Louisville Metro Police arrested jockey Ricardo Santana Jr., 33, at 11:27 p.m. Monday on domestic-violence-related charges, just days before he was scheduled to ride in multiple races at this weekend's Breeders' Cup at Keeneland. He was charged with first-degree strangulation and fourth-degree assault with minor injuries, and pleaded not guilty Tuesday morning.
Officers responded Monday night to a domestic violence call in Louisville's Middletown area, according to the Courier Journal, which reported that a woman told police she had fled her home to get away from her boyfriend following an argument about his drinking. Per the arrest citation, Santana allegedly grabbed the woman by the throat with both hands and pushed her against kitchen cabinets during that initial confrontation.
The woman told police she later returned home that evening with food for her children, and the citation alleges Santana grabbed her by the throat again and pushed her into the cabinets a second time. She reported pain in the back of her head, hip, back, palm and wrist, according to the arrest report, and officials said she had photographs showing redness on her throat from the first incident.
Charges, Bond and What Comes Next
Santana appeared in court Tuesday morning and pleaded not guilty to both charges. A judge set his cash bond at $25,000, and his next court date, a preliminary hearing, is scheduled for Nov. 4. Under Kentucky law, first-degree strangulation is classified as a Class C felony, while the fourth-degree assault charge falls under a separate state statute.
Santana was set to ride Saturday in both the Breeders' Cup Sprint and the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint, and was also eligible to ride in the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint, according to the same report. He has competed in the Kentucky Derby and the Kentucky Oaks during his career and has won two Breeders' Cup races previously: the 2019 Sprint aboard Mitole and the 2020 Juvenile Turf aboard Fire At Will, a victory that came during the Breeders' Cup World Championships at Keeneland, per his Keeneland jockey biography.
A Career Earning Millions, Marked by Prior Trouble
Equibase records cited by the Daily Racing Form show Santana has won 1,966 races from 12,350 mounts, with total purse earnings of $129.4 million, and he has ranked in the top 10 in annual jockey earnings three times over the past five years. That track record made him one of the sport's more prominent riders heading into this weekend's championships.
This is not Santana's first run-in with Kentucky authorities. He pleaded guilty to two first-offense DUI charges stemming from incidents in November 2023 and October 2024, according to BloodHorse, which reported he last rode at Churchill Downs in November 2024 after passing a breathalyzer test. While Santana was serving the seven-day sentence tied to those DUI arrests, the Kentucky Horse Racing and Gaming Corporation said he would face a thorough review of his suitability to ride upon his release, with stewards expected to determine when he would be permitted back in the saddle.
Santana's age has been reported inconsistently across coverage: the arrest report this week listed him as 33, while a Daily Racing Form report published Oct. 26, 2026, described him as 32. The outcome of Santana's Nov. 4 preliminary hearing had not been determined as of publication.
