Columnist Ralph Siraco: Jockey Patrick Valenzuela has gone AWOL again

Ralph Siraco

Monday, Feb. 23, 2004 | 9:24 a.m.

Ralph Siraco's horse racing column appears Monday and his Southern California selections run Tuesday-Sunday.

It has been just a month since jockey Patrick Valenzuela went AWOL. Again.

Valenzuela, 41, a talented jockey who dominated the Southern California racing circuit since his most recent return to racing, has fallen from the graces of the sport he so controlled by something he can't control -- depression stemming from emotional strain and a dependancy on drugs that allow him to escape reality.

He hasn't ridden since Jan. 21 at Santa Anita. Despite having won 3,553 races, a Kentucky Derby and seven Breeders' Cup races in a checkered career dotted by suspensions because of substance abuse, Valenzuela may have gotten his last chance at doing what he does best -- riding thoroughbred racehorses. And, winning.

The latest fall for Valenzuela started Jan. 22 when he failed to fulfill his engagements at Santa Anita. Under the terms of a strict agreement that granted Valenzuela his license to ride for his latest reinstatement, he agreed to undergo mandatory drug testing whenever track stewards requested. On Jan. 23, Santa Anita stewards suspended Valenzuela indefinately for failing to show up for the test.

Valenzuela reported that he had twisted an ankle in a mishap at home. But the conditions of his agreement state not showing up for a test is the equivalent of failing the test itself. His recent unraveling may have been tipped when he fired his agent, Nick Cosato, on Jan. 19. Why would such a successful partnership suddenly separate while they are at the top of the heap? And, why couldn't Valenzuela secure a top agent to take Cosato's place? There was trouble in paradise.

So, P. Val, as he is known to racing fans, has now put himself squarely back behind the 8-ball. Again. He has been down this road. Valenzuela has missed 70 months of riding because of lengthy suspensions for his drug abuse problems, which included an absense of more than 4 1/2 years since October 1996.

Valenzuela is a loner. He has few friends in the jockeys room and fewer away from the track. His agressive style and gifted success have isolated him from the mainstream of riders. But it is that very agressive nature on the racetrack that led to Valenzuela's short climb back to the top. Last year, P. Val won all five major riding titles on the competitive Southern California racing circuit, a feat that only Hall of Fame rider Chris McCarron had ever accomplished.

And, when Valenzuela is riding, he changes the way others ride against him. P. Val puts horses into the race. Meaning that he aggressively gains a forward position in a race -- many times setting the pace -- and has a talent for getting his equine partners to go farther on the lead than most have ever gone. Most of the time right into the winner's circle. When Valenzuela is in a race, both jockeys and handicappers make him a big factor in the outcome of that race.

One glaring example of his agressiveness was the 2003 Breeders' Cup Distaff. Riding long shot Adoration, Valenzuela charged from the starting gate and discouraged other riders from engaging in a suicide duel for the lead. Valenzuela managed a gate-to-wire victory against the best fillies and mares around in the 1 1/8-mile $2 million division championship and returned $83.40.

Valenzuela had an informal meeting with Santa Anita stewards recently in an effort to gauge his chances for yet another return to the saddle.

There is no doubt about Valenzuela's riding talents and his impact on the Southern California racing scene. But even those who have the most to lose or gain by Valenzuela's latest defection must come to the realization that there is the person of Patrick Valenzuela that may hang in the balance as a result of continuing to accept such behavior from someone who needs much more help than just victories on a racetrack can provide.