Calvin Borel

Last updated
Calvin Borel
Calvin Borel.jpg
Occupation Jockey
Born (1966-11-07) November 7, 1966 (age 57)
St. Martin Parish, Louisiana, United States
Career wins5,146+ (ongoing)
Major racing wins
Super Derby (1991)
Arkansas Derby (1993)
Count Fleet (1989, 1995)
Falls City Handicap
(1996, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2008)
Apple Blossom Handicap (1997, 2001)
Fleur de Lis Handicap (1997, 2009, 2010)
Essex Handicap (1998, 2007)
Clark Handicap (1999)
Kentucky Cup Classic Handicap (1999)
Bashford Manor Stakes (2000, 2008)
Oaklawn Handicap (2000)
Bourbon Stakes (2002)
Silverbulletday Stakes (2003)
Ack Ack Handicap (1996, 1998, 1999)
Stephen Foster Handicap (2006)
Amsterdam (2006)
Tampa Bay Derby (2007)
Travers Stakes (2007)
Sword Dancer (2007)
Alabama Stakes (2007)
Jim Dandy Stakes (2007)
Razorback Breeders' Cup Handicap (2008)
Golden Rod Stakes (2002,2008)
Hal's Hope Handicap (2009)
Fair Grounds Oaks (2009)
Fantasy Stakes (2009)
Kentucky Oaks (2009)
Louisville Stakes (2009)
Haskell Invitational (2009)
Woodward Stakes (2009)
Mother Goose Stakes (2009)
Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes
(2000, 2008, 2009)
Derby Trial (2010)
Colonel E.R. Bradley Handicap
(1992, 1993, 1994)
Churchill Downs Distaff Handicap
(1998, 1999, 2003)
Delaware Oaks (1998)
Louisville Distaff Stakes
(1999, 2004, 2007, 2009)
Florida Derby (2012)
West Virginia Governor's Stakes (2013)

American Classics wins:
Kentucky Derby (2007, 2009, 2010)
Preakness Stakes (2009)
Breeders' Cup wins:
Breeders' Cup Juvenile (2006)

Contents

Racing awards
George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award (2010)
Honours
Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame (2011)
National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame (2013)
Significant horses
Seek Gold, Street Sense, Delightful Kiss
Rachel Alexandra, Mine That Bird, Brass Hat,
Miss Isella, Super Saver

Calvin H. Borel (born November 7, 1966) is an American jockey in thoroughbred horse racing and rode the victorious mount in the 2007 Kentucky Derby, the 2009 Kentucky Derby and the 2010 Kentucky Derby. His 2009 Derby win with Mine That Bird was the third biggest upset in Derby history, (after Donerail and Rich Strike), and Borel's winning margin of 6+34 lengths was the greatest in Derby history since Assault won by 8 lengths in 1946. On May 1, 2009, Borel won the Kentucky Oaks aboard Rachel Alexandra, only the second time since 1993 that a jockey has won the Oaks-Derby combo, and just the seventh time overall a jockey has accomplished this feat in the same year. [1] On May 16, 2009, Borel won the 2009 Preakness Stakes at Pimlico with thoroughbred filly Rachel Alexandra. In doing so, Borel became the first jockey to win the first two jewels of the Triple Crown on different mounts. Borel's nickname is "Bo'rail'" due to his penchant for riding close to the rail to save ground.

Life and career

Calvin Borel hails from south Louisiana: the heart of Cajun Country and famous for having produced a number of top jockeys, such as Randy Romero, Kent Desormeaux, Eddie Delahoussaye and Shane Sellers. Borel began racing horses in the bush tracks near his hometown of Catahoula and started riding in match races at the age of eight. [2] He is known for his Cajun accent and bubbly and emotional personality, both of which were on full display during his post-victory interview after all three of his Kentucky Derby wins.

Borel's older brother, Cecil, had a brief career as a thoroughbred jockey but was not able to maintain his weight. He turned to training horses at Delta Downs in Vinton, Louisiana. Calvin began his professional riding career at Delta Downs.

Over a career spanning 25 years, Borel has become known for his tireless work ethic as well as an ability to slip up the rail to save ground. His colleagues and racing fans therefore frequently refer to him as "Calvin Bo-rail". [3] [4]

Borel is 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m) and 116 pounds (53 kg). He lives in Louisville, Kentucky. His riding career began to surge in June 2006 when he won the $750,000 Stephen Foster Handicap at Churchill Downs with 91–1 longshot Seek Gold, getting up in the final stride to win by a nose over Perfect Drift and paying $185.40 to win. That year was his big break when he won his first Breeders' Cup on Street Sense in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile.

