Apprentice jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. remains in stable condition at North Shore
University Hospital with a concussion sustained following a spill in Saturday’s
10TH race at Belmont Park. He is awaiting a head MRI that was expected to occur
Sunday.
Ortiz is able to move all of his body parts, the preliminary baseline
neurological tests are good, and doctors are optimistic about his condition,
according to the New York Racing Association (NYRA) jockey advocate.
In the race, a 1 1/16-mile maiden claimer on the Widener turf course, Ortiz
was aboard Freud’s Debut (Freud), who stumbled and fell shortly after the start
of the race, unseating his rider.
Ortiz, 18, won 75 races in his native Puerto Rico this year before coming to
ride at Belmont Park, where he has two wins since the meet began in late April.
The three-year-old Freud’s Debut, who is trained by Mark Hennig, appeared
uninjured in the spill.