Santana fined for overuse of the whip at Santa Anita

Jockey Ricardo Santana Jr. has been fined $500 by Santa Anita stewards for excessive use of the whip in the first race on Dec. 26.

Santana was cited for using the whip more than six times on Sassyserb, who finished second. Santana was winless in five stakes mounts later that day.

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Santana, 27, was the leading rider at the 2020 Oaklawn Park meeting, and second or third in the standings at all three meetings at Churchill Downs in 2020. The Dec. 26 program was the first time Santana had ridden in California since the California Horse Racing Board enacted tougher whip-use rules in October.