Borel then won the 2007 Kentucky Derby aboard Street Sense, guiding the colt to a 2+14 length victory over Hard Spun. He next had a close second-place finish aboard Street Sense in the Preakness Stakes to Curlin.

On July 5, 2007, Borel became the sixth jockey in the history of Churchill Downs to win six races on a single race card. With his victory in the July 5, 2008 Bashford Manor Stakes, he became the thirty-fourth jockey in North American Thoroughbred racing history to win 4,500 races. [5]

May 2, 2009, saw Borel win the Kentucky Derby on Mine That Bird, a 50–1 long shot, a day after winning the Kentucky Oaks aboard favorite Rachel Alexandra. It was only the second time since 1993 that a jockey has won the Oaks-Derby combo, and he was just the seventh jockey overall to accomplish this feat in the same year. [1]

On May 16, 2009, Borel won the Preakness Stakes on Rachel Alexandra (after that horse was sold following the Derby). This accomplishment marked the first time that a jockey won the first two legs of the Triple Crown on different horses, and Borel, with a win in the Belmont, could become the first Triple Crown winner since Steve Cauthen accomplished it in 1978 on Affirmed. A win would have made him only the second individual to win the Triple Crown by sweeping the races with different horses (D. Wayne Lukas, a trainer, also did so in 1995). However, on June 6, 2009, Borel finished third on Mine That Bird in the Belmont Stakes, failing to accomplish a jockey Triple Crown.

On June 27, 2009, he guided Rachel Alexandra to a 19+14 victory in the Mother Goose Stakes at Belmont Park, setting a new stakes record, the only horse to break a record held by the great filly Ruffian. Borel then rode her to a six-length victory over Belmont Stakes winner Summer Bird in the Haskell Invitational.

On September 5 of the same year, he rode Rachel Alexandra to a historic victory in the Woodward Stakes. It was the first time a filly of any age had won that storied race.

Borel was named the winner of the 2010 George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award.

On May 1, 2010, he rode Super Saver to win his 3rd Kentucky Derby in a 4-year span, the first jockey ever to do so. [6] After winning the race, Borel promised he would win the Triple Crown in 2010 but he lost the Preakness.

On June 4, 2010, Borel became only the second jockey to win 1,000 career races at Churchill Downs, joining Hall of Famer Pat Day.

On March 7, 2013, Borel earned his 5,000th victory at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas while riding Hezunusual in the 6th race. He dedicated the win to his agent of over 20 years, Jerry Hissam who retired that year due to chronic pancreas issues after undergoing gall bladder surgery. [7] Borel is the 26th North American jockey to reach 5000 victories. [8]

Borel was inducted into the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame in 2011 and to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2013. [9] [10]

Borel played himself in the 2014 feature film 50 to 1 , about Mine that Bird's 2009 Kentucky Derby win. [11]

On March 30, 2016, Borel announced he would be retiring from horse racing. [12] However, on August 15, he came out of retirement.

On August 20, 2011, Borel was arrested in Evansville, Indiana for allegedly driving while intoxicated. [13]

On August 26, 2019, Borel was arrested in Corydon, Indiana for allegedly driving while intoxicated after police saw him driving the wrong way on a street. [14]

Riding titles

Borel on Street Sense, 2007 Calvin Borel and Street Sense.jpg
Borel on Street Sense, 2007

Year-end charts

Chart (2000–present)Peak
position
National Earnings List for Jockeys 200043
National Earnings List for Jockeys 200135
National Earnings List for Jockeys 200234
National Earnings List for Jockeys 200341
National Earnings List for Jockeys 200454
National Earnings List for Jockeys 200573
National Earnings List for Jockeys 200630
National Earnings List for Jockeys 200717
National Earnings List for Jockeys 200850
National Earnings List for Jockeys 200915
National Earnings List for Jockeys 201026
National Earnings List for Jockeys 201171
National Earnings List for Jockeys 201289

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kentucky Oaks</span> American Thoroughbred stakes horse race

The Kentucky Oaks is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred fillies staged annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. The race currently covers 1+18 miles (1,800 m) at Churchill Downs; the horses carry 121 pounds (55 kg). The Kentucky Oaks is held on the Friday before the Kentucky Derby each year. The winner gets $846,300 of the $1,500,000 purse, and a large garland blanket of lilies, resulting in the nickname "Lillies for the Fillies." A silver Kentucky Oaks Trophy is presented to the winner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smarty Jones</span> American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Smarty Jones is a champion Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2004 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes and came second in the Belmont Stakes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Baffert</span> American horse owner and trainer

Robert A. Baffert is an American racehorse trainer who trained the 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah and 2018 Triple Crown winner Justify. Baffert's horses have won a record six Kentucky Derbies, eight Preakness Stakes, three Belmont Stakes, and three Kentucky Oaks. He has been the subject of significant controversy regarding repeated incidents of his horses failing drug tests or dying under his care.

