Jose Ortiz decides he needs more recovery time for injured wrist

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Jockey Jose Ortiz will take the remainder of the Gulfstream Park Championship meet off after reporting he still felt some discomfort in his right wrist, injured in a post parade mishap here last month, his agent, Jimmy Riccio, said on Wednesday.

Riccio said Ortiz made the decision after riding Basha in Wednesday’s third race.

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“He called me after the race and said he just doesn’t feel his wrist is 100 percent and that he didn’t want to ride, or take the chance of putting his fellow riders in any danger, by going out there when he was not 100 percent,” Riccio said.

Ortiz suffered a slight fracture in his right wrist in the incident, which took place on Feb. 22. He returned to the saddle sooner than expected, just three weeks later, winning with his first mount upon returning, Extraordinary in last Saturday’s eighth race.

Ortiz was scheduled to ride Independence Hall a week from Saturday in the Grade 1 Florida Derby. Riccio said that if all goes well, Ortiz will return to the saddle the first week of April at Aqueduct.