Ramón A. Domínguez (born November 24, 1976 in

Caracas, Venezuela Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as CCS, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the ...

) is a retired

Eclipse Award The Eclipse Award is an American Thoroughbred horse racing award named after the 18th-century British racehorse and sire, Eclipse. An Eclipse Award Trophy is presented to the winner in each division that is made by a few small selected American ...

-winning champion

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 ...

and Hall of Fame member in

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

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 ...

. Domínguez began riding horses at age 16 in his native Venezuela in

show jumping Show jumping is a part of a group of English riding equestrianism, equestrian events that also includes dressage, eventing, Show hunter, hunters, and equitation. Jumping classes are commonly seen at horse shows throughout the world, including th ...

then turned to riding thoroughbreds in

flat racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic p ...

events at

La Rinconada Hippodrome La Rinconada Hippodrome ( es, Hipódromo La Rinconada) is a race track for Thoroughbred horse racing located in Coche, a neighborhood of south Caracas, Venezuela. It was designed by Arthur Froehlich and opened on July 5, 1959. This track is the ...

. He emigrated to the United States where he began riding at Florida's

Hialeah Park Race Track The Hialeah Park Race Track (also known as the Hialeah Race Track or Hialeah Park) is a historic racetrack in Hialeah, Florida. Its site covers 40 square blocks of central-east side Hialeah from Palm Avenue east to East 4th Avenue, and from East 2 ...

in 1996. In 2001 he got his big break by becoming the winningest jockey in the United States. He repeated the feat in 2003, and in 2004 he won the

Isaac Murphy Award The Isaac Murphy Award is an American honor presented annually since 1995 by the National Turf Writers Association of the United States to the thoroughbred horse racing jockey with the highest winning percentage who has ridden in a minimum of 500 ...

for having the highest winning percentage among all American-based jockeys. Master Dunker and Chinglish at 2011 James W Murphy Stakes

Domínguez was the regular rider of two-time Eclipse Award-winning turf champion

Gio Ponti Giovanni "Gio" Ponti ( ͡ʒo18 November 1891 – 16 September 1979) was an Italian architect, industrial designer, furniture designer, artist, teacher, writer and publisher. During his career, which spanned six decades, Ponti built more tha ...

, whom he has ridden to victories in six Grade One stakes races including

Belmont Park Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse racing facility in the northeastern United States, located in Elmont, New York, just east of the New York City limits. It was opened on May 4, 1905. It is operated by the non-profit New York Racin ...

Man o' War Stakes The Man o' War Stakes is a Grade I American thoroughbred horse race for horses aged four-years-old and older. It is run over a distance of one and three-eighth miles on turf and is scheduled annually for early May at Belmont Park in Elmont, New Y ...

twice, as well as the

Arlington Million The Arlington Million is a Grade 1 flat horse race in the United States for thoroughbred horses aged three years and upward on the turf. It was originally raced at the now-closed Arlington Park in Arlington Heights, Illinois over a distance of m ...

, Frank E. Kilroe Mile Handicap and

Shadwell Turf Mile Stakes The Coolmore Turf Mile Stakes is a Grade I American thoroughbred horse race for three year olds and older over a distance of one mile on the turf held annually in October at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky during the fall meeting. ...

twice. His first win in the

Breeders' Cup The Breeders' Cup World Championships is an annual series of Grade I Thoroughbred horse races, operated by Breeders' Cup Limited, a company formed in 1982. From its inception in 1984 through 2006, it was a single-day event; starting in 2007, ...

came in 2004 when he rode

Better Talk Now Better Talk Now (February 25, 1999 – June 27, 2017) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the Breeders' Cup Turf in 2004. His racing career stretched over nine seasons, during which he won 14 times, five of them Grade ...

to victory in the

Breeders' Cup Turf The Breeders' Cup Turf is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race on turf for three-year-olds and up. It is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships. The race's current ...

. His second Breeders' Cup victory was the 2011 Juvenile when he rode Hansen to victory in gate-to-wire fashion over

Union Rags Union Rags (foaled March 3, 2009 in Kentucky) is a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2012 Belmont Stakes. He also won the Champagne Stakes and the Saratoga Special Stakes Background Union Rags is a bay with a white blaze si ...

. His third and final win in the Breeders' Cup came in 2012, also in the Breeders' Cup Turf, when

Little Mike Little Mike (foaled May 24, 2007 in Florida) is an American Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the 2012 Breeders' Cup Turf. Background Little Mike is a Bay (horse), bay gelding bred by Carlo Vaccarezza, who immigrated to the United S ...

upset the race at 17-1 odds. Domínguez has won six races in a day on three occasions, most recently on July 22, 2012 when he rode six winners from seven mounts at

Saratoga Race Course Saratoga Race Course is a Thoroughbred horse racing track located on Union Avenue in Saratoga Springs, New York, United States. Opened in 1863, it is often considered to be the oldest major sporting venue of any kind in the country, but is actua ...

tying the same day win record by a jockey among all New York tracks. He is the second jockey in Saratoga's history to win six races on a single race card. He has also won five races in a day on several occasions at

Aqueduct Racetrack Aqueduct Racetrack is a Thoroughbred horse racing facility and casino in the South Ozone Park, Queens, South Ozone Park and Jamaica, Queens, Jamaica neighborhoods of Queens, New York City, United States. Aqueduct is the only racetrack locate ...

, most recently on February 17, 2010 when he won the first five races on the card. In 2012 Dominguez topped the

New York Racing Association The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) is the not-for-profit corporation that operates the three largest Thoroughbred horse racing tracks in the state of New York, United States: Aqueduct Racetrack in South Ozone Park, Queens; Belmont Park ...

(NYRA) riding circuit for the fourth straight year with 322 victories, and was also the winner of the

George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award The George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award has been presented by Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California, annually since 1950 to the thoroughbred horse racing jockey in North America who demonstrates high standards of personal and professional conduct ...

, bestowed by his peers for excellent conduct and given by

Santa Anita Park Santa Anita Park is a Thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent horse racing events in the United States during early fall, winter and in spring. The track is home to numerous prestigious races ...

. Domínguez is the recipient of the 2010, 2011, and 2012

Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey The Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey is an American thoroughbred horse racing honor for jockeys first awarded in 1971. Part of the Eclipse Awards program, it is awarded annually. In 1995, Russell Baze was honored with the Eclipse Special Award ...

. In 2012 set a new mark for single-season earnings by a jockey, when his mounts brought home $25,582,252 to shatter the 2003 bar of $23,354,960 set by Hall of Famer

Jerry Bailey Jerry D. Bailey (born August 29, 1957 in Dallas, Texas) is an Thoroughbred Racing on NBC, NBC Sports thoroughbred racing analyst and a retired American National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame jockey. Early years Bailey was born ...

. On June 13, 2013, Dominguez announced his retirement due to head injuries suffered in a fall at

on January 18, 2013. On April 25, 2016, Dominguez's induction into the

National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American Thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers. In 1955, the museum moved to its current location on Union Av ...

was announced.

Year-end charts

References

External links

Ramon A. Dominguez Official Website

Ramon A. Dominguez at the NTRA
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dominguez, Ramon A. 1976 births American jockeys American Champion jockeys Sportspeople from Caracas Living people Venezuelan emigrants to the United States United States Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame inductees