By February 1962, after Braulio Baeza had won the 1961 Belmont Stakes, Sports Illustrated was writing about ‘ The Latin Invasion’ of Thoroughbred racing. Since then there have only been two Triple Crown races (the 19 Preakness Stakes) without at least one Hispanic jockey. Riding Tim Tam, Valenzuela won the Derby and went on to win the Preakness and finish second in the Belmont. The first Hispanic rider to start a Triple Crown race was Joseph Rodriguez, who finished second on Upset, behind Man o’ War, in the 1920 Preakness Stakes**. But Hispanic jockeys really took off around 1958, when for the first time two Hispanics, Manuel Ycaza and Ismael (Milo) Valenzuela, started the Kentucky Derby. In recent Triple Crown races, 60 to 70 percent of starters have had Hispanic last names. In 2016, Hispanic jockeys started more races and won more money than jockeys from all other groups combined.

Since 2000 alone the percentage of North American jockeys with Hispanic surnames has risen from 30 to 50 percent. Yet in recent decades, no group has dominated the saddle like Hispanics. Cajun jockeys from Louisiana have enjoyed disproportionate success. Then black jockeys were pushed out by discrimination, and Anglo and Irish American jockeys dominated the sport. In the 19 th and early 20 th centuries, about a third of licensed jockeys were black. Thoroughbred racing, different racial and ethnic groups have enjoyed periods of ascendance.

Legends together: from left, Joel Rosario (born in the Dominican Republic), Javier Castellano (from Venezuela), Jose Ortiz (Puerto Rico) and John Velazquez (Puerto Rico) are all in the world top 20 in the TRC world rankings.

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