Pincay, 56, was injured when his mount, Trampus Too, clipped heels with Rainman's Request in the fifth race at Santa Anita on March 1, sending Pincay to the ground. At the time the injury did not appear to be serious, and Pincay was treated in the track's first aid station and released. He was expected to return six days later, and was named to ride six horses, but when the pain persisted Pincay agreed to be examined by doctors who discovered the more serious injury. Pincay's lawyer, Neil Papiano, said Pincay suffered a broken neck, which was not diagnosed at the track and was discovered only after Pincay reported continuing pain for several days. Doctors have since concluded that his spine is not sufficiently stable to allow him to ride in the future, prompting his retirement.
Besides being racing's winningest rider, he also ranks first all-time at Santa Anita Park with 2,860 wins, and is currently second in the Santa Anita jockey standings with 52 wins. Plagued by weight problems his entire career, he tried all kinds of diets, pills, sweat box, etc. but eventually found a regimen that works. His diet was just 850 calories a day. Fruit for breakfast, protein before going to the track, and a regular dinner at night. 350 of the calories are for dinner alone. He went to the gym daily to workout on the Stairmaster or treadmill plus lots of stretching exercises.
One famous story of his willpower is when trainer D. Wayne Lukas saw him eat a single peanut on a cross-country flight. One half at the beginning of the flight and the other half at the end. Pincay says he has done that many times as well as scraping all the salt off a cracker before eating it. His dedication to the game paid off, culminating in his record-setting victory on December 10, 1999 when he passed Bill Shoemaker for the all-time lead. He won six Eclipse Awards as top jockey, and was inducted into Racing's Hall of Fame in 1975.
He has also shown tremendous courage against adversity in his personal life. Despite being devastated by the suicide of his first wife Linda in 1985, he was back at the track riding within two weeks. He said that he needed to stay busy to deal with the pain. Seven years later, he married again to Jeanine and they have a young son as well as his two children from his first marriage. His daughter, Lisa, recently gave him his first grandchild.
"There have been so many times I thought about quitting, I thought about giving up, but because of my love for the game, I kept hoping things would get better. And they did. I'm glad I didn't give up." On his retirement, he said, "It's definitely a sad day for me. The doctor recommended I never ride again. It's a very sad day for me and Jeanine, but we always prepared ourselves for the worst. I'm very grateful to a lot of people who helped me throughout my career and I thank the fans for all their cards and well wishes and my friends for all their support."
