(Jockey Joe Ramos, in the middle with family and friends, won the Jockey Title at the recently concluded meet at Horseshoe Indianapolis / Photo by Coady Photography)

From the Horseshoe Indianapolis Media Team / Tammy Knox:

Joe Ramos scores second Leading Jockey title at Horseshoe Indianapolis

It was not without drama all the way to the finish as Joe Ramos scored his second consecutive Leading Jockey title by one win, coming down to the final race of the meet. Ramos completed the season with 109 wins over Fernando De La Cruz with 108.

Ramos, a native of Puerto Rico, started the season off slow but kicked into gear about a month in and began climbing the charts. By August, he had taken over the top spot and led all jockeys by several wins until the final month of the meet. Fernando De La Cruz closed in the final three weeks and at one time tied Ramos, but Ramos retook the lead and held onto the title.

“First of all, I thank the Lord because he keeps me healthy and gives me the opportunity to do this again,” said Ramos, who has made his home in Shelbyville. “There are a lot of people that work hard for me. I worked hard for this, and I dreamed of this, but it wouldn’t be possible without all the people around me. My agent, Bones (Kerry Wirth), deserves the credit. He is the one that gets my business going and when we struggle, he takes me out of that and gets me back going.”

Ramos topped his tally of 106 wins from 2022. He completes the 2023 season with $3,233,548. A win percentage of 18 boosted him to the top along with a 48 percent top three showing. He was also the tracks leading Apprentice Jockey in 2019.

“I feel very blessed to work around some great people,” added Ramos. “I thank Randy (Klopp) and Roger (Spiess) for the opportunity to ride for them and also, a thank you to all the people that work on the backside, such as the grooms and hotwalkers. They don’t get a lot of recognition, but they work very hard and are responsible for the horses doing so well.”

One of the brightest stars Ramos rode in 2023 was Nobody Listens from the Tim Eggleston barn. He had been the regular jockey aboard the standout Indiana horse until tragedy took him away a few months ago.

“We lost a great horse in Nobody Listens,” explained Ramos. “He was the type of horse when you wake up in the morning, you wanted to ride. I know he is in Heaven.”

Ramos was joined by many family and friends for his Leading Jockey presentation. Eric Halstrom, Vice President and General Manager, made the presentation along with Chris Polzin, Director of Racing following the final race of 2023 at Horseshoe Indianapolis.

The 22nd season of live Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing begins with a special Monday, April 8 racing program at 12 p.m. for the Total Solar Eclipse Day in the area. Racing extends through Thursday, Nov. 14. For more information on live racing at Horseshoe Indianapolis, visitwww.caesars.com/horseshoe-indianapolis.