Castellano Seeks Fourth Riding Title at Gulfstream
For the past three winters, Javier Castellano has dominated Gulfstream Park’s star-studded riding colony like no jockey before him. He set the bar even higher in 2013-14, crushing his own single-meet victory total and capturing both his first Florida Derby and the Eclipse Award as champion rider.
The 37-year-old Venezuelan looks to build on his success when he returns for Gulfstream’s 2014-15 Championship meet this afternoon with two mounts on Wednesday's 10-race program.
“I’m looking forward to the meet,” Castellano said. “I think it’s going to be a great meet. We’re excited to be here.”
Through December 4, Castellano led all North American jockeys with more than $24.4 million in purse earnings and was second with 300 victories, including 28 graded stakes, nine of them in Grade 1 races, most recently taking the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf with Dayatthespa.
He topped both categories in 2013, finishing with 362 wins and $26,218,107 in purses, breaking Ramon Dominguez’s single-season mark of $25,634,852 aboard I Ain’t Gonna Lie on December 13 at Gulfstream.
Castellano finished the Championship meet with 132 wins and $5.3 million in purses, breaking the mark of 112 victories he set in his first title season of 2011-12. He picked up No. 113 on March 12 aboard Bartiromo for trainer Chad Brown, who also has Dayatthespa.
“I’m very excited,” Castellano said. “I’m very motivated to come down every year. It’s such a great meet. I’m very honored to participate at Gulfstream Park because I always say it’s the best meet. You hook up with all the best riders in the country. So many places are closed for the winter and they all kind of end up in the same spot, and there are some very good local riders, too, who have their own business in Florida.”
Castellano is the first jockey in Gulfstream history to reach triple digits in wins, a level he has reached in all of his title seasons, including 100 in 2012-13. He has averaged 114.6 victories and nearly $4.6 million in purse earnings over the past three years.
Another Championship meet title would make Castellano the first rider to win four consecutive Gulfstream Park titles outright. Jorge Chavez also won three in a row from 1999 to 2001.
“It’s going to be a tough meet like it always is, but I’m very thankful and blessed to be in the position I am, with the support of all the owners and trainers who have supported me the last few years,” Castellano said. “I have to give so much credit to my agent, Matt Muzikar, for finding the best horses for me to ride.”
On January 18, Castellano picked up his first statue as North America’s leading jockey, and he is a leading contender to earn his second when Gulfstream hosts the annual 44th annual Eclipe Awards ceremony on January 17, 2015.
At Gulfstream Park, Castellano has won 47 career graded stakes including his first Florida Derby (G1) on March 15 with WinStar Farm’s Constitution. The 3-year-old sustained a cracked shin the following month while training and only returned to racing last month, gearing up for a 2015 campaign. He will be based in South Florida with trainer Todd Pletcher.
Castellano is poised to earn his 4,000th career victory during the Championship meet, sitting at 3,932 and counting. It was at Gulfstream where he picked up win No. 3,000, on February 24, 2012.
Other highlights for Castellano at Gulfstream include winning the Gulfstream Park Turf Handicap (G1) with Jambalaya in 2007; setting a world record for 1 ½ miles on turf when riding Twilight Eclipse to victory in the 2012 Pan American (G2); and guiding top female sprinter Sugar Swirl to a sweep of the First Lady, Hurricane Bertie and Shirley Jones handicaps in 2008.
Earlier this year, Castellano shared the Belmont Park spring-summer meet title with Irad Ortiz, Jr. at 51 wins apiece and captured his second consecutive championship at Saratoga Race Course with 58 victories in 40 days. He was second to Ortiz, 46-43, at Belmont’s fall meet.
"The results speak to the owners and trainers who put me in that position,” Castellano said. “I never take anything for granted because this is such a tough business. You can’t lay back and say I did this or I did that. You need to be very competitive and you need to stay on top of the game. I’ve been working so many years for these moments and I’m very blessed and thankful that the opportunity came at the right time, in the right place. You need to work hard for that moment.”
Source: Gulfstream Park