The Latin America Invasion of Horse Racing

The 2006 Preakness Stakes will see the power in horse racing shifting gears.

Where are the US-born riders? With the retirements of American stars Jerry Bailey, Pat Day and Gary Stevens within the past year, jockeys named Prado, Victor Espinoza, Patrick Valenzuela, Ramon Dominguez and Rafael Bejarano dominate the sport's list of money leaders.

One of these guys, Edgar Prado, was being interviewed in the Gulfstream Park jockeys' lounge in Hallandale Park, Fla.

In a room filled with jockeys, his conversation is the only one in English. And even Prado occasionally interrupts himself to speak to someone else in Spanish.

The flow of language would have people reminding themselves that they were in the United States and not South America. It will be the same in the jockeys' room during Saturday's Preakness Day card. Almost all of the jockeys at the top of the money-winning list are from Latin America.

''It's funny,'' said American-born jockey Jeremy Rose, 27, who rode Afleet Alex to victory in the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes last year.

''My agent and I were talking about that very thing just the other day. We were trying to think of young American jockeys my age or below, and we had a hard time thinking of any on the national scene.''

There are only two American-born jockeys in the top 10. Garrett Gomez, 34, and Corey Nakatani, 35.You have to look outside the top 10 for young, developing Americans. Apprentice Rosie Napravnik, 18, who rides at Pimlico Race Course and Laurel Park, is No. 25.

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