“I wanna thank my Lord, Jesus, for giving me this Kentucky Derby win,” said a beaming Junior Alvarado after winning the prestigious Kentucky Derby earlier this month. But more than the Lord, it was probably Alvarado’s sheer determination that brought him the glory. After all, just days before the big race, during the Florida Derby, the jockey was tending to his injured shoulder. And now, as the Preakness Stakes inch closer, we just might see yet another jockey attempting to replicate Alvarado’s story.
Edging out the favorite to win one of the biggest horse racing events in the world isn’t an easy feat, but when Alvarado pulled off the miracle, he was justifiably ecstatic about his achievement. Such comeback moments are what the horse racing community lives and breathes for! With the second leg of the Triple Crown just days away, could the Preakness Stakes also be witness to something as spectacular?
An article by NBC Washington from May 15 shared the story of jockey Raul Mena, who will be riding on the back of Pay Billy at the upcoming 151st Preakness Stakes. As the jockey stands on the cusp of winning a coveted Triple Crown race, he can’t forget how his horse-riding days were once almost deemed to be over.
In 2011, when Mena was running a race at the Valparaiso Sporting Club Viña del Mar in his home country of Chile, Mena’s horse jumped the rail and sent the jockey flying. The accident resulted in gruelling injuries. “It was a scary accident. I broke 24 bones in all my body, and I was in a coma for five weeks,” the jockey told NBC Washington while looking forward to Saturday’s Preakness Stakes.
Credits: AP Photo/Stephen Whyno
Mena recalled that he confided in his wife that he would give himself 10 years to recover from the setback. But no more than that. “…if I don’t make it, I’m not going to ride horses anymore because it’s very painful and it’s stressful,” he told his better half, but underscored that the thought of being in a Triple Crown race again was never absent from his mind. And all that struggle and turmoil seem to have finally paid off, as Raul now waits to take to the iconic Pimlico Race Course to put forth his bid to win the prestigious Preakness Stakes.
Riding on Pay Billy, Mena won the Federico Tesio Stakes at Laurel Park in April, automatically qualifying for the upcoming Preakness Stakes. With an eye on winning the weekend race, the jockey would try to replicate Junior’s triumph, who returned from a shoulder injury to win the coveted Kentucky Derby just days later.
The story is developing…
The post After Overcoming Coma, Preakness Stakes Jockey Seeks Kentucky Derby Champion’s Ending to “Very Painful” Months appeared first on EssentiallySports.