Patrick Alan "Pat" Day is a retired American jockey. He is a four-time winner of the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey and was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1991 and the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame in 1999. Day won nine Triple Crown races and 12 Breeders' Cup races. He was once the leader for career Breeders' Cup wins though he was later surpassed as the events were expanded after he retired.

Robby J. Albarado is an American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey. He began riding at the age of 10 and progressed to riding at bush tracks in his native Louisiana by the age of 12. After turning professional, he earned his first official win at Evangeline Downs in 1990. Since then, he has won more than 5,000 races, but his career has endured setbacks as a result of serious injuries. During 1998 and 1999, he suffered two skull fractures, one of which required doctors to replace a damaged portion of his skull with titanium mesh and polymer plate. Another serious accident in the fall of 2000 kept him out of racing for the better part of 2001.

Bernardini was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2006 Preakness Stakes and Travers Stakes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victor Espinoza</span> Mexican jockey (born 1972)

Victor Espinoza is a Mexican jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing who won the Triple Crown in 2015 on American Pharoah. He began riding in his native Mexico and went on to compete at racetracks in California. He has won the Kentucky Derby three times, riding War Emblem in 2002, California Chrome in 2014, and American Pharoah in 2015. He also won the Preakness Stakes three times, in those same years and with the same horses. He was the first jockey in history to enter the Belmont Stakes with a third opportunity to win the Triple Crown; his 2015 victory made him the oldest jockey and first Hispanic jockey to accomplish the feat. He joined Ron Turcotte as the only jockeys to win five of the six jewels of the Triple Crown spread over two consecutive years.

Jon Kenton Court is an American jockey in Thoroughbred horse racing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Asmussen</span> American Thoroughbred racehorse trainer

Steven Mark Asmussen is an American Thoroughbred racehorse trainer. The leading trainer in North America by wins, he is a two-time winner of the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Trainer and was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2016. His horses have won the Breeders' Cup Classic, Preakness Stakes, Belmont Stakes, Travers Stakes, Breeders' Cup Distaff, Kentucky Oaks and Dubai World Cup.

Macho Again is a retired American thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He was sired by the 2000 American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt Macho Uno, who in turn was a son of leading sire Holy Bull. He is out of the mare Go Donna Go, who is the daughter of Wild Again.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United States)</span> Racing honor

In the United States, the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, commonly known as the Triple Crown, is a series of horse races for three-year-old Thoroughbreds, consisting of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes. The three races were inaugurated in different years, the last being the Kentucky Derby in 1875. The Triple Crown Trophy, commissioned in 1950 but awarded to all previous winners as well as those after 1950, is awarded to a horse who wins all three races and is thereafter designated as a Triple Crown winner. The races are traditionally run in May and early June of each year, although global events have resulted in schedule adjustments, such as in 1945 and 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2009 Kentucky Derby</span> 135th running of the Kentucky Derby

The 2009 Kentucky Derby was the 135th running of the Kentucky Derby. The value of the race was $2,177,000 in stakes. The race was sponsored by Yum! Brands and hence officially was called Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands. The race took place on May 2, 2009, and was televised in the United States on the NBC television network. The Atlanta-based Southern Tourism Society named the Kentucky Derby Festival, which was April 11 to May 1, as one of the top tourist attractions in the Southeast for the first half of 2009. The post time was 6:24 p.m. EDT. The official attendance at Churchill Downs was 153,563.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2009 Preakness Stakes</span> 134th running of the Preakness Stakes

