BY GULFSTREAM PARK PRESS OFFICE (Edited)
HALLANDALE BEACH, FL—British apprentice jockey Mia Nicholls acquainted herself with U.S. racing at Gulfstream Park while riding in three races over the weekend.
Although the 20-year-old jockey didn’t find her way into the Gulfstream winner’s circle, she is enjoying the change of pace.
“They do the times and the fractions over here, which I think will be beneficial to me when I get back in England,” Nicholls said.
Nicholls, who is a seven-pound apprentice in the U.S., has ridden 28 winners in England.
“I came here year and just was out there riding daily,” Nicholls said. “This year, I decided to give it a go. I’m quite small and light. I thought I might as well while I’m young.”
Trainer Jeremiah O’Dwyer, for whom Nicholls galloped at Palm Meadows during last season’s flat season break, provided the young jockey with a mount on Saturday and one on Sunday. O’Dwyer rode with Nicholls’ father, Adrian, in England before venturing to the U.S.
O’Dwyer-trained Spun Size, a debuting 38-1 daughter of Hard Spun, closed from last under Nicholls to finish a distant third in Sunday’s third race, a five-and-a-half-furlong maiden claiming race for 2-year-old fillies on the main track.
Nicholls had a pick-up mount in Sunday’s opening race aboard 50-1 outsider Jamaica Redd, who was hustled out of the gate to take an early lead he would hold into the far turn before weakening to fifth in a five-furlong maiden claiming race on turf.
Nicholls experienced an eventful U.S. debut, in which she needed to snatch up her mount to avoid clipping heels with a horse that had unseated its rider in Saturday’s fourth race.
“It was eventful for my first ride, but all went well. I got back safe, and so did the horse,” she said.
Gulfstream Park Notes
The 20¢ Rainbow 6 Jackpot Pool is expected to grow to an estimated $125,000 Thursday at Gulfstream Park, where the popular multi-race wager went unsolved Sunday for the fourth racing day following a Nov. 24 mandatory payout… Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano and hometown favorite Tyler Gaffalione will make their 2024-2025 Championship Meet debuts Thursday. Castellano, a five-time Championship Meet titlist, has four mounts, while Gaffalione, a native of nearby Davie, Fla., has the call on five mounts… Edwin Gonzalez rode a pair of winners Sunday, scoring aboard Crosstown Shootout ($13.20) in the fifth race and Florida-bred Mattinata ($19.20) in ninth race. Gonzalez recently concluded Sunshine Meet title.
