Jockey Calvin Borel has a broken jaw and will miss the remainder of the Churchill Downs meet, his agent Jerry Hissam said Nov. 21. Borel, 44, was thrown from his mount in the $1 million Delta Downs Jackpot (gr. III) Nov. 20 when the colt, Aces N Kings, failed to negotiate the final turn and bolted.
'“His jaw is broken, and he’ll be out the rest of the meet; hopefully we’ll start back in Arkansas (at Oaklawn Park),” Hissam said. “The trailing horse (Blue Laser) that Shaun (Bridgmohan) was on kicked him.”
Borel returned to Louisville a little after 10 p.m. and was scheduled for surgery on the morning of Nov. 21 to repair a clean break on the right side of his jaw and multiple fractures on the left. The jockey's wife, Lisa Borel, said doctors would insert pins and screws to help the injury heal.
According to the agent, Aces N Kings’ stifle locked in the race. Hissam said he hadn’t yet had a chance to talk with trainer Henry Johnson Jr. about the colt’s condition.
“His rear end kind of went out from under him, and that’s what caused him to bolt and drop Calvin,” he said.
Borel also had a large laceration across his chin. He flew back from Louisiana on a private plane immediately following the accident and was hospitalized overnight in Louisville.
“It was just bad racing luck, the fortunes of our sport,” Hissam said. “Actually, he was fortunate in a way that he didn’t get kicked an inch or two lower which would have been right in the larynx.”
Borel recently captured his first spring meet title at Churchill Downs, where he had previously won or shared in three fall meet titles. This season, he won the 2010 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) aboard Super Saver and notched his 1,000th career win at the Louisville track. He currently ranks fifth in the fall meet standings.