competition.

As the siblings turn for home, their horses vying head-to-head, neither jockey gives an inch. Each seems to know what the other is thinking, and Hector Rafael's adrenaline skyrockets from the thrill of knowing that he and young Hector Miguel are living the life they were meant for.

When he wakes up, Hector Rafael is unsure who won. He snaps into a harsh reality, the scenario so vivid in his mind only a fantasy.

But there is no time to dwell on sadness or regrets. Hector Miguel, 27 (“Migue,” to family and friends), is back home in Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico, in a wheelchair, paralyzed from the waist down by a riding accident at Hipodromo Camarero in Canovanas on Jan. 3, 2015, almost two years before Hector Rafael rode his first race.

Chances are, Migue already has studied the past performances for his brother's mounts at Tampa Bay Downs and is ready to offer his observations and advice by phone.

Leaving home before daylight to work horses and get ready for the races, Hector Rafael kisses his fiancée Deyanyra and her 3-year-old son, Andrew. Being at Tampa Bay Downs, where he is tied for third place in the standings with 38 victories, feels like a dream come true.

A dream he shares with his brother.

“I would have loved to ride with him, to compete against him,” said the 31-year-old Diaz, whose 18.5-percent strike rate at the meeting is fourth-best at Tampa Bay Downs among jockeys with 100 or more starts. “In my dream, I think my brother beats me sometimes and I beat him sometimes. But it doesn't really matter. It's just us doing what we love, what we dreamed of doing.”

Their father, Hector Rafael Diaz, Sr., was also a jockey, retiring in his mid-30s after incurring more than his share of injuries. Neither he nor their mother, Norma Sanchez, wanted the boys to become jockeys, but years of going to Camarero to watch their father compete had already stoked their passion. Having an even more well-known pair of brothers as cousins and neighbors – Irad Ortiz, Jr., and Jose Ortiz – provided more fuel for the Diaz boys' fire.

“Every parent wants their kid to be a doctor or a lawyer and have a good career. I was a good student, and they wanted me to keep studying,” Diaz said. “But my brother and I went to the races every weekend to watch our father race, and we both came to want it.

“My brother didn't do it for money. He loved riding horses, and I'm the same way. This is not a job for me.”

The brothers talk on a daily basis, the discussion usually coming around to the horses Hector Rafael rode, or is scheduled to ride. “Migue is on top of all my horses,” said Diaz. “I call him when I finish working to talk about the races and I call him after the last race. He'll tell me what he thinks about the horses I'm riding, and we'll go over how to ride a race if 'Plan A' goes out the window when the gate opens.”

Migue, who is married with a 7-year-old son, Jesier, who wants to be a jockey, watches races from numerous tracks through his TVG account, but he is laser-focused on Tampa Bay Downs as his older brother climbs the ladder of success.

“His brother follows everything he does,” said Shawn Klotz, Diaz's agent. “From what Hector tells me, his brother could flat-out ride. He was one of the best jockeys out there.”

The record bears that out. During his three-year career, which began in 2012 when he was 19, Migue won 477 races from 2,558 mounts – an 18.6-percent strike rate – and captured three graded stakes in Puerto Rico, including two Grade Is.

“I thought he was the best rider I'd ever seen. We don't know how good he could have been,” said Hector Rafael.

Around the same time Migue's career was taking off, Hector Rafael, then 23, enrolled in the Escuela La Vocacional Hipica jockey school. He stayed there a year, then headed to New York to work as an exercise rider for trainer George Weaver.

In the fall of 2014, Migue moved north to reunite with his brother and ride at Belmont Park, Laurel, Aqueduct and Meadowlands. He managed four winners from 42 mounts, but the combination of the unfamiliar surroundings, a language barrier and frigid weather led him to return to Puerto Rico before the year ended.

That December, Hector Rafael took a vacation from his job for Weaver, returning home for the holidays. He was at the beach when Migue called him from the racetrack, reminding him he had one more race to ride and asking him to wait for his arrival.

About 20 minutes later, Irad Ortiz, Jr., called Hector Rafael and told him his brother had been in an accident. The horse inside Migue's mount came out a little, his horse clipped heels and the rider tumbled off, landing on his head and paralyzing his lower body.

Life can never be the same for an athlete who becomes paralyzed, especially one nearing the prime of their career. A little more than six years later, Migue sounds matter-of-fact about his accident, almost as if it had been an out-of-body experience he viewed through a camera lens. What beats inside him is perhaps best left between himself, family members and God, but he never blamed the sport or anyone else for what happened.

