Panama wins second straight World Jockey Challenge at Horseshoe Indianapolis

Team Panama turned the 12th annual World Jockey Challenge into a clean scoreboard win at Horseshoe Indianapolis, finishing with 28 points and leaving Team Mexico 14 behind. The margin delivered Panama a second straight title and its third overall in the event, with the outcome decided race by race across the afternoon card in Shelbyville, Indiana.

The format gave the challenge its edge as a fan race instead of a ceremonial add-on. Thirty-two jockeys from seven countries competed across nine races, and points were awarded for first-, second- and third-place finishes. That meant every trip to the wire could change the standings, and Panama built enough of a cushion early enough to keep Mexico from mounting a late push. It was not a final-race scramble. It was a sustained team performance that controlled the event before the card was over.

Santo Sanjur said Panama’s riders met before the races and thought they had a good shot to repeat, a confidence that matched the way the afternoon unfolded. He also called it “very special” to represent Panama, underscoring the national pride built into a format that asks jockeys to ride for more than their own mounts and connections. In a midweek setting, that added a different kind of pressure and a different kind of payoff, with the crowd able to track a national competition unfolding alongside the usual race-day action.

The win also reinforced Panama’s recent run in the challenge. BloodHorse reported that Panama’s 2025 team at Horseshoe Indianapolis included Marcelino Pedroza Jr., Sanjur and Arcello Flaco, and that the earlier running drew riders from 12 countries on June 14, 2025. A year later, the country came back to the same track and completed the repeat, turning international depth into another title and extending one of the event’s most successful national streaks.

Equibase described the day as fun racing, but the numbers tell the sharper story: 32 jockeys, nine races, seven countries, 28 points for Panama and 14 for Mexico. The challenge worked because it let fans follow the competition in real time, with every placings board carrying weight and every race moving the title closer to a final number.