Prado Stays Busy on 49th Birthday

Jockey Edgar Prado stayed active on his 49th birthday when he rode two horses June 12 at Pimlico Race Course.

The Hall of Fame rider moved his tack from Florida to Maryland in May. He's currently the fifth-leading rider at Pimlico, winning at a 22% clip and finishing in the money at a 44% clip. Prado dominated the Maryland circuit for a decade; he won 24 riding titles before he moved to New York in 1998.

After riding in Maryland June 10, Prado traveled to New York Saturday to ride Divisidero in the Woodford Reserve Manhattan Stakes (gr. IT) before returning to Maryland to ride Sunday. Prado finished second aboard Stronach Stable's Demon Buster in Pimlico's Sunday feature.

"It's about how I feel and how I can do my job on the track," Prado said of riding. "I feel like I can compete with the young kids. There's some tough, good riders here and they're very competitive. That makes things interesting."

This year Prado has ridden the winners of the Woodford Reserve Turf Classic (gr. IT)), the Miami Mile (gr. III) and Sunland Park Handicap. He also won the Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1) in October aboard Runhappy. Prado earned an Eclipse Award as the country's top jockey in 2006, the same year he piloted Barbaro to victory in the Kentucky Derby (gr. I).

"A lot of people are happy to see me back," Prado said. "It's good to be back in Maryland after so many years. It's going to take time to build business back up. I've been traveling to Laurel, Fair Hill, and Mr. (Michael) Dickinson's farm in the mornings.

"It's all about the horse. If you have a good horse underneath you're able to deliver."

Prado said he will continue making his base in Maryland through December before deciding whether to return to Florida for the winter.