Jacinto Vásquez (born January 4, 1944) is a retired Panamanian

thoroughbred horse racing Thoroughbred racing is a sport and Horse industry, industry involving the Horse racing, racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter know ...

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used ...

. He rode two

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...

winners,

Foolish Pleasure Foolish Pleasure (March 23, 1972 – November 17, 1994) was an American bay Thoroughbred race horse who won the 1975 Kentucky Derby. Background Foolish Pleasure was a bay horse bred at Williston, Florida by Waldemar Farms, Inc. He was owned by ...

in 1975 and the filly Genuine Risk in 1980. He was also the regular jockey for the champion filly Ruffian.

Biography

Vasquez began working at the Presidente Remon Racetrack in Panama at age 15, and became a leading apprentice rider there before moving to the United States in 1960. He was based in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

for much of his career, and also frequently rode at

Calder Race Course Calder Casino is a casino located in Miami Gardens, Florida. It includes slots, electronic table games, and bingo. The casino opened in 2010 and features a gaming floor with 1,100 slot machines, including video poker, as well as electronic rou ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. During his career Vasquez was the only jockey to defeat

Secretariat Secretariat may refer to: * Secretariat (administrative office) * Secretariat (horse) Secretariat (March 30, 1970 – October 4, 1989), also known as Big Red, was a champion American thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who was the ninth winn ...

three times: in the

Wood Memorial The Wood Memorial Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in April at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, Queens, New York. It is run over a distance of 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on dirt. The Wood Memorial ...

with Angle Light, in the

Whitney Handicap The Whitney Stakes (run as the Whitney Handicap through 2013 and still sometimes referred to as such) is an American Grade 1 stakes race for Thoroughbred racehorses four years of age and older run at a distance of miles. The current purse is $1, ...

aboard Onion, and in Secretariat's maiden race aboard Quebec. In 1975, Vasquez was the regular jockey for both Kentucky Derby winner Foolish Pleasure and Triple Tiara winner Ruffian. When "The Great match race" was set on July 6, 1975, between the two horses was arranged, Vasquez chose to ride Ruffian, leaving Foolish Pleasure for

Braulio Baeza Braulio Baeza (born March 26, 1940) is a Panamanian-American thoroughbred horse racing jockey. In 1963, he was the first Latin American jockey to win the Kentucky Derby. Biography Baeza began his racing career in 1955 in Panama at Hipodromo Ju ...

. Beginning in February 1984, Jacinto Vasquez served a one-year suspension for attempting to

bribe Bribery is the corrupt solicitation, payment, or acceptance of a private favor (a bribe) in exchange for official action. The purpose of a bribe is to influence the actions of the recipient, a person in charge of an official duty, to act contrar ...

another jockey, a charge going back to 1975 which he vehemently denied and had fought through racing authority hearings and through the

court A court is an institution, often a government entity, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and Administration of justice, administer justice in Civil law (common law), civil, Criminal law, criminal, an ...

s for nearly ten years. Vasquez was the leading jockey at Calder five times, in the seasons ending in 1973, 1974, 1980, 1981, and 1991. Over his 37-year career, he raced 37,392 times, winning 14% of his races. When he retired in 1996, he was 15th on the all-time wins list for jockeys. He was elected to the

National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred horse racing, Thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and Horse trainer, trainers. In 1955, the museum ...

in 1998 and the Calder Hall of Fame in 1999. Since retiring as a jockey, Jacinto Vasquez has remained in racing and is now

training Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge or fitness that relate to specific useful competencies. Training has specific goals of improving one's capability, capacity, productivity and performance. I ...

horses in

Ocala, Florida Ocala ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Marion County, Florida, United States. Located in North Central Florida, the city's population was 63,591 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, up from 56,315 at the 2010 census and making ...

References

National Racing Hall of Fame biography

Calder Race Course biography

Gene Smith, "Ruffian"
, American Heritage, September 1993
"Surgery for Vasquez", New York Times, February 26, 1994 (source for birthdate)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vasquez, Jacinto Living people 1944 births Panamanian jockeys American jockeys United States Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame inductees Panamanian emigrants to the United States