When it comes to sports players and accomplishments, it’s typical to hear that stats don’t tell the full story, and they don’t. But when your career statistics are mind-boggling and tower above those of any other member of your sport, figures are the correct starting point.
Which Jockey has won the most Races? Russell Baze won 12,842 races, a record that is unlikely to be exceeded by a jockey anytime soon . In comparison, Baze’s closest current pursuer has won less than 7,000 races.
Russell Baze rode in more than 53,500 races over the course of his 42-year career, an average of more than 3.5 races a day. That’s enough miles to go around the world twice. We take a look at Russell Blazes career.
Russell Baze – The Early Years
Russell Baze was born on August 7, 1958, in Vancouver, British Columbia, into a racing family. Russell’s first victory came atop Oregon Warrior, a horse trained by Russell’s father, Joe Baze. He was just 16 when he rode his first winner, and by the age of 21, he was winning over a hundred races every year, a performance he would repeat every year from 1979 to 2016, a quite phenomenal feat for any jockey in the pre or post-modern era.
The milestones began to tumble one by one. Baze rewrote the record books so often that their metaphorical ink could not dry before they needed to be rewritten again. Baze dominated the meetings at Golden Gate Fields and Bay Meadows Race Course like no other rider in history, spending most of his time in Northern California.
Russell Baze – The Accolades
He rode his 3,000th winner in 1988, his 4,000th winner in 1993, and his 5,000th triumph in 1995. That same year, he got one of the sport’s top honors: a Special Eclipse Award for winning at least 400 races in four consecutive years. Not willing to rest on his laurels, Baze stretched the record to seven years in a row and finally topped the 400-win milestone six more times before retiring.
Needless to say, his victory total continued to rise and every two and a half years, he hit a new milestone. Baze won his 7,000th race riding This Is the Moment on July 4, 2000, one year after being elected into the Racing Hall of Fame. Riding Oct. 26, 2002, at Bay Meadows, he whistled passed 8,000 on a horse called Ourwhistlebritches.
Russell Baze – The World Record and Graded Races
It seemed inevitable that Baze would break the record for the most winners ever, and the magical day arrived on December 1, 2006, in Bay Meadows. Riding a horse called Butterfly Belle, Baze cruised to a two-and-a-quarter-length victory, passing Laffit Pincay’s record of 9,531 victories.
Because he was stationed in Northern California, Baze didn’t have many chances to ride in the country’s most famous Grade 1 races, but he still rode his fair share of star horses, including some of the finest to ever compete in Northern California.
In 1989, he mounted Hawkster and rode the 3-year-old colt to victory in the Grade 1 Oak Tree Invitational Handicap, establishing a world record time of 2:22.80 for a mile. Russell Baze won graded stakes races on Lite Light, Both Ends Burning, Devil’s Orchid, Itsallgreektome, Event of the Year, and Smiling Tiger, among others.
Russell Baze – Lost in the Fog
On a national level, the horse most typically identified with Baze is Lost in the Fog, the champion sprinter who won the Eclipse Award in 2005. The magnificent colt sailed unbroken and practically unopposed through his first ten races, nine of which he won with Baze on, and propelled Baze to the sport’s pinnacle when they won the Grade 1 King’s Bishop Stakes at historic Saratoga Race Course.
Unfortunately, Lost in the Fog died of cancer (a rare condition in horses) in late 2006, only months after Baze had led the colt to the last triumph in the Grade 3 Aristides Breeders’ Cup Handicap in his final outing.
Russell Baze – The Winners and Championships continue Unabated
In 2008, he became the first person in history to win 10,000 races, and two and a half years later he became the first person in history to win 11,000 races. Russell Baze rode with unbroken success even as he neared 60 years old. Despite breaking his collarbone in a fall at Golden Gate Fields on April 16, 2016, Baze returned as strong as ever to become the top jockey in the Golden Gate Fields race meet, which he accomplished decisively.
He holds 36 riding championships at San Mateo’s Bay Meadows racecourse and 27 titles at Golden Gate Fields in Albany, California. Baze went on to win the most races in thoroughbred horse racing in the United States 10 times. He holds 36 riding championships at San Mateo’s Bay Meadows racecourse and 27 titles at Golden Gate Fields in Albany, California.
Russel Baze Finally Retires
On the last day of the meet, June 12, Baze finished second in the day’s 10th event before announcing his retirement. Baze retired from the saddle just shy of his 58th birthday, with a total of 12,842 victories from 53,578 rides in North America and $199,334,219 in purse earnings.
Baze’s longevity and ability to win as many races as he did were aided by good health and a lack of severe injuries, but according to Hall of Fame trainer Jerry Hollendorfer, who paired with Baze to win 2,893 races, Baze’s work ethic is what made him a legend.
“First and foremost, no one can win so many races if they lack the skill. “However, if you combine your talent with a strong work ethic, you can be among the greatest, and that’s a lesson that new riders should learn,” Hollendorfer added. “It just takes a bit more work to become a great rider rather than simply a competent rider.”
Russell Baze was a phenomenon. His longevity, minimal time out of the saddle, incredible skill, and work ethic saw him riding over twelve thousand winners in his illustrious career. This will be a record that will, in this writer’s opinion never be broken. It is just a magnificent feat and Baze’s retirement is well deserved.