2024 KY leaders: Cox, Asmussen, Machado, Godolphin
Kentucky HBPA press release by Jennie Rees (Coady Media photo of presentation to Steve Asmussen for winning Churchill Downs’ fall meet title)
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Tuesday, January 14, 2025) — After sending out a combined 1,038 starters throughout the nine meets at Kentucky’s five thoroughbred racetracks, Steve Asmussen and Brad Cox finished 2024 with 96 victories apiece. That led all trainers for wins within the Commonwealth.
Just about 24 percent of the Hall of Famer Asmussen’s North America-leading 407 overall victories last year came in Kentucky, while about 41 percent of Cox’s 243 seasonal wins came in his home state. Asmussen, who started a whopping 670 horses in the state last year, won meet titles at Churchill (spring and fall), Ellis Park (tied with Brendan Walsh) and Kentucky Downs (tied with Walsh and Joe Sharp). Cox, who had 368 starters on the year, won Churchill’s September and Keeneland’s fall title.
The Kentucky Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association asked Equibase, the industry’s official data-keeper, to provide the leaders participating in Kentucky’s year-round circuit of Turfway Park (two meets), Keeneland (two meets) Churchill Downs (three meets), Ellis Park and Kentucky Downs.
Leading Kentucky jockey at 142 victories went to Luan Machado, who rides year-round in the state. He edged the 139 wins accrued by Tyler Gaffalione, who rides at Keeneland, Churchill and Kentucky Downs but is based at Saratoga in the summer and Gulfstream Park in the winter. Machado earned Turfway Park’s 2024 winter title with 62 wins.
The overall leading Kentucky owner was the global breeding and racing juggernaut Godolphin LLC, whose 45 total victories more than doubled No. 2 Juddmonte’s 22 wins. Godolphin won owner’s titles based on wins at Keeneland’s spring meet (a tie with Juddmonte), Ellis Park, Keeneland fall and Churchill Downs’ fall meet.
“The Equibase statistics tell the story of Kentucky racing and its rise,” said Kentucky HBPA President Dale Romans. “It’s no surprise that Steve, Brad and Godolphin won the most races. They are racing at every meet in the state, and that’s a good thing. It was only a few years ago that Godolphin didn’t run a single horse at Ellis Park or Turfway; now they are regulars.
“Also, at least 47 trainers who race regularly in the state earned more than $1 million in Kentucky purses last year. That includes horsemen stabled across the Commonwealth such as Eric Foster, Bill Morey, Ben Colebrook and Tommy Drury, who keep the vast majority of their horses in Kentucky year-round. Many more Kentucky trainers have greatly cut back on their out-of-state summer and winter divisions to race more horses at home.”
According to Equibase, Cox led all trainers in 2024 Kentucky earnings, $12,305,246 to Asmussen’s $11,263,025. Cox’s victories included Churchill Downs’ $1 million Fasig-Tipton La Troienne G1) and Keeneland’s $600,000 Juddmonte Spinster (G1) by Juddmonte-owned Idiomatic and Godolphin’s unbeaten 2-year-old filly Immersive in Keeneland’s $600,000 Darley Alcibiades (G1). Asmussen’s triumphs included Gun Pilot in the $1 million Churchill Downs Stakes (G1) and Cogburn in Kentucky Downs’ $2 million Ainsworth Turf Sprint (G2).
Gafflione’s $19,174,560 in Kentucky purses led all jockeys, with Luis Saez second at $16,115,242. Gaffalione’s four Grade 1 wins in Kentucky included the $1.25 million Coolmore Turf Mile on Carl Spackler and the $1 million Toyota Blue Grass on Sierra Leone, who subsequently was second by a nose in the Kentucky Derby. Gaffalione also won Kentucky Downs’ $2 million FanDuel TV Kentucky Turf Cup (G2) aboard Grand Sonata.
Godolphin’s instate runners accrued $7,197,863 last year, with Juddmonte second at $3,439,964. Godolphin won 13 graded stakes in Kentucky, including sweeping the biggest 2-year-old stakes at both Keeneland (Immersive, East Avenue in Keeneland’s G1 Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity) and Churchill Downs (Good Cheer in the G2 Golden Rod, First Resort in the G2 Kentucky Jockey Club).
