Miami Proud: After winning Kentucky Derby, Miami native Ramiro Restrepo shared the wealth within the community

MIAMI — A South Florida man whose horse won the ultimate prize in horse racing is sharing the wealth with the hope of saving lives.

“Winning the Kentucky Derby, I don’t think there are very few feelings on Earth that could replicate that kind of emotion and joy,” said Ramiro Restrepo co-owner of Mage.

Miami native Ramiro Restrepo’s dream came true in May when Mage won the Kentucky Derby.

“You’ve had kings, emperors, government statesmen, you’ve had the Fortune 500 businessmen, you had actors, athletes, actresses who have owned resources with the ultimate goal and dream to win this race. For you to be able to say that you were able to realize that dream, to have your family there, with my uncles, who dedicated 60 plus years of their lives to this business, my mother who raised me in this business, and for us to be able to accomplish the dream of winning it, you can’t even script it in a Hollywood story,” said Restrepo.

Restrepo’s life could very well be an Oscar-winning film.

“I grew up down here, locally, the racetracks Calder Racecourse, Hialeah Racetrack, Gulfstream Racetrack, they were like my daycare centers. I’ve been around horses since I could crawl,” said Restrepo.

He said horse racing is in his DNA. Restrepo said everything he knows about horses he owes to his grandfather who was in the horse business his whole life.

“Being around the horses from such a young age you just inherently absorb and pick up a lot of things. You watch them in action when they’re working with the horses and it kind of helps develop your inner talent about being around with the racehorses” said Restrepo.

After watching Mage win the Kentucky Derby, the University of Miami alumni felt he had to share the wealth by donating a portion of the prize money to the Dwoskin Children’s Cancer Research Fund at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at UM.

“I was blown away. We had lunch and then he got involved and donated money to make this thing work quicker,” said Steve Dwoskin, founder of the fund. 

“We all know when you’re passionate about something, you just want to work that much harder at your trade, at your craft, the good times are the best feeling in the world. When there are challenges, that passion helps you overcome them and battle through them” said Restrepo.

After the Kentucky Derby, Mage competed in other big races, unfortunately, he suffered a little setback healthwise and was retired. Next year he will be living in Kentucky as a stallion. As for Restrepo, who co-owns more than two dozen other horses is already thinking of next year’s Kentucky Derby and hoping for another win.