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 267 18% 49% Good
132
72
63
Oscar Andrade Jr 244 14% 41% Poor
100
53
91
Jeiron Barbosa 239 21% 55% Great
132
43
64
Luis Alberto Batista 214 14% 48% Avg
103
51
60
Erik Barbaran 213 21% 59% Great
126
43
44
Erik Asmussen 212 24% 54% Great
114
47
51
Armando Ayuso 188 9% 40% Poor
76
45
67
Junior Alvarado 187 12% 46% Poor
86
37
64
Alex Birzer 153 17% 48% Good
74
48
31
Manuel Americano 151 24% 54% Great
82
40
29
Francisco Arrieta 148 7% 32% Bad
48
38
62
Jeffrey Ian Alderson 140 12% 41% Poor
58
33
49
Armando Aguilar 135 9% 33% Bad
44
29
62
Silvio Ruiz Amador 134 19% 52% Great
70
42
22
Ricardo Barrios 129 16% 43% Avg
55
39
35
Mynor Arana 116 9% 33% Bad
38
24
54
Keith J Asmussen 108 10% 32% Bad
35
33
40
Rafael Bejarano 108 17% 39% Poor
42
28
38
Norberto Arroyo Jr 100 14% 47% Good
47
33
20
Hector Isaac Berrios 100 14% 42% Poor
42
20
38
Cristian Alvarado 97 2% 27% Bad
26
25
46
Tyler Baze 94 12% 37% Bad
35
24
35
Scott A Bethke 93 18% 45% Avg
42
22
29
Alex V Anaya 87 10% 41% Avg
36
30
21
Forest Boyce 83 19% 54% Good
45
14
24
Alfredo L Bautista 81 6% 32% Bad
26
24
31
Austin Adams 80 8% 29% Bad
23
20
37
Armando Alvidrez 80 24% 54% Great
43
16
21
Jean Aguilar 78 14% 47% Avg
37
15
26
Aldo Arboleda 75 8% 36% Bad
27
17
31
Francisco Amparan 72 19% 44% Avg
32
19
21
Martin Arriaga 66 18% 62% Great
41
12
13
David Alvarez Jr 64 14% 42% Poor
27
12
25
W Antongeorgi III 62 11% 31% Bad
19
13
30
Jesus Rios Ayala 61 10% 43% Avg
26
21
14
Jose Baez 61 15% 41% Avg
25
18
18
Frank T Alvarado 58 16% 47% Good
27
19
12
Joe Bravo 56 9% 30% Bad
17
13
26
Agustin Bracho 54 7% 37% Poor
20
19
15
Daniel Aguilar 52 23% 50% Great
26
16
10
Victor Jadhir Bailon 42 7% 29% Bad
12
13
17
Prayven Badrie 32 3% 25% Bad
8
14
10
Olivia Bethke 32 9% 25% Bad
8
10
14
Cesar Belmont 22 9% 23% Bad
5
6
11
Reyes Alberto Aranda 17 0% 18% Bad
3
10
4
Rodrigo Aceves 16 19% 38% Good
6
7
3
Juan Apango 16 19% 81% Great
13
2
1
David Boraco 12 8% 17% Bad
2
4
6
Carlos F Banda 11 0% 27% Avg
3
7
1
Jose Rosario Alcala 9 11% 33% Bad
3
2
4

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”.