Derby winner Sonny León will ride full time at Gulfstream

Sonny León, who burst onto the national scene when guiding Rich Strike to an upset win in this year’s Kentucky Derby, reportedly will ride full-time at Gulfstream Park beginning Saturday.

León has been riding regularly at Belterra Park in Ohio this summer where he ranks third in the jockey’s standings with 29 wins from 155 starts. On Saturday, he is booked on six horses at Gulfstream Park including Easy Come Easy Go in the featured $75,000 Azalea Stakes.

León’s book has been handled by agent Jeff Perrin, but he will have different representation in South Florida. Perrin told Thoroughbred Daily News, which first reported León’s pending move, “(Leon) will be working” with jockey Emisael Jaramillo’s agent, who is Bryce Soth.

“He's going to move his tack there for now and give it a shot,” Perrin told TDN. “His last day in Ohio will be Friday and then he'll head to Florida.”

According to Equibase, Leon began riding in 2015. He earned his first and only graded-stakes win when booting Rich Strike to victory in the Kentucky Derby at 80-1. It was the second-biggest upset in the race's 148-year history.

Leon was riding at Belterra Park on Thursday and was not available for comment. Soth did not respond to text and voice messages from Horse Racing Nation.

Entering Thursday’s action León had already set a career high in purse earnings for a year with $3,990,868 in 2022. Of that total, $1.86 million was earned via the Kentucky Derby.

The move to Gulfstream will allow León to compete for higher purses than at Belterra Park and other smaller Midwest tracks where he has largely plied his trade. On Saturday he has calls for such trainers as Mark Casse, Mike Maker and David Braddy.