Mike Smith Blows Out 59 Candles, But the Big Dreams Still Burn Bright…
- Turf Diario
- 5 minutes ago
- 3 min read
The Hall of Fame rider still dreams of adding to his résumé—with another Kentucky Derby high on the list
DEL MAR, California (Special for Turf Diario).- He may have blown out the candles on Sunday, but Mike Smith wants to make one thing perfectly clear: he’s not 60 just yet. “This was 59—make sure you get that right,” the Hall of Famer laughed. And while the years have rolled by, the competitive fire that made him one of the sport’s greatest riders still burns as fiercely as ever.
For more than a decade—and well before that—Smith has been the very definition of longevity. Riding deep into his fifties, facing rivals young enough to be his sons, and still teaching them a lesson or two. A champion at every level, with over 5,700 career wins, two Kentucky Derbies, a Triple Crown, the all-time record at the Breeders’ Cup, and more than 240 Grade I victories, “Big Money Mike” has long since secured his place among the immortals.
But before the glory, there was the small-town kid. Born in Roswell, New Mexico—better known for its UFO legends of the 1940s—he grew up in nearby Dexter. His father rode briefly, an uncle trained horses, and from an early age, Smith was around the game.
“I was running match races when I was 11,” he recalled. “We’d race in New Mexico and Texas. They had a little circuit, and they’d bring Quarter Horses in from Mexico. Man, those things could fly. I saw All American Futurity winners get beat by those Mexican match horses.”
By 15, he was determined to ride Thoroughbreds. When told he needed a guardian’s signature to get a license, his uncle stepped in. “Back then it was a lot more flexible,” Smith said. “I was just a couple of months shy of 16, which was the legal age, and it wasn’t an issue. Years later I tried to fix the record, but they told me it would be too much trouble to change it. So it stayed that way.”
With a license in hand, the next challenge was finding a mount. At Santa Fe Downs, no one wanted to give a chance to the 100-pound kid—until trainer Wilson Brown did, thanks to some persistence from his son Todd. On June 12, 1982, aboard Future Man, Smith booted home his first winner. “After that, the work started coming. I won a few more, but I knew I needed more experience. I didn’t want to burn through my apprentice bug until I was really ready.”
Another stroke of fortune came when he befriended fellow apprentice O.A. Martinez, who was headed to Louisiana Downs with trainer J.J. Pletcher. Smith asked to tag along. “They said yes, and it was a great experience. I was there for a month, just watching everything. There were great riders like Larry Snyder and John Lively, and I learned a ton.”
In the car to Louisiana were J.J., O.A., Smith—and another teenager named Todd Pletcher. Two future Hall of Famers, side by side, learning the ropes.
When Smith returned home, he was ready. He rode winners in New Mexico, then Arkansas, Nebraska, Kentucky, and in 1989, landed in New York. That’s where he broke through, before moving his tack to California in 2001. Two years later, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame.
His résumé is staggering: more than $355 million in earnings and unforgettable partnerships with the likes of Holy Bull(Great Above), Lure (Danzig), Sky Beauty (Blushing Groom), Royal Delta (A.P. Indy), Shared Belief (Candy Ride), Skip Away (Skip Trial), Azeri (Jade Hunter), Arrogate (Unbridled’s Song), Songbird (Medaglia d’Oro), Justify (Scat Daddy), and above all, the one and only Zenyatta (Street Cry). “Un-be-lieve-a-bal,” he still says every time her name comes up.
The secret to his longevity? “I was terrible at golf,” he quipped. So he traded his clubs for the gym. Since then, he’s trained two hours a day, working with fitness coaches near Del Mar and Santa Anita. “I’m so competitive I had to find another outlet. I’ve been in the gym ever since.”
Smith lives by a motto he once saw at Claiborne Farm: Do the usual unusually well. Another guiding principle comes from his mother: Surround yourself with good people. Both remain part of his daily life.
And as for the future? Even with 59 behind him, the dreams remain as big as ever. “I want to win another Derby,” he said. “Three would be perfect. Bob (Baffert) told me he’s got a 2-year-old for me… and that excites me.”
That’s Mike Smith: fierce competitor, gym rat, teacher to the young guns, and Hall of Fame rider who still finds ways to make history. Because, as he himself likes to remind people, “There’s only one Mike Smith.”
