5/23/2025

(Auburn, WA) Those who thought the 5-time defending Jockey Champion Alex Cruz’s reign is over got a quick reminder on how things can turn in a moment. Cruz struggled with just 1 win through the first 4 days of racing and had a 4% win rate. He exploded on Saturday with 4 wins to shoot up the rankings. He was shut out on Sunday but recorded 3 seconds and losing one by a nose. His win percent jumped to 11%.

Manuel Americano was not going to sit idly by either. As the hottest jock at Emerald Downs in the final 3 weeks he then went on to win the riding title at Turf Paradise but has been in a 2nd and 3rd place pattern with just 2 wins through the first 5 days. On Sunday he entered the winners circle 4 times to become the 2nd 4 wins in a day rider in as many days and for the season.

With those two firing hot, Kevin Krigger the leading rider remains solid as a rock so let’s get to this week’s Power Rankings!

2nd edition Power Rankings 5/23/2025

1) Kevin Krigger

Kevin Krigger did not win 4 races in a day but he collected 3 over the weekend and is extremely consistent. Krigger has the 2nd highest win percent at 25%, top 3 at 47% and top 4 67%. He has a 3 win lead over a 4-way tie for second with 6 wins. If you want us to be nit-picky he has 4 places and 4 shows with 7 4th place finishes, we’d like to see that top 3 finish increase a little bit but that is really being nitpicky. Krigger is the early leader and can go wire-to-wire if the others can’t be more consistent.

2) Alex Cruz

The 5-time state record jockey Champ had a fire lit under him this weekend with 4 wins and going 4-4-1-1 with a huge chance to have had a 5, 6 or 7 win weekend had to settle for the 4. But he’s now 6th in the standings 4 behind Krigger and continues to get more rides than anyone by 10 so far so he is going to have more than a fair chance to get #6 in a row. Cruz doesn’t get the 1 spot because he did get all his wins on 1 day.

2) Manuel Americano

Same for Manny Americano, great day of 4 wins but he was skunked on Saturday. But we couldn’t separate Cruz and Americano so we went with the rare tie. Manny took quite some time last year to get rolling but once he did he was the hottest rider at the end of the Emerald season. He carried that over winning the Turf Paradise Championship and now he is back on track. As long as he gets to keep the bug he will have a bit of an advantage. Manny is going to have a say in the final results.

4) Kevin Orozco

A fan favorite, Kevin Orozco is simply one of the nicest people you’ll ever get to meet but this nice guy means business this year. He is tied for 2nd with 2 wins over the weekend. He has the 3rd highest win percent at 21% and has the longest win streak for the year right now with wins on 5 straight days missing only on opening day. Clearly right in the mix.

5) Francisco Duran

Francisco Duran  is tied for 2nd with 6 wins. He has the highest win percent of all at 30%. Duran makes the most of his chances but he wins in bunches with 3 days of double wins and 3 days he’s been shutout or didn’t ride. His top 3 and top 4 percent is the same at 50% meaning if doesn’t win right now he’s not hitting the board often with 10 top 3 placings from 20 starts and 0 4th place finishes. 

6) Julien Couton

Julien Couton is a former riding Champion at Emerald Downs but seems to be getting caught up in a numbers game with so many solid riders and the expanded number of riders. He got just 4 mounts last weekend but his big ride was replacing Jose Zunino on Slew’s Tiz Whiz and he blistered a good field. Slew’s Racing Crew have to be happy how Couton was able to step in immediately and find that magic with Slew.

7) Silvio Amador

Last week Silvio Amador was tied for the lead and won all the big races had a big lead in the money earned and was #1, but then gets shut out this past weekend. However, Amador still leads in money earned as he is tied for 2nd 3 wins behind Krigger. Don’t think Silvio is going into a big slump, look out this weekend.

8) Juan Gutierrez

The all-time leading rider at Emerald and also a former riding Champ is still searching for his 1st win but Guti is getting close going 0-2-1-1 from 6 starts last weekend. Gutierrez will break threw and must always be considered.

9) Francisco Diaz-Lopez

Francisco Diaz-Lopez gets few chances he had just 2 rides last week but won with Tieton River by more than 5 lengths. Diaz-Lopez is a favorite of many for his consistent hard work in the mornings. His 1st win on the year gets him in the top 10.

10) Jose Rodriguez

Another hard worker is Jose Rodriguez who is a busy in the mornings and gets limited chances in the afternoon. Rodriguez is still looking for his first win of the season but he did alot with the 3 rides he had going 0-0-2-1. He has 8 top 4 finish from his 12 starts this season for a 67% superfecta rate and at usually big odds. 

