Rafael Manuel Hernandez Moves Tack to Turfway Park, Signs With Jimmy McNerney

Rafael Manuel Hernandez has relocated his tack to Turfway Park for the winter-spring meet and will be represented by veteran jockey agent Jimmy McNerney, with the change taking effect immediately. The move signals a targeted campaign on Turfway’s all-weather synthetic surface and pairs Hernandez’s stout résumé with McNerney’s Kentucky connections.

Jimmy McNerney welcomed Hernandez to his client list, saying, “I am thrilled to welcome Rafael to Turfway Park and to represent him moving forward. Rafael is a proven winner with exceptional talent and professionalism. His expertise of riding a synthetic surface with all his success in Toronto should make my job easier. This is an exciting opportunity, a fresh addition to the local colony and we’re looking forward to many successes together on the Kentucky circuit.” Hernandez echoed that optimism: “I’m excited about the change and grateful for the opportunity to ride at Turfway under Jimmy’s guidance. I’ve always enjoyed competing in Kentucky, and I’m ready to hit the ground running.”

Hernandez arrives in Kentucky as an established international performer. A Puerto Rico native and long-time leading rider at Woodbine, Hernandez’s résumé includes more than 3,000 career wins, Grade 1 victories at Woodbine aboard Etoile in the 2020 E.P. Taylor and Last Call in the 2022 Natalma, and a role as the regular pilot of Moira during her 2022 Queen’s Plate campaign. He won the 2020 Sovereign Award as Canada’s Outstanding Jockey and has finished in the top three of the Woodbine jockey standings each year since 2017; the previous season he finished third while banking more than $6 million in purse earnings with a record listed as 804-135-102-103.

Hernandez is no stranger to North American circuits beyond Toronto. He has ridden at Saratoga in 2015 and at Aqueduct in winter 2018-19, and he had a stint riding in New York in 2024 while attending to family after his father’s passing. At that time agent Rudy Rodriguez Jr. represented him and said, “He’ll be here for a few months until April when he goes back to Woodbine. Hopefully, he can meet some trainers here and build up some clients.”

Race-entry listings show Hernandez on a variety of mounts that underscore his versatility on different distances and pedigrees. Morning-line entries include My Lil Punky (Outwork) at 15/1 and Megalodon (Medaglia d’Oro) at 8/1, and Hernandez is listed aboard Sunny Bates (Quality Road) at 30/1 on other cards. Those bookings suggest trainers are already tabbing Hernandez for competitive chances on synthetic and dirt surfaces.

Business-wise, the pairing represents a classic agent-jockey match: McNerney’s background as an agent, racing analyst, handicapper, and track announcer promises access to regional trainers and book development, while Hernandez brings proven form and surface fluency. For bettors and Turfway followers, Hernandez’s arrival recalibrates short-term odds lines and creates new betting angles on synthetic specialties.

Hernandez’s move matters because it mixes proven Canadian success with Kentucky opportunity; his immediate test will be translating Woodbine form into Turfway results. Expect Hernandez to be a name to watch on the winter-spring leaderboards as trainers, owners, and bettors adjust to the new collaboration.