Van Dyke set to return from injury Friday

ARCADIA, Calif. – Jockey Drayden Van Dyke resumes riding Friday at Santa Anita for the first time since breaking his arm in a frightening spill in January. The timing of his comeback could be ideal for his goal of having a successful summer season.

The popular Del Mar summer meeting begins in less than five weeks on July 19, giving Van Dyke ample time to regain the momentum he had when injured Jan. 26.

Van Dyke was tied for ninth in the standings in late January and had ridden several prominent horses for trainer Jerry Hollendorfer, notably a maiden-race win on Battle of Midway, who later finished third in the Kentucky Derby on May 6 under Flavien Prat.

“I had a couple of nice ones,” Van Dyke said on Wednesday.

On Friday, Van Dyke rides Oscar Dominguez in the ninth race, an optional claimer at 1 1/4 miles on turf. Oscar Dominguez is his only mount on a 10-race program. He expects business to increase in the coming weeks.

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“Hopefully, it will work out perfectly,” Van Dyke said.

Van Dyke, 22, was cleared to resume exercising horses on June 6 and has been active on a daily basis since June 7, he said. Best known for winning the Eclipse Award as the nation’s outstanding apprentice jockey of 2014, Van Dyke rates his fitness as a “9 of out of 10.”

“I’ve been working on my body the last month, month and a half,” he said. “Racing-wise, you can only get as fit with as many horses as you ride.”

Van Dyke has won 335 races. In recent months, he was an infrequent visitor to the races as the arm healed. The absence of activity while recovering through the winter was frustrating, he said.

“I couldn’t do anything,” he said. “I hung out with my girlfriend. I’ve seen every movie that’s come out.”