Jockey Bios

Tyler Gaffalione

Born: Sept. 12, 1994, in Kansas City, Kansas

Record at Keeneland

Total Wins: 222

Stakes Wins: 28

Career Firsts

First Grade 1 Win: May 4, 2018 at Churchill Downs in La Troienne on Salty

First Stakes Win: May 3, 2015, at Gulfstream Park in Sunrise Stakes on Celebrity Star

First Graded Stakes Win: Dec. 12, 2015, at Gulfstream Park in Rampart (G3) on Cali Star

First Career Win: Sept. 7, 2014, at Gulfstream Park on Holdin Bullets

Starters in the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes

Year	Horse	Finish
2024	Sierra Leone	Won
2023	Verifying	2nd
2020	Man in the Can	13th
2019	Somelikeithotbrown	4th
2018	Determinant	13th
2016	Lookin for a Kiss	7th

At Keeneland

First Keeneland win came Oct. 22, 2016, on Cookies Are Good.

Seven titles as leading jockey: 2018 Fall Meet, 2020 Summer and Fall Meets; 2021 Fall Meet, 2022 Spring Meet, 2023 Spring and Fall Meets

Concluded first full season here as leading jockey of 2018 Fall Meet with 15 wins.

During the 2024 Spring Meet, won two Grade 1 races on the same day: the 150th running of the $1 million Toyota Blue Grass on Sierra Leone and the Resolute Racing Madison on Alva Star.

Additional Grade 1 wins: 2018 Shadwell Turf Mile on Next Shares; 2020 Maker's Mark Mile on War of Will; 2021 Jenny Wiley on Juliet Foxtrot (GB); 2022 Darley Alcibiades and NetJets Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies on Wonder Wheel; 2022 Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint on Caravel; 2023 First Lady Presented by UK HealthCare on Gina Romantica.

Career

Triple Crown win: 2019 Preakness on War of Will

Breeders' Cup wins (2): 2022 Juvenile Fillies on Wonder Wheel and Turf Sprint on Caravel

Named the 2015 Eclipse Award as outstanding apprentice for a season in which he rode 217 winners and horses that earned $5,805,176.

Recorded 2,000 win Jan. 20, 2023, aboard Megacity in the sixth race at Gulfstream Park.

Earned 1,000th victory Dec. 30, 2018, aboard Mission From Elle in the eighth race at Gulfstream Park.

North American career earnings exceed $153 million with 2,344 wins through May 12, 2024.

Click here for his Equibase record.

Background

Gaffalione has followed his father, Steve Gaffalione, and grandfather Bobby Gaffalione as jockeys. His grandfather competed in the 1984 Kentucky Derby aboard Rexson’s Hope, and 33 years later Tyler rode Patch in the race.

As a teenager, Gaffalione exercised racehorses before school and breezed 2-year-olds at sales. He competed in his first race on Sept. 5, 2014, at Gulfstream Park. Two days later, in his third career start, he won his first race. He received the 2015 Eclipse Award as outstanding apprentice.

Gaffalione said Keeneland’s electric atmosphere sets the track apart from others.

“I really just like the whole feel of the place,” he said. “When you win a race here, you actually feel like you’ve accomplished something. (Fans at) other tracks don’t applaud as much, but here you can hear them even when you’re coming down the stretch. Sometimes I have to look outside because I think there’s another horse coming but it’s just the crowd being loud. It’s special. There’s always a huge crowd here and great fans.”