Report: Veteran jockey Willie Martínez will retire from saddle

Jockey Willie Martínez will retire from riding and begin working as a regional manager for the Jockeys’ Guild starting next Saturday.

Martínez made the announcement on an interview over the Presque Isle Downs racetrack feed on Thursday according to a report from Byron King of BloodHorse. As a reason for retiring from riding, he mentioned wanting to spend more time with his family including his son Mateo.

Dating back to 1989, Willie Martínez has 3,721 wins from 26,989 North American starts. He won 38 graded-stakes races including three at the Grade 1 level, including the 2012 Breeders' Cup Sprint with Trinniberg, the 2009 Breeders' Futurity (G1) with Noble's Promise and the 2006 Donn Handicap (G1) with Brass Hat.

He has 38 wins in 277 starts this year including two stakes wins, with He’s a Mess in the Hard Spun Stakes at Presque Isle Downs in July and Generous Lover in the Angenora Stakes at Thistledown in September.

Martínez was named on one mount Saturday. He is slated to ride Tom Drury trainee Who Dey in the Best of Ohio Endurance Stakes at Mahoning Valley. Who Dey, fourth behind Tumbarumba in the Ack Ack (G3) last out, won the Best of Ohio Endurance last year under Martínez and is even-money on the morning line.