Michael Carl Baze (April 14, 1987 – May 10, 2011) was an American

Thoroughbred horse racing Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in t ...

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual ...

Family background

He grew up in a family with an extensive history in the sport of racing. His father was a jockey who rode primarily at tracks in the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though ...

and his uncle

Gary Baze Gary Baze (born October 25, 1955 in Sunnyside, Washington) is an American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey. An inductee of the Washington State Racing Hall of Fame, his Hall of Fame profile says of him: "As much as anything, Baze is respected thr ...

is a member of the Washington Racing Hall of Fame. Baze was also a cousin to jockey

Tyler Baze Tyler Baze (born October 19, 1982, in Seattle, Washington) is an American Champion jockey. He was born into a racing family, since both of his parents were jockeys, as is his uncle, Gary Baze. His second cousin is U.S. Racing Hall of Fame jockey ...

and a second cousin to U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee

Russell Baze Russell Avery Baze (born 7 August 1958 ) is a retired horse racing jockey. He holds the record for the most race wins in North American horse racing history, and is a member of the United States Racing Hall of Fame and the State of Washington Sp ...

Riding career

Baze obtained his jockey's license in 2003 and began riding in

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

before heading to the east coast of the United States later that year where he met with success at

Monmouth Park Racetrack Monmouth Park Racetrack is an American race track for thoroughbred horse racing in Oceanport, New Jersey, United States. It is owned by the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority and is operated under a five-year lease as a partnership with ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

. In 2006, he returned to a base in southern California and the following year was his breakout year when he was the leading rider at the

Hollywood Park Racetrack Hollywood Park was a thoroughbred race course located in Inglewood, California, about 3 miles (5 km) from Los Angeles International Airport and adjacent to the Forum indoor arena. In 1994, the original Hollywood Park Casino was added to the ...

spring/summer season and at the

Del Mar Racetrack The Del Mar Fairgrounds is a event venue in Del Mar, California. The annual San Diego County Fair is held here, which was called the Del Mar Fair from 1984 to 2001. In 1936, the Del Mar Racetrack was built by the Thoroughbred Club with foundin ...

Death

On May 10, 2011, Baze's body was found inside his Cadillac Escalade in the stable area of

Churchill Downs Churchill Downs is a horse racing complex located on Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, famed for hosting the annual Kentucky Derby. It officially opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was ...

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

. The next day it was reported that a preliminary autopsy found no natural cause of death and that toxicology test results would not be available for three weeks. It was also reported that Baze was scheduled to appear in court in Louisville on a cocaine possession charge. (Baze never was a jockey in the Kentucky Derby, including the running three days before his death.) On June 3, 2011, deputy Jefferson County coroner Jim Wesley reported that Michael Baze died of an accidental overdose. Toxicology results in the autopsy found cocaine and the prescription painkiller oxymorphone, also known as opana, in the rider's system. Levels of the drugs were not released. The official cause of death is listed as multiple substance intoxication, which the deputy coroner said is an overdose."Jockey Michael Baze death ruled accidental drug overdose"
Gregory A. Hall, (Louisville) ''courier-journal''.com, June 3, 2011. Retrieved 2011-06-07.

Aftermath

Baze's mother, Teri Gibson, sued Baze's estranged wife Kelly on

Judge Judy ''Judge Judy'' is an American Court show#Arbitration-based reality court show, arbitration-based reality court show presided over by former Manhattan Family Court Judge Judy Sheindlin, Judith Sheindlin. The show featured Sheindlin as she adjudi ...

for funeral expenses and travel expenses for her and her son. Judge

Judith Sheindlin Judith Susan Sheindlin (''née'' Blum; born October 21, 1942), known professionally as Judge Judy, is an American court show arbitrator, media personality, television producer, author, women's advancement philanthropist and former prosecutor an ...

awarded Gibson $855 for cremation expenses but disagreed that Kelly Baze owed her for travel expenses. During the episode, it was also revealed that Baze had received $750,000 from her late husband's life insurance policy, while Gibson had received $250,000. The episode aired on May 23, 2012.

Year-end charts

References

External links

November 6, 2007, ESPN article on Michael Baze
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baze, Michael 1987 births 2011 deaths American jockeys Drug-related deaths in Kentucky Sportspeople from Renton, Washington Baze family Sportspeople from King County, Washington