“I knew the risk when I chose to become a jockey,” Migue said in a recent Facetime conversation, which Hector Rafael translated for a reporter. “You know something like that can happen, but you don't think about it.

“God had other plans for me, and I'm following that. I am my brother's No. 1 fan, and I take his victories like they are mine.”

The Diaz brothers with their mother, Norma Sanchez

After the accident, their parents implored Hector Rafael to give up his dream and pursue another career. But he had already made up his mind.

“I had always wanted to be a jockey, but my brother getting hurt made me want it even more,” he said. “I thought, he can't do it anymore, so now it's my turn. I told my parents 'I respect your feelings, but this is what I love, and this is what I'm going to do.' I have to stay strong for him. He's not showing weakness, so I can't show weakness.”

While his brother began the arduous task of rehabilitation and learning to cope with a new way of life, Diaz returned to New York for more seasoning. His moment of reckoning came in a claiming race at Aqueduct on Nov. 11, 2016, when he rode Weaver's 3-year-old filly Shoppingforsilver, owned by West Point Thoroughbreds, to a second-place finish in his first career race.

“It was me, Javier Castellano, Irad and Jose, and Manuel Franco (and Addiel Ayala) in that race. All good jockeys,” Diaz recalls, smiling at the memory. “I was a little nervous, but I enjoyed it. Being in the jockeys' room in New York was a great education. I learned a lot from guys like Cornelio Velasquez and Kendrick Carmouche, and Irad and Jose. You could go to any corner of that room and learn things from jockeys who were glad to share their knowledge.”

His first career victory on Jan. 15, 2017, aboard Honorable Jonas launched a year in which Diaz rode 74 winners, earning recognition as a finalist for an Eclipse Award as Outstanding Apprentice Jockey. Another graduate of Puerto Rico's jockey school, Evin Roman, won the award, but by staying in New York, Diaz established his ability to compete against many of the finest jockeys in the country.

“I started working with Hector that summer at Monmouth Park, and we won a bunch of races,” said Klotz, his agent. “Winning is what gets a jockey into new barns, and there were a lot of good outfits that wanted to use him.

“Hector studies races, he listens and he is always willing to learn. He is very patient – he isn't going to make a premature move that gets a horse beat. He'll sit and wait for his chance to pounce, but if there is no speed in a race, he's comfortable being on the lead,” Klotz said.

Last year, Diaz finished fifth in the standings at Monmouth with 30 victories. That performance came after he fractured three vertebrae in a fall at Aqueduct, causing him to miss six weeks, followed by almost three months off due to track closures caused by COVID-19.

Toward the end of Monmouth's season, trainer Michael Stidham's assistant, Ben Trask, suggested Diaz forgo New York's lucrative purses and give Tampa Bay Downs a shot. After weighing the pros and cons, Diaz decided it could only benefit his career exposing his talent to a brand-new audience.

“When I left New York last fall (soon after riding trainer Arnaud Delacour's 2-year-old colt Arrest Me Red to victory in the Atlantic Beach Stakes at Aqueduct on Nov. 6), I felt like the best rider out there,” Diaz said. “No disrespect to anybody; there are a lot of great riders who if they've got the horse, are going to show their talent. But when I'm riding races, I feel like I can do anything they can and nobody can outsmart me. That's the confidence I built being in New York with all those good riders.”

Diaz has won eight times for the Stidham barn this season, while also winning races for 16 other outfits. But Trask said the decision to use Diaz as the stable's “go-to” jockey in Oldsmar was based on more than his ability to win races.

Diaz winning aboard Skol Chant for trainer Michael Stidham

“It's very hard for someone who has never been here before to come in and be successful, because you have a handful of guys, like (Samy) Camacho and (Antonio) Gallardo and (Daniel) Centeno, who win a lot of races,” Trask said. “But Hector was already part of our team, and he knows what it takes to get the job done.

“Anybody can win a race. But Hector is a team player who got to see what happens behind the scenes when he worked for George Weaver, and that makes a big difference,” Trask said. “I have 40 people working in our barn, and he knows all their names and speaks to everybody when he comes to work. Hector never has a chip on his shoulder. When one of our guys shows up in the paddock with a horse, he greets them with respect.”

Kathleen O'Connell, who also uses Diaz on many of her horses, has helped cultivate the careers of numerous good jockeys, including Gallardo. She believes Diaz has the skill, confidence and courage to be as good as any of them.

“He is already polished, and I think he has a great future if he keeps doing what he's doing,” O'Connell said. “He is smart enough to know that you learn every day. You always need luck and the right horses and everything else, but as long as he keeps an open mind, he will keep progressing.”