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1st Power Rankings 5/17/2025

1) Silvio Amador

Silvio Amador is the only one with a 4 day win streak winning at least 1 race on all 4 racing days. He is tied at the top of the standings with 6 wins. His win percent is 33%, he hits the top 3 at 67% and is part of the superfecta 78% of the time. He also leads in earnings by nearly $20,000 sweeping the feature races this past weekend. And he began the year as the first one in the Winners Circle. Amador is 6-3-3-2 from 18 starts. No doubt Amador it #1. 

2) Kevin Krigger

Kevin Krigger began as hot as can be and is the only rider with a triple taking 3 wins on Kentucky Derby Day. He had a win on opening day and then doubled last Saturday to share the lead with Amador with 6 wins. He did get shut out on Sunday but you can’t leave him off your exotic bets. Krigger is 6-3-2-4 from 23 mounts for a26% win rate, 48% in the trifecta and 65% top 4. Clearly the #2 ranking.

3) Kevin Orozco

Kevin Orozco was the leading Stakes rider just a couple of seasons ago and has been here since his apprentice season skipping just one year. Orozco is a fan favorite and an Emerald veteran. He’s off to a great start and certainly one to have on your tickets. Out of the 12 wagers available Orozco is part of 9 of the highest paying returns to bettors. And he did it on 5 different horses, it wasn’t brining one longshot in early and being part of a bunch of the high returns. He is 4-3-1-2 winning at a 22% rate, top 3 at 44% and 56% superfecta finish. Our #3 pick.

4) Francisco Duran

Francisco Duran began as the lone rider doubling on opening day. Duran then doubled on Sunday to push his record to 4-3-1-0 from 14 rides for a 29% win clip. He’s 57% in the top 3 and 57% top 4 finishes. He’s not placed 4th yet and has wins on 2 of the 4 days. Duran is new to Emerald and already making it known he will have to be dealt with. Our #4 choice this week.

5) Francisco Monroy

Francisco Monroy another newcomer and has made waves for the big numbers he’s brought across the finish line winning with a 32-1 shot on Derby Day and 28-1 last Saturday then bringing home a 3-1 shot on Sunday for a 21-1 average win pay. Monroy is 3-0-3-2 from 13 rides winning at 23%, 38% in the trifecta and 62% top 4. We haven’t calculated his average win odds but it’s not 2-1 for sure. Monroy is getting the most out of the horses he is riding. Watch out!  

6) Manuel Americano

Yes Manny Americano is likely disappointed with only 2 wins from 20 rides for just a 10% win rate. But he is on the board and many of his rides the 2nd time won’t surprise us if they turn into wins. The apprentice who got his 1st win at Emerald last year is 2-5-7-3 with a 70% top 3 rate and 85% superfecta finish. The 70% top 3 and 85% top 4 are the highest of all the riders. He is our #6 in the opening PR’s.

7) David Haldar

Shipping in from Mahoning Valley and Fingerlakes in New York, David Haldar got his first wins this past Sunday at Emerald Downs winning back-to-back. This is after several strong showings and quickly is making a name for himself in the PNW. Haldar enters this week with a 2-2-4-0 record from 12 starts. He’s winning at 17% but hitting the board at 67% for both tri’s and supers. Haldar is just getting comfortable we expect a big season from him and he begins at #7.

8) Julien Couton

Julien Couton is a former Emerald Downs riding Champ and he’s still one to be concerned with if he’s not on your horse. Couton is off to a solid start riding 15 races with a 2-1-0-3 record winning 13%, top 3 at 20% and top 4 at 40%. We think Julien is just warming up and won’t be surprised to see him catch fire.

9) Alex Cruz

A pre-season Power Ranking would have had the 5 time riding Champion right at the top but it’s been a rough start for Cruz. He remains a popular target for trainers as he leads in mounts with 28. They know he knows how to win in Auburn but he’s got just 1 win and an overall record of 1-2-4-6. We expect many of the rides he’s had will get turned around when they start a second time. We wouldn’t count Cruz out anytime soon. he’s one that can get red hot and close the gap in a hurry.

10) Pablo Castillo

Pablo Castillo made his North American debut on opening debut as an apprentice jockey. Castillo needed just 2 tries to get his first career win when he scored in the 3rd race on opening day with Fantastic Dream, the 7-1 longest shot on the board in the 5 horse field winning by a clear length. Pablo has been shut out since then but he has been close and currently has ridden 13 races and is 1-3-1-4 for an 8% win rate, 38% top 3 and 69% top 4. Pretty good start for the new apprentice in Auburn.

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