Baffert, Ramseys make up Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame class

Seven individuals who have made outstanding contributions to sports during the past several decades, including a trio from the racing industry, were on Wednesday announced as members of the Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame's 2018 class.

Four-time Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Bob Baffert and Churchill Downs' all-time leading owners, Ken and Sarah Ramsey, are part of the group. Also in the class are the late MotoGP rider Nicky Hayden, notable local high school football coach Bob Beatty, Super Bowl-winning offensive lineman Sam Ball and Bernie Bickerstaff, a 33-year veteran NBA coach, administrator, and scout.

A selection committee comprised of 15 sports media from throughout the Commonwealth selected this year’s class. All votes were independently tabulated by regional accounting firm Dean Dorton, one of the largest accounting and advisory firms in Kentucky, with offices in Louisville and Lexington.

The 2018 KAHOF class members and their families will be honored on August 22, 2018, at the Muhammad Ali Center in downtown Louisville.

The KAHOF, which has been in almost continuous operation since 1963 by an all-volunteer organization, now is overseen by the Louisville Sports Commission, a Kentucky-based non-profit whose mission is to create, host, and operate sporting events and activities that enhance the economics and quality of life of the Commonwealth.

Bob Baffert – An Arizona native raised on a ranch in Nogales, Bob Baffert became a fixture at the Kentucky Derby with winners Silver Charm (1997), Real Quiet (1998), War Emblem (2002), American Pharoah (2015), and Justify (2018). The first three of these won the Preakness and lost the Belmont; Baffert then successfully conditioned American Pharoah to the first Triple Crown win in 37 years, followed by Justify in 2018. Baffert’s Derby winners all trained at Churchill Downs during their respective Triple Crown campaigns, drawing national and international attention to the Commonwealth. Baffert is a three-time winner of the Kentucky Oaks; won Eclipse Awards as top trainer in 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2015; has the most Triple Crown wins with 14 and second-most Breeders Cup wins with 14.

Ken and Sarah Ramsey – Natives of Artimus in Eastern Kentucky, the husband and wife team of Ken (University of Kentucky graduate) and Sarah Ramsey are among the Commonwealth’s most prolific Thoroughbred owners and breeders of all time. They have captured 28 titles as the leading owner at Churchill Downs and 20 titles at Keeneland and have earned leading owner titles at Kentucky Downs, Turfway Park, Gulfstream Park, and Saratoga. The Ramseys have won four Eclipse Awards as owners; two Eclipse Awards as breeders; four Breeders’ Cup World Championship races with Bobby’s Kitten (Turf Sprint, 2014), Furthest Land (Dirt Mile, 2009), Stephanie’s Kitten (Juvenile Fillies Turf, 2011) and Stephanie’s Kitten (Filly and Mark Turf, 2015), and the Dubai World Cup with Roses in May in 2005. They own and operate Ramsey Farm in Nicholasville, Ky.