Champion jockey PATRICK HUSBANDS, an ambassador in his native Barbados, told the Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation this week that he has plans to ride just one more race in his home country before he returns to ride in Ontario for 2026.
The CBC reported that the 52-year-old jockey “will bring the curtain down on his riding career in Barbados on either January 31, when the Tanglewood and Coolmore feature races are contested, or on March 7th in the Sandy Lane Gold Cup.
The Barbados Service Star recipient and Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductee has indicated he has been offered one of the top rides in the Tanglewood Stakes in two weeks (among the contenders are Trinidadian star Hello World and Barbados champ Nostradassa), but if he rides that race, he will be calling it quits (in Barbados riding) then. Likewise, if he rides in the Gold Cup, he won’t be riding the Tanglewood.
Husbands has won four Gold Cups and was the youngest to win the famous Caribbean race when he won for the first time at age 16. Husbands came to Woodbine to ride in 1994 and has won numerous Sovereign Awards and titles. He has asked fellow Barbadians to cast their votes on the Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) Instagram and Facebook pages (not available in Canada) on which race should be his last ride in Barbados.
Husbands told Canadian Thoroughbred he will be returning to ride at Woodbine in 2026, while not confirming it would be his last year in the saddle.
“I have to return back to Woodbine and show respect,” said Husbands, while also noting that he will talk to his ‘boss’, longtime friend and mentor Mark Casse, about what is upcoming for the new year.
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