On Friday at Fair Grounds, veteran jockey Jareth Loveberry achieved the milestone 2,000th win of his 20-year riding career then on Saturday he won the Champions Day Lassie culminating a very productive week. The panel of racing experts voted the Michigan native Jockey of the week for December 8 through December 14.
The weekly honor recognizes jockeys for significant riding accomplishments and who are members of the Jockeys' Guild. Founded in 1940, the Guild represents more than 1050 active, retired and permanently disabled jockeys in the United States.
Loveberry entered Friday's card with 1,998 wins and five mounts on the day. He notched win 1,999 in the first race for trainer Larry Rivelli aboard Prince Day in a maiden claiming race.
"After I got the first one, I said to myself, I have a couple of other horses with a chance today but I really think I could get the last," said Loveberry to Fair Grounds publicity.
His instincts were correct, achieving the milestone in the eighth and final race of the day aboard race favorite, Island Cabana for trainer Justin Jeansonne.
"Winning my 2,000th career race at a historic track like Fair Grounds, it's pretty special," Loveberry said. "Just thinking back 20 years ago, being tall like I am, I never thought I could get here."
"Starting from the bottom, there are a lot of horses who mean a whole lot to me, from Chicky Poo all the way to more recent years with Two Phil's and Chunk of Gold," Loveberry said. "The horses got me here."
Loveberry finished second in the 2023 Kentucky Derby aboard Two Phil's, trained by Larry Rivelli.
Loveberry, 38, added to his win total on Saturday, Louisiana Champions Day at Fair Grounds. Trainer Patrick Devereux, Jr. gave him a leg up aboard Little Miss Curlin in the Champions Day Lassie.
Off as the overwhelming favorite in the field of five two-year-olds, Little Miss Curlin raced off the pace down the backstretch. Around the far turn Loveberry gave her a cue and took the lead at the quarter pole to win by 4-1/4 lengths in 1:10.33 for six furlongs on the main track.
Loveberry began riding at Fair Grounds during the 2021-22 season winning 36 races and has increased his win total each meet. He began his career at Great Lakes Downs in Michigan where he rode his first winner on August 29, 2005. A multiple graded stakes winning jockey, Loveberry has ridden at tracks throughout the Midwest and won his 1,000th career race at Remington Park on November 28, 2015.
Loveberry has won multiple leading rider titles and is currently in second place in the Fair Grounds standings with 12 wins just behind Paco Lopez.
Other contenders for Jockey of the Week included Manny Franco who won a stakes race at Aqueduct, Juan Hernandez who won the Los Alamitos Futurity (G2), Julien Leparoux with a stakes race win at Oaklawn Park and Tim Thornton who won the Louisiana Champions Day Classic at Fair Grounds.
This press release has not been edited by BloodHorse. If there are any questions please contact the organization that produced the release.
