The popular New York-bred foaled at the nearby McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds, and owned by the New York-based Sackatoga Stable, died at the age of 23 on July 17 from complications of colic at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY. He won the 2003 Derby and Preakness and his attempt to sweep the Triple Crown series ended with a third-place finish in the GI Belmont S.

While five other Thoroughbreds are buried under markers on the grounds of America's oldest racetrack, Funny Cide is the first to be placed in a location–under a tree just behind the clubhouse–that is accessible to the public. Sackatoga managing partner Jack Knowlton said he is pleased the that New York Racing Association agreed to his request to place the memorial where it did. Knowlton said he worked with NYRA President and CEO David O'Rourke, NYRA executive VP Glen Kozak and Najja Thompson, the executive director of the New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc.

“I think they got the right spot,” Knowlton said.

Four horses–Fourstardave, APhenomenon, Mourjane and Quick Call–are buried near the jogging track in Clare Court in the backstretch. Hall of Famer and champion Go for Wand is buried in the infield. Knowlton said he pushed back on the suggestion to put Funny Cide's ashes in Clare Court.

“Different people said, 'Oh, great horses are buried there, do that. Maybe do something in the walking ring,” Knowlton said.  “He's the people's horse and we wanted people to have access and let the fans see him. That's what was agreed upon and I think it's a great spot. All racing fans are going to have access to it and hopefully have good memories. Right now, we need good memories.”

Knowlton and Sackatoga partner Lew Titterton placed the metal box with the ashes in the site that had been prepared as Thompson addressed the crowd of about 50 people who attended. Trainer Barclay Tagg and his assistant Robin Smullen and his regular rider, Hall of Fame jockey Jose Santos, participated in the event.

Later, Knowlton said that some of the gelding's ashes will be buried at the Kentucky Horse Park, where he lived for 15 years and was a favorite of visitors, and at the McMahon farm.

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Presented by Sackatoga Stable, the evening will feature a tribute video and a panel discussion emceed by Retired Race Caller Tom Durkin who called Funny Cide's wins in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness S. The panel will also feature commentary by Sackatoga Stable Operating Manager and Funny Cide Owner, Jack Knowlton, Trainer Barclay Tagg, Assistant Trainer Robin Smullen and Hall of Fame Jockey José Santos.

“Funny Cide was really the people's horse,” Jack Knowlton said, “We know his loss is felt by many and we wanted to give his fans a chance to celebrate his life with us. We are grateful to everyone that is helping to make this event a reality and look forward to a night that will do his legacy justice.”

The evening's activities will also feature food including Funny Cide sliders, music by Blue Hand Luke, Funny Cide's trophies from his victories in the Kentucky Derby, Preakness S. and Jockey Club Gold Cup S. from Kentucky Horse Park and memorabilia from Jack Knowlton's private collection, some of which will be available to take home with a donation.

Tickets for the event can be purchased online at www.eventbrite.com. General Admission tickets are $35 and include admission and food. A limited number of VIP tickets will be available for $100 and include admission, food, non-reserved seating, and a commemorative t-shirt.

All proceeds from the evening will be donated to Kentucky Horse Park toward their effort to commission a commemorative statue in honor of Funny Cide.

Doors open at 6pm. Siro's will be donating a portion of the bars' proceeds to Kentucky Horse Park.

Sackatoga Stable is grateful to all the event sponsors: Brook Ledge Horse Transportation, Capital OTB, Fasig-Tipton, Finger Lakes Race Track, McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds, NYRA, New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Performance Food Group, Pimlico Race Course, Saratoga County Chamber, US Foods and WinStar Farm.

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“I like it because it allows me to mingle with people from racetrack,” Santos said.  “I went to the sales in Kentucky and have been visiting trainers and farms where I live in Florida. I am selling supplements and vitamins for the horses. It's good for them. They are good products.”

Enviro Equine calls itself a “farm-to-stable” operation, focused on sustainable practices for animals and the planet, working only with suppliers committed to sustainability  and excellence.

Santos's career ended on Feb. 1, 2007 when he was involved in a spill at Aqueduct, which resulted in five broken vertebrae, a broken sternum and several broken ribs. He had planned on riding another four years, retiring when he was 50. But his doctor advised against that.

