Berry rides 2,000th Remington Park Thoroughbred winner

Jockey Cliff Berry reached the mark of 2,000 Remington Park Thoroughbred wins Friday night, when he guided He Knows Better to a front-running win in the fourth race. The score came with his second mount on the card on opening night in Oklahoma City.

Berry, who is a career winner of more than 4,000 races, has racked up 15 titles at his home track of Remington. His first local seasonal championship was in 1996.

Berry’s milestone Friday night came for one of his longtime patrons, trainer Bret Calhoun. He Knows Better won the maiden special weight for 2-year-olds bred in Oklahoma by 2 1/4 lengths, and paid $3. The horse races for Young Stables.

Remington celebrated the Berry’s feat with a special video tribute counting down his seasonal win totals through the years. It included old photos and footage of the rider. Berry also was given a platter of cupcakes, the sweets arranged to form the number 2,000.

Berry won the first race of his career June 3, 1981, at Louisiana Downs. He’s won 4,243 Thoroughbred races from 26,877 starts for career Thoroughbred mount earnings of $61.4 million. Berry has a total of 220 stakes wins to his credit. He is a native of Missouri.