MRI reveals Stevens' knee damage worse than thought

Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens, who announced July 10 on HRTV that he would

be sidelined to undergo a knee replacement,

called in to the network Friday to report that his condition is much worse

than first realized. An MRI on his right knee revealed that his ACL is

completely torn, Stevens told Laffit Pincay III and Christina Blacker.

Stevens said that when he visited Dr. Andrew Yun on Wednesday, he was given

some hope that only a partial knee replacement would be necessary. But the MRI

results effectively dashed that idea.

"I went in for an MRI (Thursday), and Dr. Yun just called me and said that

there was way too much internal damage to the knee to do a partial replacement. 

So, we are scheduled to do a full replacement next Friday," Stevens said.

"Dr. Yun still gave me the option of a partial (knee replacement). And I

said, 'Doc, I'm 51 years old and I'm gonna bust my butt whichever way I go, but

with the support that I've gotten in the past, I don't want to come back and

have this knee blow out in three months with the partial. I said, 'let's do the

whole deal.'"

Originally optimistic of a return to competition in about six months, Stevens

is no longer looking at a specific time frame. Rather, he will work hard in

hopes of even making it back at all.

"It's been a great run, a great career, and if I don't make it back, I can

live with that," he said. "But, I'm going to bust my butt to do it, and he (Dr.

Yun) said, 'I'm gonna bust your butt to do it too.'"

Stevens further revealed how surprised he was by the MRI results.

"My ACL was completely shot, which I didn't even know, and that was a big

shock. I'll just say it. There was some tears when he called me," Stevens said.

"I had no idea the damage that was in there."

Stevens recounted his exchange with Dr. Yun:

"He said, 'how long has your ACL been gone?' I said, 'It's not.' He said, 'Oh

yeah, it's gone.'

"He said (he's) never seen anybody do what I've been doing with no ACL. So, I

apologize to anybody that happens to have lost some money on me."

To focus on the positive, Dr. Yun noted that Stevens' excellent physical

condition and weight of 115 pounds would help considerably in his recovery.

"You're a young 51 with an 80-year-old knee," Yun said, according to Stevens.

At the same time, Stevens remains realistic about the chances of resuming his

riding career.

"I'm just gonna let things play out," he said, commenting that he'll employ

the trademark patience he's shown aboard his mounts.

"If it's meant to be, it's meant to be. I'm not going to go out there and not

be what people expect me to be."

Stevens' resume is extensive. Inducted in the Hall of Fame in 1997, he also

garnered an Eclipse Award as outstanding jockey in 1998. He has won 4,988 races,

and his mounts have earned $236,951,490, placing him ninth on the list of North

American jockeys by career earnings.

A three-time Kentucky Derby winner, courtesy of Winning Colors (1988),

Thunder Gulch (1995) and Silver Charm (1997), he has three Preakness wins with

Silver Charm, Point Given (2001) and Oxbow (2013). Stevens likewise counts a

trio of Belmont victories, thanks to Thunder Gulch; Victory Gallop, who famously

foiled Real Quiet's Triple Crown bid in a 1998 thriller; and Point Given's 12

1/4-length rout.

But his Hall of Fame career has been punctuated by knee problems. He retired

in December 1999 after his fourth knee surgery, but was back in action in early

October 2000, and continued to ride for five more years.

In 2005, Stevens again called it a career, and his riding days truly appeared

to be over as he was firmly established as a racing commentator on HRTV and NBC.

He also took a highly-regarded turn on the big screen, playing the all-time

great jockey George Woolf in the blockbuster movie "Seabiscuit."

Stevens launched a brilliant comeback from a seven-year hiatus in January

2013. Aside from his crafty Preakness score aboard Oxbow, he brought his

Breeders' Cup win total up to 10, guiding Beholder in the Distaff and earning

his first Breeders' Cup Classic win on Mucho Macho Man.

Bet Horseracing Free Online at TwinSpires.com