Top Jockey

While oftentimes horses win or lose races on their own, jockeys and trainers can play a key role in giving their horse the best chance to run to their potential. While horseplayers can look up jockey win percentages in a number of places across the web, Betting News jockey analysis tool provides a more in depth analysis of where jockeys may have a stronger impact on the outcome of a race.

Race setups are very different based on distance and surface. A sprint on dirt may require different tactics than a sprint on turf or a route on dirt. Even though a jockey may have an overall low percentage, they may get a disproportionate number of their wins or in-the-money finishes at a specific distance on a specific surface. If you can find this jockey you may be able to cash on a horse that other players are throwing out. Inversely, if you can find a high percentage jockey with bad stats in today's conditions, that can be equally as profitable.

With Betting News jockey analysis tool you can break down jockey stats by distance, surface, track, claiming level, and even post position to find these hidden angles that can be crucial elements in selecting winners at a price. As you adjust the filters the ratings will also adjust to reflect the jockey's past ability to finish in the top 3 placings in races under the selected conditions.

New to our tools? Read the handicapping tools guide. Also, don't forget to check out the trainer analysis tool to give yourself a further edge on the competition!

Track

Surface

Condition

Distances

Race Types

Posts

Top Jockeys

Name Starts Win % Show % DHP
1st/2nd/3rd
4th or 5th
6th +
Fraser Aebly 303 18% 50% Good
150
85
68
Jeiron Barbosa 268 21% 54% Good
145
48
75
Elio J Barrera 261 12% 42% Poor
110
68
83
Oscar Andrade Jr 252 16% 43% Poor
109
54
89
Armando Ayuso 225 10% 36% Bad
82
58
85
Junior Alvarado 214 13% 44% Poor
95
40
79
Erik Asmussen 207 21% 48% Good
100
47
60
Silvio Ruiz Amador 183 19% 53% Great
97
52
34
Bueno Nomar Arroyo 173 19% 49% Great
84
54
35
Jeffrey Ian Alderson 163 11% 40% Poor
66
39
58
Francisco Arrieta 157 11% 38% Bad
60
38
59
Armando Aguilar 156 7% 28% Bad
44
33
79
Abner Adorno 154 9% 42% Poor
65
37
52
Claudio Ponce Aguilar 148 9% 32% Bad
48
41
59
Denis Vicente Araujo 130 12% 48% Avg
63
32
35
Johanis Aranguren 121 19% 48% Good
58
30
33
Keith J Asmussen 119 11% 33% Bad
39
34
46
Reynier Arrieta 118 16% 43% Good
51
38
29
Cristian Alvarado 111 3% 26% Bad
29
32
50
Alex V Anaya 103 11% 39% Avg
40
35
28
Armando Alvidrez 97 24% 54% Great
52
20
25
Jose Mariano Asencio 97 16% 38% Avg
37
34
26
David Alvarez Jr 95 18% 42% Poor
40
19
36
Alfredo L Bautista 95 6% 31% Bad
29
26
40
Austin Adams 89 8% 31% Bad
28
23
38
Frank T Alvarado 87 17% 47% Good
41
28
18
Jean Aguilar 84 14% 44% Poor
37
18
29
Martin Arriaga 77 21% 60% Great
46
14
17
Daniel Aguilar 71 20% 48% Great
34
24
13
Kelvin Arana 71 10% 31% Bad
22
15
34
W Antongeorgi III 70 10% 30% Bad
21
11
38
Jesus Rios Ayala 67 12% 40% Avg
27
23
17
Richard Balgobin 66 14% 39% Poor
26
17
23
Larris Allen 63 38% 75% Great
47
13
3
J D Acosta 61 16% 36% Avg
22
26
13
Arturo Alvarez 59 8% 27% Bad
16
17
26
Brian Cobos Barraza 54 24% 44% Avg
24
11
19
Ridge Balgobin 53 11% 36% Bad
19
13
21
Jodeien Anderson 41 7% 34% Bad
14
13
14
Rolando Aragon 36 25% 47% Great
17
15
4
Minor Arana 36 8% 33% Bad
12
10
14
Isidro Banuelos 27 7% 30% Bad
8
8
11
Juan Apango 24 17% 75% Great
18
4
2
Rodrigo Aceves 22 14% 27% Bad
6
7
9
Anthony J Allen 20 10% 30% Bad
6
7
7
Juan Arellano 17 0% 12% Bad
2
3
12
Jose Barnes 17 12% 12% Bad
2
4
11
C Aguirre-Erives 11 9% 45% Great
5
5
1
Vidal M Aquino 7 0% 0% Bad
0
2
5
Ricardo Anchondo 3 0% 33%  - 
1
0
2

