Javier Castellano

Javier Castellano (born October 23, 1977, in Maracaibo, Zulia State, Venezuela) is a jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing.

Javier Castellano
Castellano in 2010
Occupation	Jockey
Born	(1977-10-23) October 23, 1977 Maracaibo, Zulia, Venezuela
Career wins	5000 ongoing (as of 10/20/2018)
Major racing wins
Graded Stakes wins Donn Handicap (2015) Miami Mile Handicap (1999, 2009) Smile Sprint Handicap (2000) Beldame Stakes (2001, 2004) Clark Handicap (2003) Woodward Stakes (2004, 2015, 2016) Wood Memorial Stakes (2005) Flash Stakes (2005) Hill Prince Stakes (2005, 2006) Jim Dandy Stakes (2006) Jockey Club Gold Cup (2006) Withers Stakes (2006, 2013) Travers Stakes (2006, 2010) Long Branch Stakes (2007) Kelso Breeders' Cup Handicap (2007, 2008) Shirley Jones Handicap (2008) Highlander Stakes (2008) Man o' War Stakes (2008) Garden City Handicap (2008) Commonwealth Turf Stakes (2009) Remsen Stakes (2013) Gazelle Handicap (2001, 2006) Secretariat Stakes (2003) Vosburgh Stakes (2003) Lane's End Breeders' Futurity (2003) Bertram F. Bongard Stakes (2004) Beaugay Handicap (2004) Discovery Handicap (2004) Sport Page Breeders' Cup Handicap (2004) Jamaica Handicap (2005) Coolmore Lexington Stakes (2005) Forward Gal Stakes (2005) Ben Ali Stakes (2006) Gallant Bloom Handicap (2006) Vagrancy Handicap (2007) Sabin Stakes (2007, 2008) Endeavour Stakes (2012) Bowling Green Handicap (2013) American Classics / Breeders' Cup: Preakness Stakes (2006, 2017) Kentucky Oaks (2016) Breeders' Cup Classic (2004) Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (2015, 2018) Breeders' Cup Distaff (2015) Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (2013, 2019) Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf (2012, 2014) Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (2016) International races: Dubai Golden Shaheen (2005) Connaught Cup Stakes (2006) Woodbine Oaks (2008) Canadian International Stakes (2008)
Racing awards
Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016)
Honors
National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame (2017)
Significant horses
Ghostzapper, Bernardini, Red Rocks, Stay Thirsty, Bellamy Road, Honor Code, Shaman Ghost, Cloud Computing

Castellano began his riding career in 1996 at Santa Rita and La Rinconada racecourses in Venezuela. In June 1997 he moved to the United States where he rode at race tracks in southern Florida until 2001 when he moved to race on the New York State racing circuit. He had his first major wins in 2004, on Frank Stronach's colt Ghostzapper and won several major races including the 2004 Breeders' Cup Classic, earning 2004 Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year and other honors. In 2006, Castellano rode Bernardini for Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum's Darley Racing, winning the Preakness Stakes, the Travers Stakes, and the Jockey Club Gold Cup.[1]

Castellano received the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey in 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016 each time based on having the highest purse winnings of any jockey in North America. In 2013, he finished the year with purse earnings of over $26.2 million, surpassing the single-season record previously held by Ramon Dominguez in 2012.[2] He passed 4,000 North American wins in February 2015,[3] and by the end of the year had broken his own single-season winnings and earnings record.[4]

Javier Castellano was selected as a 2017 inductee into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, with the formal ceremony scheduled for August 4 in Saratoga Springs, New York.

Racing runs in Castellano's family. His father, who died in 2000, his uncle and a brother all have been jockeys. He considers his father to be the biggest influence on his career.

As of 2014, he and his wife Abby have three children. His father-in-law is Terry Meyocks, national director of the Jockeys' Guild.[1] His younger brother Abel Castellano, Jr. (born 1983) is also a jockey and rode his first winner on September 22, 1999, at Santa Rita Race Course in Venezuela.[5] In 2000 he began riding in the United States at Gulfstream Park.[6]