Hall of Fame Jockey Ycaza Dead at Age 80

Hall of Fame jockey Manny Ycaza, one of leading pioneers for Latin riders in North America, died July 16 after a brief illness, Jockeys' Guild national manager Terry Meyocks confirmed. Ycaza was 80.

Meyocks said Ycaza fell ill July 15 and was transported to a New York hospital where he died Monday.

"I was just with him a couple weeks ago at the Jockeys and Jeans event at Canterbury and he was great," Meyocks said. "So this was all of the sudden."

Born in Panama in 1938 the son of a bus driver, Ycaza began riding professionally in his native country at age 14 and went on to become one of the most successful and influential figures from his country. After coming to the United States in the mid 1950s, he made a name for himself with an aggressive style that drew the ire of stewards, but also made him a most desirable reinsman in the nation's top races.

In his first year with Cain Hoy Stable, Ycaza won the 1959 D.C. International aboard eventual champion Bald Eagle, then came back the following year to become the only back-to-back winner in the history of the race.

Hired by prominent Canadian owner/breeder E. P. Taylor to ride for his Windfields Farm in the 1963 Queen's Plate, Ycaza won Canada's most prestigious race aboard the colt Canebora. A year later, he rode Quadrangle to victory in the 1964 Belmont Stakes to thwart the Triple Crown bid of Northern Dancer. In 1968, Ycaza rode Dark Mirage to take the first Filly Triple Crown when they won the Acorn Stakes, Mother Goose Stakes, and the Coaching Club American Oaks.

Ycaza won four editions of the Kentucky Oaks, including consecutive runnings for fellow Hall of Famer Woody Stephens in 1959 and 1960. Other major wins for Ycaza included the Travers Stakes, American Derby, Suburban Handicap, Alabama Stakes, Metropolitan Handicap, Blue Grass Stakes, Florida Derby, Beldame Stakes, Santa Anita Oaks, Champagne Stakes, Saratoga Special, and Man o' War Stakes.

"I got to know him the last several years and ... he was amazing," Meyocks said of Ycaza. "He was a true gentleman. He was very supportive of the Guild and of the jockeys and just carried himself in a professional manner. Everyone respected him.

"He was a stalwart in our industry and our game. He was a great rider and had a lot of achievements but he was just as good of a person."

Ycaza won four riding titles at Saratoga Race Course, highlighted by his run in 1959 where he won 41 races at the Spa, breaking a record that had stood for 38 years. He retired because of injuries in 1971 but made brief comeback in 1983 and amassed 2,367 wins from 10,571 starters. He was inducted into the National Museum of Racing's Hall of Fame in 1977.

Ycaza is survived by his wife, Jeanne, and daughter, Carla. Visitation for Ycaza will take place at Fox Funeral Home in Forest Hills, N.Y. from 2-5 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. on July 20. Funeral Mass will be held July 21 at Our Lady Queen of Martyrs in Forest Hills at 9:30 a.m. followed by burial at Mt. St. Mary Cemetery in Flushing, N.Y.