jockey injury | Horse Racing Free Tips

Sprained Ankle Will Keep Trevor McCarthy Off Mounts At Laurel This Weekend

Unseated when his mount War Lance stumbled during Thursday's third race at Laurel Park, jockey Trevor McCarthy was diagnosed with a sprained ankle and will not ride this weekend's cards, reports racingbiz.com.

Thursday was McCarthy's first day back in the saddle since Aug. 5; he missed the past several weeks of racing due to testing positive for the coronavirus. Prior to testing positive, McCarthy had been leading the standings at Colonial Downs with a 42 percent win rate.

He was named in all nine races on Friday and eight more on Saturday's card at Laurel Park.

War Lance was uninjured in the incident.

‘He Sounded Great’: Injured Jockey Rosario Montanez Talking About Return To Riding

When his phone rang Monday evening, jockey agent Joe Rocco Sr. thought it was going to be a regular update on his client, Rosario Montanez, who was injured in a July 17 spill at Laurel Park.

It turned out to be much more. Though the number displayed was of Montanez's fiancé, Chloe LaBarre, Rocco got the surprise of his life when he answered.

“Her number showed up, but it was him on the phone,” Rocco said. “He spoke to me. He's got a long road ahead of him … but he sounded great. It was great news.”

A San Diego native who was a finalist for the 2011 Eclipse Award as champion apprentice, Montanez was unseated when his mount, 4-year-old filly Hendaya, clipped heels and fell leaving the backstretch of a 5 ½-furlong turf sprint for filly and mare claimers 3 and up. While he was being tended to on the track, Hendaya was able to get up and jog off the turf course.

Montanez, 28, underwent surgery July 18 to repair several fractures in his back at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore. Rocco said the rider was being transferred Tuesday to another facility in the city to begin rehabilitation for his brain injuries.

“I had to explain to him what I thought happened. It was just a bad incident he went through,” Rocco said. “He didn't even know he had surgery, which is a great sign. He's doing well.”

A winner of more than 3,700 career races during his riding career and whose son, Joe Jr. is a jockey based in Kentucky, Rocco gets emotional when talking both to and about Montanez.

“He's my friend. I really care about him a lot,” Rocco said. “I couldn't believe it when he talked to me. I didn't know if he was going to make it or not, that's how bad it was. But, you know he asked me when he's going to be back racing. He said, 'Let's figure this out.'”

A GoFundMe account launched by Laurel trainer Brittany Russell July 18 has raised $37,505 to go toward general living and medical expenses. An initial goal of $20,000 was surpassed in less than 24 hours, and a second $30,000 goal reached days later. The goal has been updated to $50,000.

“I would like to thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for coming together to help us out,” LaBarre wrote on the GoFundMe website. “Please continue to pray for him! I'm so thankful for everything people have done for him. It means so much to us.”

To donate to Montanez's GoFundMe campaign, visit www.gofundme.com/f/rosario-montanez

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Hospitalized Jockey Rosario Montanez Showing Improvement After Back Surgery

A second goal has been exceeded in the fundraising effort for injured Laurel Park jockey Rosario Montanez, who remains hospitalized but is showing signs of improvement, his agent Joe Rocco Sr. said.

As of 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, a GoFundMe account created by Laurel trainer Brittany Russell stood at $32,580, topping the goal of $30,000 to go toward medical and general living expenses for Montanez, 28, and his fiancé, Chloe LaBarre.

It is the second time in less than a week the goal has been surpassed. The initial goal of $20,000 upon the fund's creation July 18 was eclipsed in less than 24 hours.

“That is amazing, thank the Lord. That's how much Rosario is liked,” Rocco said. “Hardest working jockey I've ever met in my 40 years on the racetrack.”

Montanez underwent surgery July 18 to repair several fractures in his back at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore, where he remains. He is allowed one daily 10-minute visit per hospital protocol amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“They say he's doing a lot better,” Rocco said. “They took the tubes from his throat, so that's a good sign.”

Three races after he went down, Montanez was booked to ride No Fooling Dude for trainer Marilyn McMullen. Retired jockey Vince 'Jimbo' Bracciale Jr., who used to ride with Rocco and now works with McMullen, credited the on-site medical staff led by Dr. Kelly Ryan of MedStar Health for their work with Montanez.

“Jimbo was on scene when it happened,” Rocco said. “He told me the EMTs did a hell of a job, and Doc Kelly. She told them everything to do and they were right on. He said he thinks they saved his life.”

Between them, Rocco (3,714) and Bracciale (3,545) won 7,259 career races. In addition to his agent, Montanez frequently goes to Bracciale for advice and support.

“He'd always ask me, 'Who was the best jockey you ever rode with?' I rode with a lot of great jockeys, but Jimbo was probably one of the best,” Rocco said. “When I told him that, he was at his barn every day asking him questions. He's just an amazing boy, man. I've never seen a jockey want to be the best he can be more than him.”

To donate to Montanez's GoFundMe campaign, visit www.gofundme.com/f/rosario-montanez

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Laurel’s Leading Rider Sheldon Russell Out Four To Six Weeks With Broken Wrist

Jockey Sheldon Russell, the leading rider at Laurel Park's current summer meet, will miss at least two months with a broken right wrist suffered in a gate mishap Thursday at Delaware Park.

Agent Marty Leonard said the 32-year-old Russell was hurt after being unseated by his mount Maliceinthepalace, a 3-year-old filly trained by Michael Gorham, as the horses were loading for Delaware's third race. Maliceinthepalace would go on to run fourth under Alex Cintron.

“Walking into the gate the horse just reared up and he came off. When he came off, he landed on the ground and used his hand to brace his fall and that's what did it,” Leonard said. “The second he hit the ground he said he knew it was broken. They went and got X-rays and that confirmed it.

Leonard said Russell, married to Laurel-based trainer Brittany Russell, is expected to be out “four to six weeks.”

“You never expect that to happen,” Leonard said.

Sheldon Russell led Laurel's summer meet, which began May 30 following a 2 ½-month pause in live racing amid the coronavirus pandemic, with 20 wins and $568,391 in purse earnings, five wins ahead of runner-up Trevor McCarthy.

Russell had five multi-win days during the summer stand, including hat tricks June 6, 8 and 12. He is the regular rider for multiple stakes-winning 3-year-old filly Hello Beautiful, under consideration for the Test (G1) Aug. 8 at Saratoga and trained by his wife.

A winner of 1,392 career races, Russell ranked second in Maryland with 93 wins and $3.3 million in purses earned in 2019. The state's leading rider in 2011, he is a seven-time meet champion owning five titles at Laurel and two at Pimlico Race Course between 2008 and 2015.

Though he has been ridden at full health since the spring of 2017, Russell's career has been beset by injuries. He suffered a torn ligament in his right thumb in 2016; torn labrum and fractured shoulder in a November 2015 training accident; broken ribs (2015, 2010), punctured lung (2015), broken foot (2013), broken wrist (2008) and fractured vertebrae (2007, 2008).

“Unfortunately, he's gone through this before. It's never, 'why me' with him. I don't know how he does it, but he takes it well. He takes it in stride. I'm sure he's disappointed, but he's a true professional. He's just going to get healthy and get back to riding again. That's what he does,” Leonard said. “He's a great person.”

Laurel's summer meet, which had been racing Fridays and Saturdays since May 30, will move to a three-day schedule starting Thursday, July 23. Racing will be conducted Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays through Saturday, Aug. 22.

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