Mario Gutierrez (jockey)

Mario Gutierrez
Mario Gutierrez with 2012 Preakness Stakes trophy.
Occupation	Jockey
Born	c. 1987 (age 28–29) Veracruz, Mexico
Career wins	660+
Major racing wins
British Columbia Premiers Handicap (2007) Ballerina Stakes (2009) Wilshire Handicap (2012) Robert B. Lewis Stakes (2012) Santa Anita Derby (2012) Kentucky Derby (2012) Preakness Stakes (2012) Royal Heroine Mile Stakes (2012) Longacres Mile Handicap (2012) Sorrento Stakes (2013) American Classic Race wins: Kentucky Derby (2012) Preakness Stakes (2012) Breeders' Cup wins: Breeders' Cup Juvenile (2015)
Racing awards
Hastings Park Champion Jockey (2007, 2008)

Mario Gutierrez (born c. 1987 in Veracruz, Mexico) is a Mexican Thoroughbred horse racing jockey who won the 2012 Santa Anita Derby, Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes aboard I'll Have Another, a colt owned by Windsor, Ontario, native J. Paul Reddam and his wife Zillah.^[1][2]

Biography

The son of a jockey, Gutierrez rode Quarter Horses in his native El Higo, Veracruz and in Mexico City beginning at age 14. In 2006 he emigrated to Canada where he began riding at Hastings Racecourse in Vancouver, British Columbia, and where he won riding titles in 2007 and 2008.^[3][4][5]

In 2012 he rode I'll Have Another and won the February 4 Robert B. Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. The pair followed up with a win in the April 7 Santa Anita Derby, and on May 5, 2012, in what then retired U.S. Racing Hall of Fame jockey and NBC race commentor Gary Stevens called a "masterful ride," won the Kentucky Derby.

It was the Derby debut for the 25-year-old jockey.^[6] After the race, Gutierrez described I'll Have Another as "an amazing horse," and said that "from the first time I met him, I knew he was the one."^[7]

Year-end charts

Chart (2012–present)	Peak position
National Earnings List for Jockeys 2012	40
National Earnings List for Jockeys 2013	62
National Earnings List for Jockeys 2015	29

References

1. "jockey mario gutierrez to take first derby mount". Thoroughbred Times. March 5, 2012. Retrieved May 6, 2012.
2. "FloridaToday.com". FloridaToday.com. Retrieved May 6, 2012.
3. Zacharias, Yvonne (May 5, 2012). "Mario Gutierrez takes unlikely path from poverty to Kentucky Derby win via east Vancouver racecourse". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved May 20, 2012.
4. Cam Tucker (May 19, 2012). "Mario Gutierrez, I'll Have Another wins 137th Preakness Stakes". Vancouver Sun.
5. "jockey mario gutierrez long route winner circle kentucky derby aboard". New York Daily News. May 6, 2012. Retrieved May 6, 2012.
6. Beth Harris (Associated Press) (May 5, 2012). "Canadian-owned I'll Have Another wins Kentucky Derby". Toronto Star. Retrieved May 6, 2012.
7. "BBC Sport - I'll Have Another takes surprise Kentucky Derby win". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved May 6, 2012.