Win-Filled Birthday Gifts Hernandez Jockey of the Week

Sometimes a birthday turns out extraordinarily memorable. Case in point, the 34th birthday of Juan Hernandez on Saturday at Santa Anita. Hernandez posted wins in the Beholder Mile (G1), the San Felipe (G2) and the Frank E. Kilroe Mile (G2) taking three of the four graded stakes. The celebration continued into Sunday's card with a win in the Santa Ysabel (G3). The panel of racing experts unanimously voted Hernandez Jockey of the Week March 2-March 8. Hernandez's monster day began in Race 4, the Beholder Mile (G1) aboard 2025 Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint champion, Splendora for Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert. As the favorite, the 5-year-old Splendora took the lead while east coast invader Bless the Broken raced a close second. Splendora pulled away from her rivals in the stretch to win by 5-3/4 lengths in 1:35.16 for her fifth straight win. "She's really fast out of the gate," said Hernandez to Santa Anita publicity. "She was doing it really easy. Bob just told me, 'Don't look back and just have fun.' That is what we did." As Baffert's go-to rider, Hernandez was aboard Potente in Race 8, the San Felipe (G2). The least experienced of the seven 3-year-olds, Potente went off at odds of 8-1. As the field came into the stretch, Potente gained ground on longshot Robusta to win by a head in 1:42.92 for a mile and one sixteenth earning 50 points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby (G1). "This horse has a lot of talent," Hernandez said. "He's big, he's strong, and he showed up today." Hernandez posted his fourth win of the day aboard longshot Final Boss in the Frank E. Kilroe Mile (G2) for trainer John Sadler. Off at odds of 31-1, the 5-year-old Final Boss raced in third before making his move in the stretch to out run race favorite El Potente posting a 1/2 length win in 1:32.94 on the turf. "It was a great day," said Hernandez. "Maybe I can do something on Monday or Tuesday to celebrate." The Baffert/Hernandez duo put an exclamation point on their sensational weekend on Sunday in the Santa Ysabel (G3) with Forced Entry. Off at odds of 5-2, Forced Entry raced in fourth as stablemate French Blue led the field. Forced Entry took command in mid-stretch to win by 1-3/4 lengths in 1:44.79 for a mile and one-sixteenth earning 50 Kentucky Oaks (G1) points. A nine-time leading jockey at Santa Anita, Hernandez is currently in first place in the standings. Other nominees for Jockey of the Week included Francisco Arrieta who won the Azeri (G2), Javier Castellano with two stakes wins including the Tampa Bay Derby (G3), Diego Herrera who won the Santa Anita Handicap (G1) and Flavien Prat who won the Florida Oaks (G3).