Jockey Ayuso tries meet a second time

Armando Ayuso, one of the top riders in Northern California in recent years, has moved to Del Mar for the second consecutive summer.

Ayuso, who has won 88 races this year, is booked to ride Smiling Lady in Thursday’s $175,000 Fleet Treat Stakes for statebred 3-year-old fillies and has two mounts on Friday’s program. Agent Bill Castle will represent Ayuso.

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In 2022, Ayuso had 4 wins from 126 mounts at Del Mar, and later returned to Northern California. At the Golden Gate Fields winter-spring meeting that ended on June 11, Ayuso finished third in the standings with 72 wins, 21 behind Assael Espinoza, who also recently relocated to Southern California.

At the Alameda County Fair in Pleasanton earlier this summer, Ayuso was second in the standings with 16 wins, five less than leader Alexander Chavez.

Ayuso’s move comes at a time when Northern California racing is in turmoil. The Stronach Group, the parent company of Golden Gate Fields, announced earlier this month that the track will close permanently in December. Golden Gate Fields hosts racing for approximately eight months of the year.

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