The 2009 Preakness Stakes was the 134th running of the Preakness Stakes, the second leg of horse racing's Triple Crown. The value of the race was $1,100,000 in stakes. The race was sponsored by BlackBerry and hence officially was called BlackBerry Preakness Stakes. The race took place on May 16, 2009. Post time was 6:19 p.m. EDT and was televised in the United States on the NBC television networks. The Maryland Jockey Club reported total attendance of 77,850, this is recorded as third highest on the list of American thoroughbred racing top attended events for North America in 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mine That Bird</span> American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Mine That Bird is a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2009 Kentucky Derby at 50-1 odds and came second in the Preakness Stakes and third in the Belmont Stakes. He had earnings of $2,228,637 and was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rachel Alexandra</span> American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Rachel Alexandra is a retired American Thoroughbred racehorse and the 2009 Horse of the Year. When she won the 2009 Preakness Stakes, the second leg of the Triple Crown, she became the first filly to win the race in 85 years. She also won races in six states, on eight different tracks, against fillies and Grade 1 colts and older horses, achieving a long string of consecutive wins including numerous Grade 1 stakes. Rachel Alexandra neared or broke multiple stakes records, track records and winning margin records throughout her career. On September 28, 2010, owner Jess Jackson announced Rachel Alexandra's retirement. She was bred to 2007–2008 Horse of the Year Curlin and delivered a colt on January 22, 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2010 Kentucky Derby</span> 136th running of the Kentucky Derby

The 2010 Kentucky Derby was the 136th running of the Kentucky Derby. The race took place on May 1, 2010, and was televised in the United States on the NBC television network. The post time was 6:32 p.m. EDT. The stakes of the race were US$2,185,200. The race was sponsored by Yum! Brands and hence officially was called Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands.

John L. Lively is a retired American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey who won 3,468 career races, including the 1976 Preakness Stakes, as well as ten riding titles at Ak-Sar-Ben Racetrack in Omaha, Nebraska plus two at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas and another at Remington Park in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brian Hernandez Jr.</span> American jockey

Brian Joseph Hernandez Jr. is an American Eclipse Award-winning jockey in Thoroughbred horse racing. He began riding professionally in 2003 and achieved his first win on November 29, 2003, at Louisiana's Delta Downs. As of May 2024, he has over 2,500 victories.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oxbow (horse)</span> American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Oxbow, an American Thoroughbred racehorse, is best known for winning the second jewel in the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, the 2013 Preakness Stakes. A bay colt, sired by a winner of the Breeders' Cup Classic and out of a full sister to another Breeders' Cup Classic winner, Oxbow was sold as a yearling at Keeneland for $250,000 and is owned by Brad Kelley of Calumet Farm. He was trained by D. Wayne Lukas and was ridden in his Triple Crown races by Gary Stevens.

David Cohen is an American jockey. He won the 2018 Comeback Jockey of the Year Award, and was the 2019 Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort Champion Jockey. In 2022, he was inducted into the Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. As of March 20, 2024, he had 1,644 career wins, and earnings of $65 million.

References

  1. 1 2 Story, Mark (2009-05-05). "Rail-hugging rides are Borel's signature - Kentucky Derby". Kentucky.com. Retrieved 2010-05-02.
  2. Marty McGee (June 4, 2009). "A day in the life of Calvin Borel". ESPN. Retrieved May 3, 2010.
  3. "Calvin Borel". NTRA. Archived from the original on May 4, 2008. Retrieved May 3, 2010.
  4. Brisnet Editorial (January 24, 2009). "Beethoven breezes for Holy Bull | Kentucky Derby 135". Archived from the original on February 10, 2009. Retrieved May 18, 2011.
  5. Marty McGee (July 5, 2008). "Borel hits 4,500 with 18-1 shot - Horse Racing". ESPN. Retrieved May 2, 2010.
  6. Pedulla, Tom (May 3, 2010). "Jockey Calvin Borel makes Derby his old Kentucky home". USA Today. Retrieved May 9, 2011.
  7. http://www.drf.com/news/oaklawn-park-jockey-agent-jerry-hissam-retiring-due-illness%7Caccess-date=2017-06-12%5B%5D
  8. "Jockey Calvin Borel claims career win No. 5,000". SF Gate. March 7, 2013.
  9. "ASHOF Inductees" (PDF). Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame. 2018-01-01. Retrieved 2018-10-17.
  10. "Calvin Borel". Racingmuseum.org. 2013-01-01. Retrieved 2019-05-14.
  11. "Borel impresses Hollywood co-stars in '50 to 1'". Daily Racing Form , March 14, 2014.
  12. Derby-winning jockey Calvin Borel retiring The Courier Journal , March 30, 2016.
  13. Council, Jared (2011-08-21). "Derby-Winning Jockey Calvin Borel Faces DWI Charge". Evansville Courier & Press. Retrieved 2011-08-21.
  14. WHAS11 News , August 26, 2019.
  15. Yunt, Gary (July 4, 2010). "Borel Secures First Spring Meet Riding Title, Fourth Overall". Churchill Downs. Retrieved May 18, 2011.