ron burke
Born October 16, 1969, trainer Ron Burke has rewritten the definition of the modern trainer while shattering all previous records for trainers in wins and money. He currently has sent out more than 12,600 winners, and the $278 million-plus earnings of his trotters and pacers are nearly double that of his closest competitor.
Since taking the lead role in the Burke Stable from his father Mickey in 2009, Burke has led all trainers in North America in both wins and earnings every year. Burke’s 13-year streak includes posting more than 1,000 wins three times, including a record 1,093 victories in 2014; it also includes surpassing the $20 million earnings mark every year since 2013 including a record $28,414,071 in 2014 – except for the pandemic-impacted 2020 when the stable earned “only” $17,544,468.
The list of champions that Burke has been associated with is extensive. Some of his top horses include the highest earning Standardbred of all time, Foiled Again p,9,1:48f ($7,635,588), Sweet Lou p,5,1:47f ($3,478,894), Atlanta 6,1:49 ($3,123,852), 2017 Horse of the Year Hannelore Hanover 5,1:49.2 ($3,069,857), Buck I St Pat 7,1:51 ($2,320,637), Dorsoduro Hanover p,4,1:47.4 ($2,019,935), Southwind Frank 3,1:52.1 ($1,950,887), Warrawee Ubeaut p,2,1:48.3 ($1,849,213) and Mission Brief 3,1:50.2f ($1,599,587).
In 2012 Burke won 906 races, breaking harness racing’s training record of 842 established by the stable in 2010. In 2013 the western Pennsylvania native became the first harness racing trainer to surpass $20 million in purses in a single year, and also the first trainer with 1,000 wins in a season. The following year, Burke became the first trainer in North American harness racing history to pass the $100 million mark in earnings.
Burke celebrated his 12,000th career win on Sept. 19, 2021, when undefeated two-year-old pacing filly Sea Silk p,3,1:50.2f ($611,592) won her $67,185 division of the Ohio Breeders Championship at Delaware County Fairgrounds in a 1:53.1 stakes- and track-equaling performance. Burke posted big numbers in 2021, with 985 winners and $21,715,685 in earnings to once again take the North American titles in both categories.
Burke’s stable has sent out 18 Breeders Crown champions and claimed victory in three Little Brown Jugs and four Jugettes. He is a three-time winner of the Glen Garnsey Trainer of the Year award (2011, 2013 and 2018) selected by the United States Harness Writers Association (USHWA).
Ron Burke lives in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania.