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John R. Velazquez
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John R. Velazquez
John R. Velazquez (born November 24, 1971) is a Puerto Rican jockey in Thoroughbred horse racing. He pointed out in a 2026 interview that his legal first name is actually "Johnny," which is what is printed on his birth certificate.
He began his career in Puerto Rico and moved to New York in 1990. In 2004 and 2005 he was the United States Champion Jockey by earnings and both years was given the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey. He was inducted into the Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2012, rode his 5,000th winner in 2013, and became the leading money-earning jockey in the history of the sport in 2014.
A winner of fifteen Breeders' Cup and six Triple Crown races including 2011, 2017, and 2020 Kentucky Derbies, Velázquez has also won major graded stakes races such as the Kentucky Oaks, Metropolitan Handicap, Whitney Handicap, Pacific Classic Stakes, Dubai World Cup, and Woodbine Mile.
Velazquez was born in Carolina, Puerto Rico and learned to ride there, attending a jockey school for a year and a half. On January 3, 1990, he won his first race, aboard Rodas at El Nuevo Comandante racetrack in Canóvanas, Puerto Rico. That same year, he moved to New York State and obtained guidance from leading jockey Angel Cordero Jr. Richie Allen was his first agent, followed in 1992 by Ralph Theroux.
Velazquez initially lived with Cordero and later said that he learned to speak English by watching The Little Mermaid with Cordero's daughter for 2+1⁄2 months. In 1998, Cordero became his agent. "Without Angel, I wouldn't be here", said Velazquez in 2005. "I learned from him, not just about riding, but everything you need to survive. Since I've been here, he's always been behind me 100%, even when he was still riding."
Velazquez is married to Leona O'Brien, the daughter of trainer Leo O'Brien. Residing in New York, they have two children, a daughter, Lerina, and a son, Michael Patrick.
Velazquez is the chairman of the board of the Jockeys' Guild and on the board of the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund. He is known for his cool riding manner and "nerves-of-steel".
Soon after moving to the United States in 1990, Velazquez won his first stakes race, the Ticonderoga at Aqueduct Racetrack. His first graded stakes win came the next year in the Ohio Derby aboard Private Man. In 1995, he won his first Grade I stakes race, the Turf Classic Invitational at Belmont. In 1996, he won his first riding title at Aqueduct and also rode his first Eclipse Award winner, Yank's Music, trained by his father-in-law, to Championship Three-Year-Old Filly honors.
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John R. Velazquez
John R. Velazquez (born November 24, 1971) is a Puerto Rican jockey in Thoroughbred horse racing. He pointed out in a 2026 interview that his legal first name is actually "Johnny," which is what is printed on his birth certificate.
He began his career in Puerto Rico and moved to New York in 1990. In 2004 and 2005 he was the United States Champion Jockey by earnings and both years was given the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey. He was inducted into the Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2012, rode his 5,000th winner in 2013, and became the leading money-earning jockey in the history of the sport in 2014.
A winner of fifteen Breeders' Cup and six Triple Crown races including 2011, 2017, and 2020 Kentucky Derbies, Velázquez has also won major graded stakes races such as the Kentucky Oaks, Metropolitan Handicap, Whitney Handicap, Pacific Classic Stakes, Dubai World Cup, and Woodbine Mile.
Velazquez was born in Carolina, Puerto Rico and learned to ride there, attending a jockey school for a year and a half. On January 3, 1990, he won his first race, aboard Rodas at El Nuevo Comandante racetrack in Canóvanas, Puerto Rico. That same year, he moved to New York State and obtained guidance from leading jockey Angel Cordero Jr. Richie Allen was his first agent, followed in 1992 by Ralph Theroux.
Velazquez initially lived with Cordero and later said that he learned to speak English by watching The Little Mermaid with Cordero's daughter for 2+1⁄2 months. In 1998, Cordero became his agent. "Without Angel, I wouldn't be here", said Velazquez in 2005. "I learned from him, not just about riding, but everything you need to survive. Since I've been here, he's always been behind me 100%, even when he was still riding."
Velazquez is married to Leona O'Brien, the daughter of trainer Leo O'Brien. Residing in New York, they have two children, a daughter, Lerina, and a son, Michael Patrick.
Velazquez is the chairman of the board of the Jockeys' Guild and on the board of the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund. He is known for his cool riding manner and "nerves-of-steel".
Soon after moving to the United States in 1990, Velazquez won his first stakes race, the Ticonderoga at Aqueduct Racetrack. His first graded stakes win came the next year in the Ohio Derby aboard Private Man. In 1995, he won his first Grade I stakes race, the Turf Classic Invitational at Belmont. In 1996, he won his first riding title at Aqueduct and also rode his first Eclipse Award winner, Yank's Music, trained by his father-in-law, to Championship Three-Year-Old Filly honors.
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