Edwin Maldonado sets record with 128th victory at Los Alamitos

Jockey Edwin Maldonado became the winningest daytime Thoroughbred rider at Los Alamitos with his victory on Classymademoiselle on Sunday.

Maldonado, 40, won his 128th race at Los Alamitos, surpassing the previous mark held by the retired Martin Pedroza, who most recently rode at Los Alamitos in 2019. Pedroza also had wins from the Orange County Fair meetings at Los Alamitos, which ended in 1991.

Maldonado has won 61 races this year. At the Del Mar summer meeting that ended Sept. 10, Maldonado finished fifth in the standings with 20 wins, well behind leader Juan Hernandez who won 39 races.

Los Alamitos has three brief meetings annually. While some Southern California-based riders do not ride at Los Alamitos, or participate on a selective basis, Maldonado has been consistently active at the track in recent years, tying for the riding title at the 2020 spring-summer meeting.

This was a weekend of jockey milestones at Los Alamitos. On Saturday, Juan Hernandez won a record 14th Thoroughbred stakes in the E.B. Johnston Stakes aboard Kings River Knight.

Hernandez surpassed the previous mark of 13 stakes wins held by Corey Black, who rode at the Orange County Fair from the 1980s through 1991.

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Aguilar suspended for poor finish

Apprentice Armando Aguilar has been suspended for three racing days at the Santa Anita autumn meeting – Sept. 30 and Oct. 1 and 6 – for failing to ride Finneus to the finish of Saturday’s E.B. Johnston Stakes.

Finneus finished fifth in the one-mile Johnston Stakes, missing fourth by three-quarters of a length after he was passed in the final strides by Johnny Podres.

In a ruling issued Sunday, stewards Luis Jauregui, David Neusch, and Kim Sawyer cited Aguilar for his ride, which they wrote cost Finneus “a better finish position.”

Aguilar, 23, has won 38 races this year, and 49 races since his career began in 2022.

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