“That was a tough way to go out,” he said. “I was planning to ride until I was 50, so my career was cut short a little bit. The doctor told me the best thing was for me to retire, but that I should make my own decision. I called my mother and told her I had two spills back to back. My mother said don't wait for the third one. I quit. I had done enough. I was 46. I made the right decision.”

Santos began his career in his native Chile before moving on to Colombia. He came to the U.S. in 1984. He led all jockeys in earnings from 1986 through 1989 and in 1988 he won the Eclipse Award as the sport's top jockey. Santos won 4,083 races, including the 2003 GI Kentucky Derby and the 2003 GI Preakness S. with Funny Cide (Distorted Humor) and the 1999 GI Belmont with Lemon Drop Kid (Kingmambo). He also won seven Breeders' Cup races and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2007.

He says that Criminal Type (Alydar) was the best horse he ever rode. In 1990 Santos teamed up with Criminal Type to win the GI Pimlico Special, the GI Metropolitan H., the GI Hollywood Gold Cup and the GI Whitney H. Trained by Wayne Lukas, Criminal Type was named 1990 Horse of the Year.

Six months after the 2007 spill, he announced his retirement, saying that if he had another accident the fear was that he would no longer be able to walk. For the first few years after he quit Santos said he just took it easy, enjoying his retirement. About five years ago, he went into the feed business, which was not for him.

“I got into the wrong business,” he said. “I was selling feed. There were a lot of people good people and they paid me. But a lot of people didn't pay me and I got in a hole. Instead of keep losing money, I stopped.”

He still finds time to follow the sport and says he enjoys watching races on television with his 9-year-old son. What does he think of today's riders?

“It's a great group of jockeys and there are a lot of really good young riders like the Ortiz brothers,” he said “I also like Manny Franco. You still have Johnny (Velazquez) and (Joel) Rosario. Tyler Gaffalione is a tremendous rider.”

What's changed, Santos said, is that the current crop of riders can get reckless.

“It is a different era,” he said. “They ride completely different from way we used to ride. They are a little careless. We used to take care of each other. If somebody was having a problem, we'd give you a shot. Now, there is a lot of bumping. They have the stewards working harder now. It's a different time. The money is not good, it's great. If I were riding now, I'd probably be riding the same way they do.”

The spill might have cost him a few years, but it didn't take away from all that he accomplished.

“I had a great career,” Santos said. “I rode for 31 years and I made it in the big time in New York. I won an Eclipse Award and I won the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness and the Belmont. The best thing of all was that I was inducted into the Hall of Fame. I was very happy with my whole career.”

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“There are only a few other racing towns that can garner the enthusiasm and love for racing as Hot Springs, Arkansas, and we know this event will be a huge hit among our fans,” Oaklawn President Louis Cella said. “We are excited by the response we have received from the Hall of Fame members in the first year of this event, and we look forward to honoring some of our industry's greats.”

Scheduled to appear are 11-time Oaklawn leading trainer Steve Asmussen, Bill Boland, Calvin Borel, Ramon Dominguez, Earlie Fires, Sandy Hawley, Chris McCarron, Bill Mott, Don Pierce, Laffit Pincay Jr., Edgar Prado, Jose Santos, Gary Stevens and Nick Zito.

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Santos said Cabrera has compressed C5 and C6 vertebrae, crushed cheekbones and suffered a concussion in the accident, which occurred in the upper stretch after his mount Mostly Awesome (Fusaichi Pegasus) clipped heels when in tight and fell, throwing the jockey to the ground. A trailing horse jumped the fallen Mostly Awesome near the three-sixteenths pole, unseating apprentice jockey Chel-c Bailey. Both horses involved in the accident were captured without incident and with no initial signs of distress. Bailey wasn't seriously injured and fulfilled her remaining engagements on the card. Cabrera was unconscious for approximately 20 minutes post-fall.

“It's really kind of dependent on the cognitive aspect of it, when he kind of grasps everything mentally,” Santos said. “He's a lot more active today and it's mainly just from the concussion. There's just some confusion there.”

