Jockey Robby Albarado, the regular rider on Horses of the Year Curlin and Mineshaft, died Aug. 4 in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. He was 52.
A two-time winner of the Preakness Stakes (G1), Albarado retired from race riding at the end of the 2021 season. He had been working as an exercise rider in recent years for trainer Ken McPeek. That pair teamed to win the 2020 Preakness with filly Swiss Skydiver, just the sixth filly to win the Baltimore classic and the first since Rachel Alexandra in 2009.
"Saying goodbye to someone who left us too soon is extremely difficult," Churchill Downs racetrack president Mike Anderson said of the passing of the longtime Kentucky circuit rider who ranks fourth all time in wins at the Louisville, Ky. track. "The Churchill Downs family is saddened by this devastating loss and we extend our deepest condolences to his family and numerous friends."
Albarado was part of three Horse of the Year campaigns, first as the regular rider on Mineshaft during his 2003 season in which he won four grade 1 stakes including the Jockey Club Gold Cup Stakes. Albarado is most associated with 2007 Preakness winner Curlin, who earned Horse of the Year honors that season—in which he also defeated older runners in the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1)—as well as in 2008 when he added four more group/grade 1 wins, including the Dubai World Cup.
Daily Racing Form posted on social media July 30 that Albarado had been hospitalized in Saratoga Springs to insert a stent to alleviate a blockage near his heart. A day later, McPeek replied with a post that included a photo of a hospitalized but smiling Albarado that noted he had 100% blockage that was fixed with a stent.
Horse Racing Nation first reported Albarado's death, citing McPeek as the source, who noted: "He was a very good friend and a top horsemen. This is rough."
In securing that initial Preakness win, Albarado launched a perfectly timed rally in deep stretch to edge Kentucky Derby (G1) winner Street Sense by a head.
"I have been fortunate to ride some very good horses, including Mineshaft," Albarado said after the Preakness. "This horse ranks right there with him ... his talent overcomes a lot, more than people are seeing."
Jockey Calvin Borel was aboard Street Sense that day.
"I'm glad Robby beat me if anybody had to beat me," Borel said after the race. "We're like family. I told him congratulations pulling up. I'm sure he feels a little bad for me, but this is what we do."
Curlin, of course, was just getting started for owners Stonestreet Stables, Padua Stables, George Bolton, and Midnight Cry Stable, and trainer Steve Asmussen. He placed in all three classics that year as his third-place Derby finish and Preakness win was followed by a narrow loss to filly Rags to Riches in the Belmont Stakes (G1). He closed out the season with a victory in the Breeders' Cup Classic to secure champion 3-year-old male and Horse of the Year honors.
Curlin added international success at age 4 with his Dubai World Cup victory, with Albarado making that memorable trip overseas. Horse and rider rolled to a 7 1/4-length victory at the race's initial host track, Nad al Sheba.
"It was as easy as it looked; he is such a special horse," Albarado said after that triumph. "I don't want to take anything away from the field, but he has shown he is the best horse in the world."
Albarado showed over and over that he could handle the pressure of such a spotlight as he landed 39 North American grade 1 wins during his 32 seasons of racing. Besides his victory aboard Curlin, Albarado captured two other Breeders' Cup races: the 2009 Juvenile Fillies Turf on Tapitsfly and the 2011 Mile (G1T) on Court Vision.
"We are saddened to learn of the passing of Robby Albarado, whose unforgettable victory aboard Curlin in the 2007 Breeders' Cup Classic remains a defining moment in Breeders' Cup history," the Breeders' Cup said in a statement. "A gifted horseman and fierce competitor, he dedicated his life to Thoroughbred racing and left a lasting mark on the sport.
"Our heartfelt condolences are with his family, friends, and members of the racing community who are mourning his loss."
He is one of just 34 riders with 5,000 or more victories and he ranks 19th all time in earnings at more than $221 million. He registered a record of 5,222-4,950-4,696 from 34,114 starts. In 2004, he was honored with the George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award.
Many of those wins came for trainer Dale Romans.
"We shared great victories and unforgettable moments, but above all, he was family," Romans said in a statement. "Our hearts and prayers are with his children and everyone who loved him.
"He was my main rider for a long time. He was a good friend to his friends, including me. He was hard-working, talented at what he did, was always upbeat, a good man to be around. He texted me Sunday: 'I feel like a new person,' with a muscle emoji.
"To pick out one race he rode for me, Court Vision would be the one. He got up by a nose. He told me the week before, working him on the turf, that he'd never been better and he could win this race. And he won the Breeders' Cup Mile at 60-1. Got up by a whisker.
"He had a great opinion of a horse. He worked Animal Kingdom for Graham Motion before the Kentucky Derby. I was standing by the gap where he walked off; Robby looked down and said to me, 'Won't get beat.' And he was a longshot."
Albarado proved accurate with that prediction but, unfortunately for him, the mount went to John Velazquez after Albarado was kicked in the face by a horse in the paddock a few days before the 2011 Derby.
Born Sept. 11, 1973, in Lafayette, La., Albarado started riding at bush tracks in that state at the age of 12. He moved to the Kentucky circuit in 1996 after competing in Louisiana—he scored in first win in 1990 at Evangeline Downs—Arkansas, and Illinois. He earned a riding title at Arlington Park, as well as multiple titles at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, Keeneland, and Oaklawn Park.
His riding titles at Churchill included the 2008 spring meet and the 2016 September meet. His 87 stakes wins at that track rank second to Pat Day.
