Francisco Mena, who won more than 1,600 races in a career that spanned more than four decades, died on March 18 in a hospital in Rosarito, Mexico, according to his brother, Guillermo. Mena was 78. He died of natural causes, Guillermo Mena said. Mena, better known as Paco, was a four-time leading rider at the Los Angeles county fair in Pomona, where he won a then-record 38 races at the 1981 meeting. At the time, the track had a half-mile circumference, which gave Mena the nickname “King of the Bullring.” The track was later expanded to five-eighths of a mile. David Flores broke Mena’s single-season record with 48 wins in 1991. The last county fair meeting in Pomona was held in 2013. Mena rode from 1966 to 1998, winning 1,607 races. He had his best season in 1975, winning a personal best 151 races with mounts that earned more than $1.76 million, also a career best. He ranked 16th in the nation that year in money earnings. Mena’s 1975 season was highlighted by wins aboard Telly’s Pop in three consecutive Grade 2 races - the Del Mar Futurity, the Norfolk Stakes at Santa Anita, and the California Juvenile Championship at Bay Meadows. Telly’s Pop was co-owned by actor Telly Savalas and Hollywood producer Howard Koch and trained by Mel Stute. :: Santa Anita Classic Meet! Get DRF Past Performances, Clocker Reports, and more. In 1976, Mena rode Telly’s Pop to a win in the Grade 2 California Derby at Golden Gate Fields. Mena won the first of four riding titles at Pomona later that year, and won three consecutive title there from 1979 to 1981. “He could take those turns like [he was riding] a race car,” Guillermo Mena said. “Nobody could do that like him.” Mena sustained a back injury in a spill at Pomona in late September 1987. He resumed riding in May 1998 at Exhibition Park in British Columbia, later known as Hastings Park. Mena won the last graded stakes of his career on Scherando, in the Grade 3 Balboa Stakes at Del Mar in August 1991. Mena rode his final winner at Del Mar on Aug. 26, 1998, aboard Grandma Luckey. He had his last mount two months later on Grandma Luckey at Santa Anita. At Hollywood Park, Mena won the Grade 1 Century Handicap on Landscaper in 1978, and the Grade 1 Swaps Stakes on First Albert in 1980. At Santa Anita, Mena won the Grade 2 Carleton Burke Handicap in 1977 and the Grade 2 San Carlos Handicap in 1978 on Double Discount. Mena won five stakes in his career at Del Mar, including four in 1975. Aside from the Del Mar Futurity, he won the Del Mar Oaks that year on Snap Apple. Mena’s survivors include two brothers – Eduardo and Guillermo, and a sister Esther. Paco Mena was born in Mexico City in October 1947, one of seven children, Guillermo Mena said on Wednesday. The family moved to Tijuana, Mexico, south of San Diego, and later emigrated to the United States. At one point, Guillermo and Paco were two of four brothers riding in North America, including Eduardo and Joel. Another brother, Enrique, was a trainer, Guillermo Mena said. Paco Mena had his first triple-digit winning season in 1971, with 101 wins. Mena retired to Mexico where he lived in recent decades, his brother said. A funeral will be held at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday at the Guadalupan Missionaries of the Most Holy Sacrament Parish in Rosarito, Mexico. – additional reporting by Brad Free :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.