In the days leading up to the Pegasus World Championships, it was touch and go as to whether Irad Ortiz, Jr. would be released to ride following a knee injury at Gulfstream Park on Jan. 7. But the three-time Eclipse Award-winning Ortiz, Jr. was medically cleared and rode into the winner's circle in both Grade 1 events of the day. With the wins, Ortiz, Jr. was voted Jockey of the Week. The honor, which is voted on by a panel of racing experts, is for jockeys who are members of the Jockeys' Guild, the organization which represents more than 1,050 active, retired and permanently disabled jockeys in the United States.
Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher gave a leg up to Ortiz, Jr. on defending champion, Colonel Liam in the G1 World Cup Turf Invitational. Despite a layoff of nearly eight months, Colonel Liam went off as the favorite in the field of 12. While racing off the pace, Ortiz, Jr. and Colonel Liam crept steadily closer to the leader, stablemate, Never Surprised. The pair took command at the eighth pole and drew clear to win by a length in 1:47.48 for the 1 1/8-mile distance. Ortiz, Jr. has now won three of the four runnings of the World Pegasus Turf Invitational.
“He didn't lose a step,” said Ortiz, Jr.. “He's healthy and he's strong. He did everything right. I asked him a little early and when I asked him to go, he just went on.”
The G1 Pegasus World Cup was thought to be a match race between presumed Horse of the Year Knicks Go with Joel Rosario in the irons for trainer Brad Cox and Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile winner Life Is Good ridden by Ortiz, Jr. for trainer Todd Pletcher.
Off as the slight favorite, Life Is Good took control a sixteenth of a mile into the race and was never seriously threatened, covering 1 1/8 miles in 1:48.91 to post a winning margin of 3-1/4 lengths.
“I respect the other horse a lot,” said Ortiz, Jr. “I thought it was going to be a match race. But going into the first turn, my horse was so fast so I just let him do this thing. I felt like a lot of horse and I couldn't wait to let him run. I just wanted to get to the second turn. But when I let him go, he kept going.”
Ortiz, Jr.'s statistics for the week were 27-6-6-6 for an in-the-money rate of 66 percent and total purse earnings of $2,508,970 to lead all jockeys.
Other nominees for Jockey of the Week were Victor Carrasco with three stakes wins at Laurel. Harry Hernandez who won two stakes races at Sunland and led all jockeys for the week in wins with 11, Jose Ortiz who won the G3 Pegasus Filly and Mare Turf, and Joel Rosario with two stakes wins at Gulfstream Park and two stakes wins at Sam Houston.