Why Jockeys Matter?

Jockeys are pivotal for a couple of different reasons in a horse race. First, jockeys are responsible for positioning horses once the gates open. This may include getting them to the lead or dropping them into the proper position based on the horses preferred run style.

The second responsibility that jockeys have is to help the horse understand when to rate their energy and when to run. A jockey with a bad internal clock can leave his horse with too much to do late or chase after a pace that is way too fast for his horse.

The final role of the jockey is steering the horse into the path that will allow them to have the strongest finish to the wire. For all of these reasons having a good jockey on the horse you’re backing can be a great asset for any horse player.

Why is the Top Jockey Tool Helpful?

Horses can be upgraded or downgraded based on their jockeys, but many people will look at the overall percentage of a jockey and make their decision. However, jockeys tend to be specialists. There are very few that excel over all surfaces and distances. The DHP top jockey tool can help you break down jockeys by track, surface, condition, distance, level, and post position to better determine how they are likely to impact the horse’s race.

Using the Top Jockey Tool for a Race

To use the top jockey tool follow the steps below:

  1. Change the drop down menus to match any or all of the conditions for the race you are handicapping.
    • Track: Different tracks have different configurations. A jockey with success at the track could mean that they have a better understanding of how to ride there as opposed to riders who more recently shipped in.
    • Surface: Dirt and turf races are run in exact opposite dynamics. A good gate rider is likely to upgrade a horse on dirt because the race tends to reward early speed. Conversely on turf the best riders are good at knowing when to time their acceleration as the horses tend to run the fastest in the last part of the race.
    • Condition: This factor plays the biggest role when the ground is not fast or firm. A lot of tracks will drain water in different ways and a jockey with a good score on an off track could suggest they know how to avoid tiring paths on the track.
    • Distance: Horse races are often classified as either sprints (less than 8 furlongs) or routes (one mile and over). However, dynamics can change dramatically depending on the various lengths within each of these categories.
    • Race Types: Not all horses are the same. Knowing how a jockey does in a particular condition can be very important. For example, a gate rider might be better in a maiden race because those horses haven’t learned to win and may be hesitant to pass other horses. If you have a jockey that can get to the lead in these races that may suggest they can steal the race. A jockey who performs well in stakes races may suggest the jockey know how to get the most out of talented horses.
    • Barriers/Post Positions: Post positions can also be a vital factor in picking your jockey. Riders with success in post 1-3 are typically good at getting horses out quickly so as to avoid horses trying to merge down closer to the rail and avoid ground loss. Riders better in outer posts may be more adept at getting horses positioned correctly behind speed horses for a final run to the finish.
  2. Once you have set any or all of the filters, select the “Refresh Charts” button to see the updated data which reflects your race.

Using the Top Jockey Tool for an Individual Jockey

While the top jockey tool is extremely effective for looking at all the jockeys side by side, another useful tool is looking up an individual jockey.

This can be done from the top jockey charts. Simply find the jockey you want to look up and click their name. You will now see a report of their rating and percentages at every one of the filters from the top jockey tool.

Using this view you may be able to identify spots where you can beat a high percentage jockey. For example, the leading rider in the country Irad Ortiz Jr. is rated “Great” in most categories, except when his horses break from posts 10+. From these posts he is rated as “Poor”.