Irad Ortiz Jr., winner of a pair of races and in the top four in five other races from 13 mounts, won the 16th Bill Shoemaker Award, given to the leading of the World Championships hosted by Churchill Downs. The Shoemaker Award is based on a 10-4-2-1 scoring system on first- through fourth-place finishes in each of the 14 Breeders' Cup World Championship races.
Ortiz collected 35 points, edging Joel Rosario (32) and Javier Castellano (30). Castellano collected the award at Del Mar in 2017.
Ortiz's victories were registered aboard Newspaperofrecord (Ire) in Friday's GI Juvenile Fillies Turf and Shamrock Rose in Saturday's GI Filly & Mare Sprint. He finished second three times–Uncle Benny (Juvenile Turf), World of Trouble (Turf Sprint) and Gunnevera (Classic). He also had one third-place finish with Analyze It in the Mile and a fourth with Firenze Fire in the Dirt Mile.
Rosario rode three winners during the two-day series: Accelerate (Classic); Game Winner (Juvenile) and Jaywalk (Juvenile Fillies). He also had a third-place finish in the Turf Sprint on Disco Partner.
The Shoemaker Award is named in honor of legendary horseman Bill Shoemaker, who captured the Kentucky Derby four times, won over 8,800 races in a career that spanned over four decades 40 years. In 1987, at age 56, Shoemaker won the Breeders' Cup Classic aboard Ferdinand at Hollywood Park.
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