Birth Date: June 06, 1983
Birth Place: Maracaibo, Venezuela

2012 SEASON: topped the riding standings at the major Maryland tracks with 132 winners…won the Pimlico spring and Laurel fall riding titles…had back-to-back four-win days at Pimlico…tied for the top spot in the colony with eight stakes wins in the state, including five aboard Bold Affair…teamed up with top trainer Jamie Ness for 69 victories….finished 2012 ranked 25th nationally in wins (192) and was 50th in earnings ($4.4 million).

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS: arrived in Maryland in the spring of 2003 and tied for the fifth spot in the state standings…was fourth in 2004, while leading all riders with 11 stakes victories, including the Grade III Pimlico Distaff on Friel’s For Real…won 201 races in 2004 for a career-best $5.1 million…won the 2003 Laurel Park fall meet riding title with 64 first place finishes…established a career-best with five winners on October 18 of that year…began his U.S. career in 2000 at Gulfstream Park as a 17-year old…has victories at more than 20 racetracks during his career, including all three Triple Crown tracks as well as Gulfstream, Saratoga and Keeneland…rode his first career winner aboard Ser Samantha on September 22, 1999 at Santa Rita Race Course in his native country….tied a career-high with five wins on April 5, 2008 including the Primonetta Stakes with Hungarian Boatbaby…earned 1,000th career winner on December 19, 2007 when Johnny Z. reached the wire first at Laurel Park.

PERSONAL: credits his older brother Javier, a top jock in New York and countryman Ramon Dominguez for assisting in his development as a rider…agent is Kevin Witte.