Quote:
Originally Posted by helicopter11
Interesting that the other Jockeys said no to American Pharoah. Is it because they dont want to be "contract" rider exclusively for Baffert? I knew that Martin Garcia had issues not getting other top horses because he was first call for Baffert. Could this be the case for the others?
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I read that in Tim Layden's article:
http://www.si.com/horse-racing/2015/...wn-bob-baffert
Quote:
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Baffert’s first choice to replace Garcia had been Rafael Bejarano, but he was unavailable. Baffert tried Mike Smith. Also unavailable. Baffert even tried Gary Stevens, but Stevens had undergone recent knee replacement surgery and wasn’t ready to resume riding. Meanwhile, agent Brian Beach had contacted Baffert and told him that Espinoza was available. Espinoza had once been a regular rider for Baffert, but the two had seldom worked together in recent years. “Victor is pretty calm out there,” said Baffert. “I figured maybe he would be good for the horse.”
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So Stevens is explained in the article.
Looked at the chart from that race and Mike Smith rode Iron Fist for Hollendorfer (finished third) and Bejarano rode Red Button for Mark Glatt (finished 6th)