Six races carded on opening-night twilight program as whip-rule controversy rages

A total of 45 horses were entered Tuesday in six races on the first card of Monmouth Park’s 2021 race meet, which commences Friday.

As noteworthy as the names of the horses entered are the names of the jockeys riding them. The opening of the Monmouth meet has unfolded in controversy with the track set to conduct racing under the most stringent rules in North America regarding use of the whip.

The New Jersey Racing Commission established a rule in 2020 forbidding whip use during racing or training for anything other than the safety of horses and riders. The whip cannot be used to encourage a horse, according to the rule, which has caused a backlash throughout the American jockey community, with several Monmouth-based riders, led by Joe Bravo, saying they wouldn’t race at Monmouth under the new rule.

Monmouth racing secretary John Heims said earlier this week that 16 jockeys had committed to riding at the start of the season; 14 riders are named on horses Friday. In the fifth race, the featured Jersey Derby, three horses were entered with no rider named.

The jockeys riding Friday, listed in the order they appear on the overnight, are Jorge Panaijo, Luis Ocasio, Tomas Mejia, Luis Reyes, Christian Navarro, Jose Ferrer, Carlos Hernandez, Jomar Torres, Isaac Castillo, Jose Baez, Carlos Montalvo, Keibar Coa, Sean Gilpin, and Derbe Glass.

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Jockey Ferrin Peterson has said she plans to ride the meet, but Peterson is serving a suspension, as is jockey Nik Juarez, a Monmouth regular.

Monmouth always had planned to card six races for Friday’s card, which begins at 5 p.m. Eastern at a track that has no lights for night racing. There had been some concern that Monmouth wouldn’t have sufficient jockeys to card races, and that trainers might not be willing to enter with jockeys they didn’t know, but Heims said Tuesday there never had been a doubt Friday’s card would be drawn.

The Jockeys’ Guild strenuously opposes the whip rule, encouraging the New Jersey Racing Commission to reconsider its enactment and filing suit to prevent its implementation. A court denied the Guild’s initial claim, the Guild appealed, then filed a motion to stay the rule for the 2021 meet pending a hearing on the appeal. The stay was denied, and Guild president Terry Meyocks said there’s no clear timetable for when the appeal will be heard.

The Guild, Meyocks said, has advised and informed individual jockeys about the rule and what it considers its deficiencies but has not been involved in any action aimed at persuading jockeys not to ride at Monmouth nor to disrupt racing there this week. The rule allows jockeys and exercise riders to carry whips and employ them as required in dangerous situations, but Meyocks said the stringent regulations could still lead to circumstances that endanger riders.

An obvious issue is the manner in which Monmouth stewards will interpret the rule and jockeys’ actions out on the track, since the whip rule provides little specific guidance beyond the ban on encouragement and the safety allowance. State steward Steven Pagano, reached by phone Tuesday, said New Jersey racing regulators forbade stewards from speaking directly to the press about any topic and referred media inquiries to a New Jersey state office. A representative in an email said the state wouldn’t comment on anything regarding the whip rule because of the Guild-backed pending litigation.

Dennis Drazin, the CEO of the management company that runs Monmouth, said in a Monday phone interview he was encouraging a meeting between all Monmouth riders and stewards before the meet begins.

“This should be a work in progress with the stewards,” Drazin said. “My own preference, though I do not control how the commission works, would be to have a period of time, whether it be 30 days or 60 days, to try and get a feel for this, with the rule in place but no penalties.”