World-class jockey Julien Leparoux will be joining the Southern
California jockey colony on a regular basis following the conclusion on
the Keeneland meet on October 27, said agent Joe Ferrer, who will
represent the 29-year-old Frenchman. Ferrer will continue as agent for
current Southern California kingpin Rafael Bejarano.
Leparoux, the Eclipse Award winner as Outstanding Apprentice
Jockey in 2006, became the second jockey in history to win three
Breeders’ Cup races in a single year in 2009. He joined a group of the
most celebrated jockeys in history when on Jan. 8, 2010, he again was
named Eclipse Award winner, this time as Outstanding Jockey of 2009.
“He’s a very nice kid,” Ferrer said of Leparoux, who grew up in a
racing family. “He and Bejarano are good friends, so I think it will
work out.”
Leparoux, who will ride at Santa Anita in the Breeders’ Cup
World Championships on Nov. 2 and 3, is engaged to Shea Mitchell,
daughter of trainer Mike Mitchell and his wife, Denise.
A December 10 wedding is planned.