Hall of Fame Quarter Horse rider Martin dies at 59
Jacky Martin, a Hall of Fame Quarter Horse jockey who won the All American Futurity at Ruidoso Downs a record seven times, died Saturday at his home in Tulsa, Okla., according to a statement released by Ruidoso Downs racetrack.
A cause of death was not given. Martin was 59. He was paralyzed in a riding accident at Ruidoso Downs in 2011, which left him paralyzed from the neck down.
Martin won 2,975 races, 146 stakes, and had mounts that earned more than $45 million in a career that began in 1972. A native of Arkansas, Martin was the American Quarter Horse Racing Association’s champion jockey in 2000 and 2010.
Martin was best known for his association with Oklahoma-based trainer Jack Brooks. Together, they won the All American with Moon Lark (1978), Mr Master Bug (1982), Mr Trucka Jet (1985), Merganser (1988), Strawberry Silk (1989), Dash Thru Traffic (1992), and Eyesa Special (2000).
Also at Ruidoso Downs, Martin won five runnings of the Rainbow Derby, four runnings of the Rainbow Futurity, and the All American Derby. He rode SLM Big Daddy to consecutive wins in the Champion of Champions at Los Alamitos in 1997 and 1998.
Martin had an interrupted career in the 2000s. He missed more than three years of riding from late 2006 to spring 2010 after being convicted for possession of a controlled substance. Martin resumed riding at Ruidoso Downs in 2010 and won the Rainbow Futurity a month after his comeback. Later that summer, he won the All American Derby (Double Down Special) and All American Gold Cup (Noconi).
Martin won the Rainbow Futurity in 2011 on Feature Mr Bojangles. A little more than a month later, Martin was set to ride Ochoa in the All American Futurity when he was involved in a spill Sept. 2, three days before the race.
Martin was diagnosed with three neck fractures, which left him paralyzed. He was treated at a rehabilitation center in Houston before moving to Tulsa.
Funeral arrangements are pending, according to the statement from Ruidoso Downs.