Jockey Seth Martinez, who began riding in 1995, won the 2,000th race of his career when he guided maiden Mission Storm to a 2 3/4-length victory at odds of 28-1 in the fifth race at Hawthorne Race Course Nov. 24.
The milestone win came in a one-mile turf event for Illinois-bred fillies and mares under maiden special weight conditions. Frank Kirby trains Mission Storm, a 3-year-old daughter of Johar , for S J Stables.
Two races later, Martinez scored again on the Hawthorne turf with 11-10 favorite Inside Deal.
The 33-year-old rider started his career in 1995 in Arizona. He also served as an apprentice at Laurel Park while spending most of his career at Canterbury Park, Emerald Downs, and Turf Paradise. The son of a trainer, he arrived at Arlington Park last year to begin riding on the Chicago circuit.
According to Equibase, Martinez is enjoying his finest year in terms of total purse earnings with $2,747,772 through Nov. 24. He has won with 109 of his 806 mounts so far in 2012. His biggest year by victories came in 2002 when he won 276 races from 1,432 mounts and earned $2,578,627, which was his previous high total.
Overall, Martinez has 13,856 career mounts while amassing $28,129,186 in total purses. In addition to his wins, he has 1,987 seconds and 1,960 thirds.
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