Cabrera was the runaway leader in the Oaklawn rider standings with 62 victories through Friday, Day 53 of the scheduled 66-day meeting. Francisco Arrieta was second with 49 victories, two more than Santana, an eight-time Oaklawn riding champion.

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Gutierrez, riding regularly at Fair Grounds for the first time, has made an impact over the first month of the season. On Sunday, trainer Dallas Stewart enlisted Gutierrez to pilot Chess Chief in the aptly named Tenacious Stakes. Breaking from post 10, Chess Chief stalked the leaders while in heavy traffic for most of the run through the backstretch. At the top of the lane, it was a battle to the wire between Chess Chief, Happy American and Pirate's Punch. Chess Chief prevailed by the slimmest of margins in a final time of 1:43.39 for the 1 1/16-mile dirt contest.

In the following race, Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen gave a leg up to Gutierrez on Halo Again in the Buddy Diliberto Memorial, held over 1 1/16 miles on the Stall-Wilson turf course. Quickest from the gate at odds of 8-1, Halo Again made every pole a winning one while repelling the late run of Pixelate and Monarchs Glen to post a one-half length win in 1:43.22. The win was Gutierrez's third of the day and the second riding for Asmussen.

“It means the world to me,” the 26-year-old Gutierrez told Fair Grounds publicity. “The credit goes to (agent) Jose Santos. “We're everywhere – I rode at Turfway on Thursday, here at Fair Grounds, at Oaklawn. I'm just trying work hard. I'd like to be a part of at least one horse for every stable on this backside and get everybody to know me. I'll ride for anybody. It doesn't have to be a favorite.”

A finalist for the 2018 Eclipse Award for Outstanding Apprentice, Gutierrez was born in Rochester, New York. He is the son of Finger Lakes trainer Luis Gutierrez and his uncle is retired Finger Lakes jockey Jose Gutierrez.

Weekly statistics for Gutierrez were 15-3-2-3 and purse earnings of $176,178. He currently sits in second place in Fair Grounds standings with 17 wins and $669,650 in purses.

Other nominees for Jockey of the Week were Alex M. Cruz who was tied with Luis Saez for number of wins for the week, Kevin Roman with a 31.5 percent win rate, Luis Saez with two stakes wins, and John Velazquez who won the G1 La Brea.

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In what looked like a competitive contest, the well-supported 11/8 favorite raced at the head of affairs alongside Exalted Angel before settling proceedings in a matter of strides swinging off the home turn.

Good Effort was clear entering the final furlong and stayed on strongly to score by two and a quarter lengths from the 2019 winner Judicial. Soldier's Minute was a short-head further back in third in a blanket finish for the places.

This was the fourth success in as many starts at Lingfield Park for Good Effort, who also captured the Listed Betway Kachy Stakes in 2020.

Ismail Mohammed's assistant trainer Jose Santos said: “Good Effort is a horse we have always believed is the best All-Weather sprinter in the UK.

“He is a real natural sprinter and hopefully connections decide to keep him here for the All-Weather Championships.

“He doesn't have that much mileage for a six-year-old and I think he still has plenty to offer.”

Winning rider Jim Crowley said: “Good Effort is a handy horse, isn't he?

“He gets a bit lonely in front having killed the race off on the bend. I had to keep him up to his work because Jose [Santos, assistant trainer] said to me that he pulled up in Dubai when Frankie rode him and just got caught.

“He is one of those horses who wins his race at halfway. He is very fast and whether it's five or six furlongs, he has enough boot for both. I remember riding him work in Dubai and being impressed with him that day.

“He has won in France and run well in Dubai, and he didn't run too badly in Belmont last time. It just didn't quite work out for him because they went slow out there, which is unusual for an American sprint.

“It's just a question of whether he stays here for the All-Weather Championships or goes on his travels again, but it will take a quick one to beat him around here.”

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The winning formula for Jose “Joe” Santos Jr. is to try and revolutionize the profession through strength in numbers, eventually creating a corporate-like business model.

