Patrick Valenzuela Is Back in the Saddle Again

If an award for comeback athlete of the year existed, my vote would go to jockey Patrick Valenzuela. It was only last year that he went to the edge with a cocaine addiction that forced him out of Santa Anita to the circuits of New Mexico.

But, when given another chance, he redeemed himself at the Oak Tree meeting, winning the jockey title.

If he wins the Belmont today aboard Sunday Silence, that will give him the Triple Crown. Not many jockeys ever win the Triple Crown, including Bill Shoemaker. That’s not to say Patrick Valenzuela should be compared to Shoemaker just yet, but one thing is for sure.

He’s back in the saddle again.

MICHAEL LITTLETON

Arcadia