Castellano among five finalists for George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award

Hall of Fame rider Javier Castellano, fellow Eclipse Award winner Tyler Baze, and veterans Chris Emigh, James Graham, and Luis M. Quinones are the finalists for the 2020 George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award, Santa Anita announced Thursday morning.

Santa Anita plays host to the Woolf Award, which is determined by a vote of jockeys nationwide. It has been presented annually since 1950, and is highly coveted by riders as it is voted on by their peers for both professional achievements and personal character. Scott Stevens won the award last year.

Castellano, 42, is the most-accomplished of the five finalists. He was voted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2017, has won the Eclipse Award as champion jockey four times, has won the Preakness twice, and owns 12 victories in Breeders’ Cup races, including the Turf Sprint and Juvenile Fillies last month at Santa Anita.

A native of Venezuela, where he began his career, Castellano has won 5,218 races in North America. His mounts have earned more than $342 million, second all-time to Hall of Famer John Velazquez, who won the Woolf Award in 2009.

Baze, 37, won his Eclipse Award in 2000 as champion apprentice jockey. Entering Thursday’s card at Los Alamitos, he had won 2,677 races during his career, including Grade 1 races like the Awesome Again, Del Mar Futurity, Santa Margarita, and Triple Bend.

Based largely in Southern California through his career, Baze has overcome personal troubles and heartbreaking tragedies – including the death of his cousin, jockey Michael Baze – and is widely popular with trainers for his insight regarding the ability of horses. Baze is from a distinguished racing family that includes Hall of Famer Russell Baze, his second cousin, who won the Woolf Award in 2002.

Emigh, 48, for more than two decades has been based in the Chicago area, where he has won seven titles at Hawthorne and one at Arlington. In a career that has spanned more than 30 years, Emigh has won 4,056 races, including such important Chicago-area stakes as the Hawthorne Gold Cup and Hawthorne Derby.

Graham, 40, largely has ridden in the Midwest since emigrating from his native Ireland. He has won riding titles at Arlington, Ellis Park, and Fair Grounds, and has won 2,524 races, including Grade 1 events like the Ashland, Jenny Wiley, and Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup.

Quinones, 40, plies his trade at Mahoning Valley, Thistledown, and Mountaineer Park, where he is currently based and is atop the standings. A native of Puerto Rico, he has won 1,882 races in North America, including 311 this year, which puts him atop the national standings heading into the final weeks of the year. He was the third-winningest rider in the nation in both 2017 and 2018.

The winner will be announced in February and presented with the award at Santa Anita later in the spring.

Woolf was one of the greats of his generation. Best known for riding Seabiscuit to a victory over War Admiral in a match race in the Pimlico Special in 1938, Woolf won the inaugural Santa Anita Handicap in 1935 on Azucar. He died in a racing accident at Santa Anita in 1946.