Edgar Prado becomes eighth jockey to hit 7,000 wins
Edgar Prado won the 7,000th race of his career Tuesday at Parx when he guided Thefundsarelow to victory in race 6. Thefundsarelow, who is trained by Phil Aristone, won the $12,500 claiming race by a half-length.
The Parx riding colony gathered in the winner’s circle after the race to congratulate Prado on his milestone win.
Only seven other riders have won as many as 7,000 races, and they are all retired. The other members of the club are Russell Baze (12,842), Laffit Pincay Jr. (9,530), Bill Shoemaker (8,833), Pat Day (8,803), David Gall (7396), Chris McCarron (7,141), and Angel Cordero Jr. (7,057).
Prado ranks seventh on the all-time money list with mount earnings of more than $266 million.
“I feel great. I am very thankful,” Prado said by phone. “I have been blessed in my career and fortunate to avoid serious injury. I thank God.
“I also want to thank my family for being there for me all these years, and all the great people I have met along the way, especially my agents, who have worked hard for me. I owe it all to the great horses I have ridden. Without the horses, I wouldn’t be here.”
Steve Rushing was Prado’s agent for 13 years. They teamed up at Suffolk Downs in 1987, and Rushing represented him in Florida, Maryland, and New York. Bob Klesaris, who was instrumental in launching Prado’s career as a trainer, has been his agent the past six years.
Prado, 50, is a native of Peru. He began riding in his native country in 1983 and relocated to the United States in 1986.
Between 1991 and 1999 Prado won 24 riding titles at Laurel Park and Pimlico. After relocating to New York, he led the standings for 11 meets on the New York Racing Association circuit.
Prado was the winningest rider in North America three times. In 1997, he won an amazing 536 races. No rider since has ridden 500 winners in a season. The only others to ever have done it are Kent Desormeaux (598) in 1989, Chris McCarron (546) in 1974, and Sandy Hawley (515) in 1973.
Click here for more on Edgar Prado’s career
In 2003, Prado was voted the George Woolf Memorial Award by his fellow riders for maintaining high standards of personal and professional conduct. In 2006, he was given the Mike Venezia Award for extraordinary sportsmanship and citizenship.
At the conclusion of 2006, Prado earned an Eclipse Award as the year's outstanding jockey. He was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame in 2008.
Prado has won the Belmont Stakes twice and five Breeders’ Cup races, but will forever be linked to Barbaro’s victory in the 2006 Kentucky Derby. Tragically, He was in the saddle when Barbaro broke down a few strides from the gate in the Preakness.
The two riders on the all-time victories list immediately behind Prado are still active. Perry Ouzts, who is riding at Belterra Park in Ohio, had 6,913 wins as of Tuesday. Mario Pino, who has 6,859 victories, recently began riding in Maryland and is scheduled to shift to Delaware Park when that meet opens May 30.
:: Visit DRF's one-stop shop for Black-Eyed Susan and Preakness PPs, guides, and more!
