Jockey Edgar Prado will be sidelined at least six weeks with a broken right ankle following a Sept.1 racing accident at Saratoga Race Course, said the jockey's agent, Bob Frieze.
"They operated last night and put some screws in," Frieze said Sept. 2. "They're supposed to release him this morning, and they said he should be out about six weeks. He's doing as good as can be expected."
The jockey rode Christophe Clement trainee Admiral Bird to a second-place finish for Dogwood Stable in the seventh race of the day, a one-mile allowance optional claiming event on the inner turf, and was galloping out around the clubhouse turn. He was unseated when Good Going Darl, under Cornelio Velasquez, came out from the inside fence and pushed another runner into Admiral Bird, said jockey Garrett Gomez.
"The horse on the inside floated, and I don't know exactly whose fault it was," Gomez said. "There was a pack of about four of us galloping out and when the inside horse came over it caused his horse to stumble. I heard him hollering and then he went off."
Prado fell to the turf course and remained on the ground as paramedics stabilized his position. He was removed from the track via ambulance after several minutes and was transported directly to Albany Medical Center.
"He was galloping out when a horse came over and dropped him," Clement said. "My horse recovered okay. He was fine."
Frieze said Prado will likely spend the majority of his recovery time in Florida, where his children attend school.
