OLDSMAR, FL- Samuel Marin tied the longstanding Tampa Bay Downs record for most victories on a single card with six on Friday, and just two days later the multiple stakes-winning jockey scored with six of his nine mounts again. Even better, on Sunday, April 26 Marin’s banner day smashed the mark for most wins in a single season that had stood for more than a decade.
Marin’s six wins on Sunday pushed his season total to 149. The previous record for most wins by a jockey in one meet was 147, set by Tony Gallardo in 2014-2015.
Marin, a 25-year-old Venezuelan native who began his career just four years ago in 2022, has been the runaway leader atop the standings during the current meet. He gave credit to his agent Mike Moran.
“Mike has been doing a great job. Since we started working at this meet this season. We put that into our mind as a goal. We really wanted to do it and then we worked hard for it. Thank God for it, we got it done. The dream came true”, said Marin, who was the Tampa Bay Downs leading rider last year as well.
On Sunday Marin bookended the nine-race card, winning the first race on First Hathor for trainer Kathleen O’Connell and the nightcap on Caravaggio’s Song for John Pimental. He won the third and seventh races aboard Take Dat and Cupid’s Dream, respectively, for Gerald Bennett, and added scores in the sixth on Patriot Bluechip for Kathleen Guciardo and the eighth with Escape Key for Ramon Aguayo.
Marin’s six wins on a single card has now twice tied the mark set by Edwin Gonzalez here on March 10, 2017, and both times it fell just one victory short of the Tampa Bay Downs record of seven scores set by Richard DePass on March 15, 1980. DePass went seven-for-seven on that day.
Marin’s 149 wins in a single season here also bested his total of 116 victories established in 2024-2025.
Live racing returns on Wednesday with a nine-race card and Marin is booked to ride in six of them. First post is 12:33 p.m.
Tampa Bay Downs races every Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday through May 3 and simulcasting, The Silks Poker Room, and The Downs golf practice facility are open daily.
