OLDSMAR, Fla. (January 15, 2009) Huber Villa-Gomez has broken sharply out of the gate for the 2008-2009 Tampa Bay Downs race meet, haltering 28 in-the-money finishes from 71 attempts. In week of January 8th through the 13th, Villa-Gomes rode fifteen horses, piloting home four winners and three second-place finishers at average odds of 10.67-1.

Villa-Gomez was born on January 28, 1978 and began riding at in his native Peru after he gained an interest in horses through a cousin who worked at a racetrack. “The first day I went to the track, that’s when I knew I wanted to ride,” says Villa-Gomez. At age eighteen he attended jockey school in Peru, and won his first race there on a horse named Victorio.

Villa-Gomez first came to the United States in 1999, where he began riding for conditioner Frank Gomez at Calder Race Course in Miami. Villa-Gomez says that a horse he rode to several stakes victories in Ohio, Floater, is his favorite mount.

Villa-Gomez says that he enjoys riding at the Oldsmar oval because, “The horses are great quality and I really like the weather.” Huber Villa-Gomez plans to go to Mountaineer Park after the current Tampa Bay Downs meet.

When he’s not in the irons, Huber Villa-Gomez likes enjoys playing with his two children, Maximo, 5 ½; and Abigail, who will celebrate her fourth birthday on May 3.

Please note that there will be live racing at Tampa Bay Downs on Wednesday, January 21.