Panici retires, Zayas heads north as Gulfstream meet wraps
Jockey Luca Panici, a mainstay at South Florida tracks since 2010, retired from riding after Sunday's program at Gulfstream Park.
The 52-year-old Italian-born jockey has ridden 943 winners in the U.S. A son of Italy's leading jockey in the 1970s and 1980s, Panici rode more than 500 winners in Europe.
"I feel good. It's time. I'm 52. I made the decision to retire right now when I still have business," said Panici, who rode 14 winners during the 2025-2026 championship meet that concluded Sunday.
Although he plans to step away from riding, Panici will not leave Gulfstream Park. He will begin working on the track crew.
"I don't know yet what I'm going to do, but I will be on the track crew," he said. "I'm not going to ride, but I'm not leaving the track."
A frequent visitor to Gulfstream during the Italian off-season before moving to South Florida full-time, Panici rode his first race in the U.S. in 1997 and won his first American race Nov. 25, 2005, at Calder Race Course.
Panici won three graded stakes in his career: Another Romance in the 2012 Azalea (G3), Sole Volante in the 2020 Sam F. Davis (G3) and Maryquitecontrary in the 2023 Inside Information (G2), the latter at Gulfstream.
New York-bound Zayas bids farewell to Gulfstream Sunday
Edgard Zayas spent his last day riding full-time at Gulfstream on Sunday, a track where he won nine meet titles since launching his career in the fall of 2012. A finalist for the Eclipse Award as champion apprentice of 2013, the popular 32-year-old native of Puerto Rico is moving his tack to New York.
Zayas is named in two races Thursday and one race Friday at Aqueduct, for trainers Wayne Potts, José Jimenez and Chad Summers. A year-round force in South Florida since his arrival in the U.S., Zayas earned his first domestic win Nov. 17, 2012, at Calder Race Course. He picked up his 2,000th career victory Nov. 4, 2022, at Gulfstream aboard Miss You Ella and currently sits at 2,681.
Among his victories are 20 in graded stakes, from his first in the 2013 Princess Rooney (G1) on Starship Truffles to his most recent in the 2025 Pegasus Filly & Mare Turf (G2) aboard Be Your Best, both at Gulfstream.
Zayas ranked third at the 2025-2026 championship meet with 54 wins, to go along with nearly $2.5 million in purse earnings. Highlighting his victories were Mythical in the Any Limit and Destino d'Oro in the Tropical Park Oaks.
"I'm going to miss everyone. I've been a little emotional. This past week, I'm feeling it," Zayas said. "I'm leaving my family here a little while until we can get settled up there. It's going to be a big change, but hopefully it's going to be the best thing ever."