Some Insight From A Jockey Agent

[TheSpokesman]

In my career as a jockey agent I have represented numerous jockeys on the Louisiana circuit including Rico Flores, Amanda Crandall, and Beverly Burress (who won the leading apprentice title at Oaklawn Park in her bug year). I am sometimes amused at the capsule comments in the Daily Racing Form, and thought I would offer a little insight on one of my favorites.

I'm sure you have seen a race where two horses of seemingly equal ability that were ridden by the same jockey in their most recent race are in again. Obviously, the jockey will only be named on one and the capsule comment will invariably say something like, "Jockey sticks" or "Flores lands here" which leads the handicapper to believe that the jockey has chosen the better of the two. Take it from me, this is not the case more often than not.

As an agent my job is to put my riders on the best horse, but sometimes I will have to ride the lesser animal due to circumstances beyond my control. Here are some examples:

1. My rider has been taken off. In this business a jockey is as good as his last ride. Trainers will make changes at the drop of a hat and offer no rational explanation for doing so. Just because a jockey finished 2nd on a horse last out does not mean he will be offered the mount today. In the recent Delta Downs meet that just closed my client Nick VanDeVoorde, an apprentice who began riding in late January, was given the mount on Foxy Foxy. The filly ran big for Nick after a considerable layoff and finished second after losing ground on the final turn. In her next out she was 4-5 and won with ridiculous ease. The rider was Steve Bourque. Trainer Gary Duhon apparently thought that a more experienced rider would benefit this horse who probably would have won with me in the saddle.

2. I had already given a call for the selected race. Agents have to be masters of anticipation. After a horse runs big for one of my riders I must study the condition book to anticipate where the horse will be entered next. I will then keep that spot open until the last minute in case the trainer decides to go there. However, trainers can change their mind at the last minute. Last year I took a call for Beverly Burress for trainer Steve Wren. At 8:00 a.m. on entry day Wren decided that he wanted to go in a turf race instead, and I had already given a call to someone else. When an agent gives a call he is expected to honor it. If he backs out on entry day (we call it "spinning") he is subject to a hefty fine from the Stewards and risks losing the barn.

So, how can you tell if the jockey and his agent have truly chosen the best horse today or if the decision was made for them. There is a reliable way.

Go to the racing office at your local track and get a copy of the condition book. These are available to anyone for free. In the back of the book there is a list of agents and their riders along with the agent's contact information. You will notice that we agents are permitted only 2 jockeys in most racing jurisdictions. One is usually a top-tier guy and the other is like a second-string quarterback. If my 2nd String rider is riding the other horse in today's race this likely means that I chose the superior animal for Rider 1 but thought enough of the second horse that I have made an attempt to keep it in the family. If my rider has been replaced by another agent's rider it is likely that I was taken off. The second horse may indeed be the better of the two, but I was not offered a chance to ride.

Take the capsule comments in the racing form with a grain of salt and apply some good common sense. This information may give you an edge that others don't have.

The Spokesman

[Tim Y]

How many of your riders WORK these same horses in the morning? many are idiosyncratic enough that without some experience in the irons, learning enough about them from just a warm up would be overwhelming. Rank ones, those with vision problems, those that bear out etc.

Always liked Cajun riders like Eric Guerin, L.J. Dorrouseau, Randy Romero and sometimes, Desormeaux but his stock has rapidly fallen with the Big Brown debacle. Reminds me of Roberto Duran saying No mas no mas.

[TheSpokesman]

I personally do not like to book mounts on anything we have not worked, usually multiple times, prior to entry.

My experience is that the harder my riders work in the morning the more they ride in the afternoon. I do not have much patience for a poor work ethic.

[Tim Y]

Over the years I have seen several studies trying to access how much the rider makes a difference. The true answer is that depends on the situation and there is NO right answer. Want a strength ride, get Pincay. Want a finesse ride, get a Shoe or Bailey. BUT at the max, other than than the true masters of the saddle. it would only be a 10-15% difference maybe, if an apprentice was replaced by MOST journeymen.

A good rider can make a good horse a bit better. But you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.

[TheSpokesman]

Well, a jockey certainly needs the horse beneath him to win. In my own handicapping the jockey is purely a secondary factor.

For the purposes of the discussion at hand I am simply offering some insight to the bettor who might be swayed by capsule comments in the Racing Form. If a jockey has a choice of which horse to ride it cannot be assumed he has "chosen" the best one. Lots more to it than that most of the time.

[TheSpokesman]

One additional thought. I suppose the essence of this post is to not attribute too much importance to jockey changes. They are rarely as important to the grand scheme as one may think. You can trust me on that. I book jockeys for a living.

One jockey I booked (I will omit the name here) had the reputation of being less-talented than his peers. At one Louisiana Downs meet we rode about 250 head and he won seven. Let me tell you, however, that Pat Day wouldn't have won on most of the stuff he was having to ride. If he had been riding the same head as the leading rider I am confident he would have performed almost as well.

Something else that you will see happen at a meet from time to time is that a rider will "get hot" over the course of one weekend and instantly become an overnight superstar. He's the same rider he was the day before. He simply benefitted from a good run and started getting on better horses.

I have a theory that I have developed as a jockey agent which springs from my observation and experience. There are three categories of jockey in racing. At the very top is a small group--about 5%--that do seem to be legitamately more talented than the others. At the bottom there is a similar group--about 5%--who seem to suffer from a lack of talent. The biggest group is the one in the middle--about 90%--who all possess similar ability. This 90% group is divided in the standings by the quality of head they ride, whether it be by virtue of a good agent or otherwise, and includes riders winning 20% and riders winning 7%. If you were to swap out the horses they ride the stats would flipflop.

Focus on the fundamentals.

[shipper]

Spokesman: Excellent post. Thanks for your insight on this. Question...Do you believe that a certain jockey's style will benefit a horse more than another jockey's style, and cause you to put a particular jockey on a particular type of horse? For example, in Northern California, my experience over the years has shown me that Russell Baze is a master at coming off the pace but will burn the horse up constantly if he needs a wire job. But Roberto Gonzalez is primo at getting a horse out of the gate and wiring the field, but falters when on a closer... Your thoughts? Thanks...

[TheSpokesman]

Shipper,you ask a great question.

Jockeys definitely have individual strengths and weaknesses. I'll give you a couple of examples. Jill Kinsey, who rides on the Louisiana circuit, can be formidable on a front-runner because she is pretty fearless and will throw a horse his head and not be afraid to let him run. On a pace-presser or deep closer Jill is somewhat weaker (in my opinion)because she's a very small lady and may have difficulty getting a horse to rate. On the other hand, Beverly Burress excels from off the pace because she has tremendous upper-body strength and an impeccable clock.

I used to tell my good friend Jeff Burningham who rode 40-50 winners per meet at Louisiana Downs that I hated to see him on a front-runner. He doesn't have the greatest sense of pace on the lead. On a few occasions Jeff would take a front-runner and give him a breather before making the final drive, and sometimes he gave them too much and would have to repass horses he had already cleared.

So, yes, jockeys have strengths and weaknesses and I try to be conscious of them when booking mounts for my riders.

[Tim Y]

Great as Laffit was, his Achilles heel was the lawn.

[reckless]

I just quit being an agent at Philly Park this fall and if i didn't know any better, I'd have thought that I wrote your first message --

Are you still hustling a rider?

If so, I have a good rider who is a very hard worker, and has ability to boot.

And more importantly, is a good payer with no b-s on pay day.

Please private message me if you'd like to talk about this for La Downs.