LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Churchill Downs and the horseracing community across Kentucky are mourning the loss of a well-known jockey who died after being hit by a car Sunday night.
Louisville Metro Police (LMPD) said the accident happened on I-64W near Hurstbourne Parkway around 7:30 p.m. The person hit died at the scene, police said.
Monday, the Jefferson County coroner's office identified the person as 34-year-old Jose M. Mena Rodriguez of Louisville.
Jeffersontown Police chief Rick Sanders said Rodriguez was traveling in a Lyft and asked the driver to let him out at Hurstbourne Parkway and Bunsen Way. From there, he walked to the Interstate-64 East on-ramp, and crossed the eastbound lanes into the westbound side where a driver hit him, Chief Sanders said.
The Lyft driver remained on the scene and was interviewed by police. Police said no charges are pending against the driver of the vehicle who hit Rodriguez.
On Dec. 22, the Jefferson County Coroner's office said Rodriguez had a Blood Alcohol Concentration of 0.249 and that his death has been ruled an accident.
Churchill Downs confirmed Miguel Mena was one of the winningest jockeys in their history and a two-time winner of the prestigious Stephen Foster Stakes. Mena would have turned 35 on Saturday, November 6, officials at Churchill Downs said.
“This news is absolutely shocking, terrible and heartbreaking,” said Churchill Downs Racetrack President Mike Anderson. “Our team is devastated to learn of Miguel’s passing. He was such a courageous rider who fought to overcome several challenges and adversity. We’ll miss his bright smile. Our deepest condolences are extended to his many friends, fellow riders and family, and our immediate thoughts are with his wife April and his daughters Naelah and Montserrat.”
While he was known by fans for his winning ways, WHAS11 spoke to friends and Churchill Downs employees who say it was Mena's smile and spirit that stood out most.
"On the track, he'd give you everything he had," said Churchill Downs assistant starter Robert Douglas. "But he also had a very great, warm smile. His big thing was his daughters though. If you'd ask him about it, his face would light up. His daughters were the world to him."
People who cared for Mena, like agent and friend Jose Santos, are trying to make sense of the tragedy.
"Hoping it wasn't true, sick to my stomach," said Santos, who worked with Mena for two years, a period where his win-total in North America exceeded 2,000. "What situation led to that? I'm not sure what transpired, but it'd be very nice to know why he wasn't in the vehicle."
At around 3 p.m. Monday afternoon, Santos started a GoFundMe page to raise money for the family. As of 11:30 p.m. Monday night, more than $39,000 dollars have been raised.
"Us at the race track, we're a family, and he won't be forgotten around these parts. That's for sure," Santos said.
Who was Miguel Mena?
Churchills Down provided the following information on Mena's incredible career as a jockey:
Mena, born on Nov. 6, 1986 in Lima, Peru, came from a family with roots in horse racing. His father Jose was a jockey and uncle Humberto is a trainer. As early as age 6, he’d go to the track with his father and dreamed of one day becoming a jockey. He began grooming horses at age 11, and when he turned 14 he attended Jorge Bernardini Yori Jockey School in Peru, which also produced Hall of Fame jockey Edgar Prado and Kentucky-based rider Rafael Bejarano.
Mena came to the United States at age 17 and recorded his first North American win as a jockey at Calder Race Course aboard Elian for trainer George Heath on Sept. 7, 2003.
Mena won 2,079 races in North America and his mounts in 16,234 races earned $72,483,396 in prize money. He recorded 136 career stakes wins, including 37 against graded stakes company led by the 2010 Test (Grade I) aboard Champagne d’Oro and 2011 Stephen Foster (GI) on Pool Play.
Mena’s 481 wins at Churchill Downs rank 15th all-time. He won 16 stakes events locally – the last, of which, was his second triumph in the Stephen Foster (GII) aboard Tom’s d’Etat in 2020.
Mena began riding regularly at Churchill Downs in the fall of 2006. While he never won a Churchill Downs riding title, he did finish among the top five riders in races won during eight local meetings, including second-place finishes at the 2008 Spring Meet and 2019 Spring Meet. The latter, which included 29 wins, was a tremendous accomplishment when considering what he endured the year prior.
Mena fell from a mount on March 15, 2018 at Fair Grounds which resulted in eight severe fractured bones in his ankle and heel. Following eight months of strenuous physical therapy, he returned to the saddle in September and rode his first race back from injury on Oct. 25, 2018 at Keeneland. The comeback was recognized in February 2020 when he was named winner of the first Randy Romero Pure Courage Award that recognizes an active jockey who has overcome adversity.
On July 4, 2020, Mena hit the 2,000-win milestone aboard Royal Commission at Ellis Park.
In 2021, Mena won 49 races from 516 mounts with purse earnings of $2,867,960. He guided Masqueparade to victory in the $500,000 Ohio Derby (GIII) at Thistledown on June 26 and Dalika (Ger) to a win in the $150,000 Robert G. Dick Memorial (GIII) at Delaware Park on July 10, both for trainer Al Stall Jr.
Unable to run following the severe ankle injury, Mena, an avid soccer fan and staunch supporter of Peruvian racing and its jockeys, was often seen riding his bike around the Churchill Downs stable area each morning to maintain his fitness.
His final ride was Saturday at Keeneland.
MORE LOCAL HEADLINES
Make it easy to keep up-to-date with more stories like this. Download the WHAS11 News app now. For Apple or Android users.
Have a news tip? Email assign@whas11.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter feed.