Santos, 26, represents five riders at four tracks. The bulky roster briefly reached six earlier this year and included two for most of the Oaklawn meet in David Cabrera, its second-leading rider in 2018 who is headed toward another runner-up finish in 2021, and Ken Tohill, a veteran approaching 4,000 career victories. Tohill won nine races in Hot Springs before recently departing for Prairie Meadows in Iowa. Santos also books mounts for Miguel Mena and Albin Jimenez at Churchill Downs in Kentucky, Reylu Gutierrez at Lone Star Park in Texas and Freddy Manrrique at Will Rogers Downs in Oklahoma.

“I would say it's abnormal to have a jockey on four or five different circuits,” Santos said.

Under Arkansas rules, agents can represent as many as two journeymen and one apprentice rider during the Oaklawn meeting. Some Oaklawn-based agents do have riders in multiple jurisdictions, with Bobby Dean, for example, representing two-time local champion Terry Thompson and newcomer Elvin Gonzalez this year in Hot Springs and Glenn Corbett at Turf Paradise in Arizona.

But five riders in four states?

“My deal is I worked at Turf Paradise for 15 years,” said Dean, an agent since the fall of 1997. “I mean, I know everybody. I had Glenn Corbett all those years. It's not like I'm down there with a kid somebody might not know. I'm down there with a guy that's been there, so I'm barely skirting the line. (Santos) is sharp enough to do it. But I'm old school. I'm still here early. I guess as the long as the jocks keep going for it, it will be good.”

Santos, whose father retired with more than 4,000 victories and was a 2007 inductee into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, said he has been eying a mass-representation/multi-jurisdiction concept for some time, adding COVID-19 restrictions “kind of forced it,” with everything moving online last spring.

“I wanted to start an agency, myself,” Santos said. “The only way to do that is to prove that is I can do it on my own at first. Once I get enough traction and business going, I think it's been heading in the right direction, we can expand it from there and get some people hired on eventually.”

Santos began his career as an agent in December 2013, initially representing Aldo Canchano, then Didiel Osorio in February 2014. Santos had Cabrera, Israel Rodriguez and apprentice Luis Fuentes to open the 2019 Oaklawn meeting before landing the nationally prominent Mena that spring. Santos essentially flew solo with Mena for approximately a year before adding Declan Carroll in April 2020, reuniting with Cabrera in May 2020, picking up Jimenez in November, Gutierrez and Tohill around New Year's Day and Manrrique for the Will Rogers meet that began in late March. Santos and Mena rekindled their business relationship in April. Santos no longer represents Tohill and Carroll, leaving the agent to juggle just five riders in late April.

“Santos, he's sharp,” Dean said. “If anybody can handle it, it's Santos.”

Santos spent much of early 2020 in Hot Springs (his girlfriend, youthful stakes-winning owner Carson McCord, is a resident), but agents were unable to beat the backside at tracks like Oaklawn, and later Churchill Downs, because of COVID-19 restrictions that barred them from the barn area. The racing office became off limits, too. Armed with a computer, condition books and cell phone, Santos began conducting business from home, entering by phone and watching post position draws through Zoom conference calls, again related to COVID-19 restrictions.

“This is kind of been a goal for a while,” said Santos, who also has represented Eclipse Award-winning apprentice Tyler Baze. “Just didn't know how to make it work. I kind of always thought the only way that it was going to be able to work was to hire other people on, do the charting, and have them do all the ground work. Like I said, with COVID happening, it worked out to where I was able to do it.”

So far, so good.

Santos' riding roster has collected more than 120 victories and $5 million in purse money this year. Agents normally receive around 25 to 30 percent of a jockey's total earnings.

“You work hard when you're young to not have to when you're older, right?” Santos said. “Ultimately, the goal would be to own an agency at some point in my life and have other agents work for me and just get a percent off of that, based off tying up the connections, to where I don't have to do any of this bookwork anymore. But that's years, years, years down the line.”

Santos was profiled by Fox Sports recently.

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Oklahoma-bred Welder is the 2-1 program favorite for the 10th race – the Oaklawn Handicap and Apple Blossom are bookends – a conditioned sprint for older horses. Welder will be making his first start since a Dec. 19, 2020, allowance victory at Remington Park. It was his record-tying 15th career victory at the Oklahoma City venue.