O'Connell said Diaz's style puts horses at ease. “There is a big difference between taking a light hold and strangling a horse, and he has very kind hands on a horse and is astute as to how they are traveling. He cares about the animals and is a good communicator.”

After competing in New York as a proverbial small fish in a big pond, Diaz is getting noticed on a widespread basis. He is comfortable with his status as one of the top four jockeys this season at Tampa Bay Downs and the extra attention that comes with it.

“To be up there with guys like Gallardo and Centeno, who have won multiple titles, and Camacho, that is amazing,” Klotz said. “Those guys are cornerstones of Tampa Bay.”

Diaz – who has an 11-year-old daughter, Heclian, and a 2-year-old son, Jayden, from previous relationships – yearns to see his brother and his parents soon; he hasn't been home in a few years. He says his parents are more accepting of his career choice and proud at how he represents himself and the family.

“My father calls me a lot to talk about the horses and my career. I know it's tough for parents to see their kid can't walk, and I know there are nights when they cry in bed,” Diaz said. “But Migue is alive, and that's how we have to view it.”

In surroundings that are often hectic, when every move he makes can mean the difference between winning and losing, Diaz puts everything else out of his mind. But win or lose, he is uplifted knowing Migue provides another set of eyes that are invaluable in helping to keep the family tradition strong.

“My brother is my hero. I don't think I would ever have taken what happened the way he does,” Diaz said. “He is the one who gave me the big push to do what I am doing now. I don't know why, but I never think about his accident. I pray God to protect all of us riders on the track, but we got to compete. When I'm on top of a horse, I just think about winning the race.”

Diaz has another dream, one he carries in his heart. “I always say if I do real good, I want to take him somewhere to doctors who can help him walk again. That is my goal. He is grateful he is alive, and I am grateful he is alive. We know things could be a lot worse. But there is always a hope, and we never lose that.”

It is a dream worth sharing, with the racetrack community and the world.

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The 31-year-old journeyman currently sits second in the Monmouth Park jockey standings with 12 wins – well behind runaway leader Paco Lopez, who is on his way to a seventh title at the Shore track with 26 wins, but also ahead of notable veterans Joe Bravo, Jose Ferrer, Antonio Gallardo, Nik Juarez and Trevor McCarthy.

It's potentially a significant achievement for Diaz, who finished fourth in the track's rider standings a year ago.

“Monmouth Park has a great jockey colony. It's a very tough colony,” said Diaz, who is listed on four mounts when racing resumes at Monmouth Park with a six-race twilight card on Friday. “There are so many great riders and I feel grateful to be second now. I know it's going to be competitive and a challenge to stay there.

In part because he is late to the profession, Diaz has an appreciation for every accomplishment now, big or small.

Though he grew up with a father and brother who were jockeys, and with cousins Irad and Jose Ortiz, in Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico, Diaz didn't enroll in the Escuela Vocacional Hipica jockey school until he was 23.

“My dad did not want me to be a jockey. But in my heart I knew I always wanted to be a jockey,” Diaz said.

Some of the motivation for finally setting on his professional path came from his brother, Hector Miguel Diaz, who was paralyzed in a spill at Camarero Race Track in Puerto Rico.

“He was just 21 when he was paralyzed,” said Diaz. “I decided that I needed to do this and do it for him.”

Diaz had mixed results as an apprentice in the ultra-competitive New York arena before shifting to Monmouth Park.

“It's hard in New York but I can't say it didn't really work out because of the opportunities I got there,” he said. “If I didn't get those opportunities I might not be getting the opportunities I have now at Monmouth. Those trainers come here to race. They know me. New York was part of the process that has helped me be where I am now.

“I believe you build your career every year and you do that by continuing to work hard. Last year was a good year for me. I won a couple of stakes races and I finished fourth in the standings at Monmouth Park. I think that has helped me get off to a good start this year.”

Diaz, who didn't start riding professionally until he was 27, isn't bashful about his long-term goal.

“I want to be leading rider here someday,” he said. “Paco is tough to beat. He is always tough to beat. So maybe it won't be this year and maybe it won't be next year but I believe I can do it. I always believe in myself. I always bet on me all the time to succeed. I will continue building my career and I won't stop trying to reach my goal.”

Diaz matched his personal best with 74 overall victories last year while earning a career-best $2,802,843. He is certain he can exceed those numbers this year.

“The trainers have been trusting me. That's a big part of this,” he said. “My agent (Shawn Klotz) is doing his job and I am doing my job in the mornings. But it's about opportunities. You've got to work hard to earn those opportunities but owners and trainers have got to support you. They have to give you a shot.”

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