A hearing into charges from the California Horse Racing Board that jockey Joel Rosario "did not put forward his best effort" in a race this summer at Del Mar is set to resume Dec. 3.
The much-delayed hearing into the complaint began Nov. 19 before a panel of stewards at Hollywood Park. It was adjourned to Dec. 3 after testimony was taken from only three witnesses. The CHRB complaint stems from Rosario's ride aboard the maiden Cedros, who is trained and co-owned by John Glenney. Cedros finished fourth in the 11th race at Del Mar Sept. 6.
"I can tell you that the hearing is to reconvene tomorrow morning at 9 a.m., but, unfortunately, I cannot tell you if it will conclude tomorrow," said Hollywood Park steward Randy Winick, who is hearing the case along with Los Alamitos Race Course stewards Albert Christiansen and Kim Sawyer. "The first day ran long due to testimony that included quite a bit of review of film and so forth, and I would expect that we will have more of the same."
At the initial hearing, which lasted nearly two hours, former jockey Luis Jauregui, now a local safety steward, testified on behalf of the CHRB. Former jockey Gary Stevens, now a trainer, and Darrell Haire, Jockeys' Guild Western regional manager, spoke on behalf of Rosario, a 24-year-old native of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Rosario won the jockey title this summer at Del Mar.
Glenney, who owns Cedros with his wife, Kim, was initially upset with Rosario because he felt the jockey had allowed Cedros to drop back on the final turn and disregarded his instructions to keep the horse clear of traffic on the outside during the 1 1/16-mile turf race.
According to the official Equibase chart of the race, Cedros "fell back some leaving the second turn and angled in, continued along the rail in the stretch and was edged for the show." Cedros would miss the show spot by a head.
Glenney said he took the matter to Del Mar steward Ingrid Fermin after a phone conversation with Vic Stauffer, Rosario's agent, the following day. Stauffer, he said, inquired about whether the horse was for sale.
In its complaint filed more than 2 1/2 months ago, the CHRB alleged three violations of state rules. One of the rules states in part, "No jockey shall take his horse back without reasonable cause ... or otherwise ride in a manner which is inconsistent with using the best efforts of the horse he is riding."