Luneack said the 8-year-old gray gelding was rerouted to Oaklawn after the $50,000 Highland Ice Stakes Tuesday at Will Rogers Downs near Tulsa was canceled because of lack of entries. Will Rogers is Welder's home track and he is based just a couple of miles away.

“He's fit, ready to run and ready to rock,” Luneack said after Welder galloped Thursday morning at Oaklawn under regular rider David Cabrera. “Jose Santos said, 'Bring him to Oaklawn.' I said, 'Well, I'll see what I can do.' The race came up on the extras and it was a perfect fit.”

Santos is the agent for Cabrera. In Welder's only Oaklawn appearance, he finished third, beaten two lengths by future Eclipse Award winner Whitmore, in the $150,000 Hot Springs Stakes for older sprinters in 2019. Welder is a legend in Oklahoma, amassing 15 career stakes victories between Remington Park and Will Rogers Downs and has a 26-5-4 mark from 38 starts overall and earnings of $1,204,042.

Luneack said Welder was under consideration for the $500,000 Count Fleet Sprint Handicap (G3) last Saturday at Oaklawn, but the gelding's priority has always been Oklahoma.

“We try to help Oklahoma racing, so we really wanted to run in the Oklahoma stake,” Luneack said. “We passed on the Count Fleet because we were trying to promote Oklahoma, but obviously that didn't work. He probably should have run in the Count Fleet.”

Luneack said Welder arrived Wednesday night for Saturday's 6-furlong race, which has a $108,000 purse – roughly three times higher than his last start.

“It's always a challenge for us,” Luneack said. “We don't haul him a lot. But now that we have to be here three days prior, I actually think that might be to Welder's advantage because he can come in and go to the racetrack to gallop and relax. Maybe a couple of trips to the track without racing will help him settle in a little better.”

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The rewards came with sacrifices including time away from his older children as they grew up. But he now has plenty of time to spend with his wife Grace and their only child, 6-year-old Manuel. Their family interaction includes evening walks and playing video games.

“It is a lot of work and a lot of fun to raise a little kid,” Santos said. “I spend a lot of time with him.”

Santos balances family hours with his Monday-through-Friday job for a South Florida feed company that he once owned. The business supplies products to Palm Meadows and Palm Beach Downs training centers and to Gulfstream Park.

“What I do is mingle with people and take orders (for delivery),” he said.  “I get to see a lot of my old friends. That is my favorite part. I have a lot of friends who are jockeys, exercise riders, grooms and hotwalkers. I talk to everybody. We talk about the horses, what happened the day before at the races, stuff like that. I try to watch some horses during training.”

Santos also dabbles in buying and selling Thoroughbreds and has been instrumental in importing purchases from his native Chile.

He has adjusted to a lifestyle that includes going to the races on big event days but he admits his forced retirement was once a struggle. Known for his easy-going personality and competitive nature, Santos expected to compete at least until age 50, but the plan fell apart on Feb. 1, 2007 when he suffered multiple spinal fractures in a three-horse spill at Aqueduct. He officially announced his retirement at age 46 on July 30 of that year, a week before his induction into the Hall of Fame.

“I don't miss riding anymore but the first year was tough,” he said. “Now I am good; I have accepted it.”

Santos said he mostly misses the camaraderie of the jockeys' quarters.

“That was a lot of fun,” he said. “We had competition with each other but we were like family.”

In addition to keeping in touch with those former colleagues and other jockeys, Santos has a strong connection to racing through his son Jose Jr. who is agent for Kentucky-based Declan Cannon and Miguel Mena. The younger Jose intended to follow in his father's footsteps but his size quickly stopped that idea. While attending Bellarmine University in Louisville, he gravitated back to the track.

“In a way he got lucky because he grew up too much,” the elder Santos said. “He is a very good agent. He has a very good mind and a good head on his shoulders. He is very smart and very good with people. My friends always tell me what a nice guy he is. That makes me very proud.”

As a father to a total of three sons and three daughters, Santos set an example that diligence and appreciation of others leads to success.

“Work hard and be respectful,” he said. “That will bring you to a different level and take you a long way in the end.”

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