CYPRESS — Edgar Payeras goes into the final Friday, Saturday and Sunday of afternoon racing at Los Alamitos with a shot at a rare accomplishment.

The 31-year-old from Guatemala, who had to persuade his mother to let him try being a jockey at all, can clinch the riding title at Los Alamitos’ short afternoon thoroughbred meet at the same time as he’s dominating the rider standings for thoroughbred and mixed-breed races during the Orange County track’s yearlong nighttime season.

As it says above, it’s a rare achievement to be leading rider at two meets at the same time. But it’s not an unheard-of feat. Payeras did it himself in 2024, leading Los Al’s September daytime meet with seven wins (one more than Edwin Maldonado and Tiago Pereira) while on his way to ruling the nighttime thoroughbred standings with 24 (two more than Ricardo Ramirez).

“Yeah, that was crazy,” Payeras said of his 2024 double crown, as surprised as anyone.

Fans still seem surprised. Payeras rode four winners in the first three days of this six-day daytime meet, and three of them paid $17.40, $10.40 and $47.20.

“I never look at the (tote) board,” Payeras said, meaning he aims to ride every horse as if he has a big chance to win even if bettors think he doesn’t.

That’s one thing trainers like about Payeras.

“He’s a good rider,” said Sergio Morfin, the trainer with whom Payeras has had the most success. “He’s tries hard all the time. He doesn’t care about the (odds).”

The odds were against any of this happening when Payeras was growing up, in a family with nine boys and girls, in a town south of Guatemala City. For starters, Guatemala has no horse racing.

It does have horses, though. Payeras remembers being 5 years old when he first rode a pony on the ranch where his father worked.

He traces his interest in racing to an uncle and cousins moving to the United States and going to work as grooms and exercise riders. They sent back photos, and Edgar loved what he saw of the horses.

“They looked so beautiful, so big and strong,” he said. “I was like, ‘I want to be a jockey.’”

Not so fast.

“My mom, she was like, ‘No, that’s too dangerous. You’re not going to do it,’” Payeras remembers. “I said, ‘Mom, just let me try it. If I don’t make it, at least I will be happy that I tried.’”

Payeras moved to California in 2012 and found work first as a groom for trainer Kristin Mulhall at Hollywood Park, and then breaking and exercising horses at the Galway Downs equestrian facility in Temecula. At Galway, he picked up pointers on race-riding.

Nervously riding his first race one afternoon at Los Alamitos in September 2017, Payeras finished eighth of 10 horses aboard a 102-1 shot in a mile event for maidens. It would be another month and 15 tries before he won for the first time on a 12-1 shot in a maiden sprint at the Fresno fair.

There have been high points at larger tracks, most notably wins in a pair of $125,000 stakes at Del Mar in 2022 with the 2-year-old California-bred filly Chismosa. But he has only one win from 37 mounts at Santa Anita and Del Mar this year, and Payeras acknowledges the competition there is tougher than it is at Los Alamitos, making a full-time switch to the larger tracks impractical.

Still, the three Los Al thoroughbred meets do attract a few of the top 10 riders from Santa Anita and Del Mar, so wrapping up another title this weekend would be meaningful.

Away from the track, Payeras, who is divorced and has a 7-year-old son, Edgar Jr., spends time with his girlfriend, a member of the Los Al ambulance crew. (They first met in the ambulance after Payeras fell during a race a few years ago.)

Morfin says he’s “a happy guy. He jokes with me, with everyone. I’m so happy for him (having success).” Frank Quesada, the agent who books Payeras’ mounts, describes him as a quiet young man who “gets a little upset when his horses don’t run good.”

If horses run to his liking Friday, Saturday and Sunday, he can protect his slim lead in the jockey standings. Payeras’ four wins from 13 starts have him one ahead of Antonio Fresu, co-leading rider at Los Al’s December 2024 thoroughbred meet and Santa Anita’s spring 2025 meet, and Kazushi Kimura, champion at Los Al’s June-July 2025 thoroughbred meet.

Meanwhile, on Saturday and Sunday, he’ll go from riding in the afternoon at Los Alamitos to riding in the evening on the differently configured oval at the same facility. Saturday, he’s booked in the 10th and final afternoon race at 5:38 p.m. and the first nighttime race at 6:45.

Payeras remembers telling his mother, “Let me show you that I can do it.” He’s proving he can, day and night.

Follow horse racing correspondent Kevin Modesti at X.com/KevinModesti.

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