Report: Ortiz Jr. to Miss 3-4 Weeks With Knee Fracture
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Photo: Anne M. Eberhardt
Irad Ortiz Jr. aboard Life is Good after a victory in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile at Del Mar
Irad Ortiz Jr., injured in a starting-gate accident at Gulfstream Park Jan. 8, is expected to miss a further 3-4 weeks with a minor knee fracture, according to a tweet from Daily Racing Form's Marty McGee, citing the rider's agent, Steve Rushing.
Rushing did not immediately return a telephone or text message to BloodHorse seeking confirmation.
The three-time Eclipse Award-winning Ortiz initially took off his remaining Friday mounts and those over the weekend with the hope that he could resume riding Jan. 12. His injury occurred before the eighth race Friday when his mount, Shea On a Mission , became unruly in the starting gate. She was scratched.
Ortiz, 29, was the second leading rider by North American earnings in 2021, trailing only Joel Rosario. Ortiz ranked first by victories with 336 wins despite missing part of December while he served a 30-day suspension for careless riding issued by Aqueduct Racetrack stewards.
He resumed riding Jan. 8 at Gulfstream and won four races over two days before his injury.
Under the outlined recovery timeframe, Ortiz would be unavailable to ride in the $3 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes (G1) and supporting stakes at Gulfstream Park Jan. 29. He had been expected to ride China Horse Club and WinStar Farm's Life is Good in a much-anticipated confrontation with Korea Racing Authority's Knicks Go in the 1 1/8-mile race.