Canadian Content

ALL-TIME TOP 100 NORTH AMERICA TRAINERS BY RACES WON

1-10 The top 100 Trainers all time in North American by wins has Americans dominating the top 15 positions.

Steven Asmussen, a Member of the National Museum and Hall

of Fame located at Saratoga, is the clear leader with 11,094 victories from 55,688 starts and a career win rate of 20%. Dale Baird is second with 9,445 victories. Following in positions three through five are a trio of Hall of Fame Members. Jerry Hollendorfer is third with 7,777 scores and a career success rate of 23%. Another notable in the leading group ranked in fourth is Jack Van Berg with 6,253 wins. Van Berg was a dominant force from 1968 through 1986. King Leatherbury the leading trainer in North America in both 1977 and 1978 had Maryland as his base and won 6,508 times good for fifth place. Scott Lake follows in sixth with 6,469 wins and has multiple times been seasonal leading trainer in wins from his bases in Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland. Three other Hall of Fame trainers swept positions seven through nine. Todd Pletcher with 5,933 and William Mott with 5,575

continue to compile impressive numbers. D Wayne Lukas who passed in September of 2025 saddled 4,953 winners. The final top ten spot goes Karl Broberg with

4,907 victories and an impressive career win rate of 23%

12- In 12thposition is prolific winner, Jamie Ness, currently climbing the ladder with 4,898 Victories. Ness who traditionally operates in the mid-Atlantic region and at Tampa Bay Downs was the leading race winning trainer in North America in 2025 for the second time

16-Gerald S Bennett a native of, Springhill, Nova Scotia now leads Canadian born

trainers on the all-time win list in 16th position with 4,224 successes and a career winning average of 20%. Bennett trained early in his career in Ontario primarily at Woodbine.

He developed Gr 1 winner Beau Genius there. Bennett was a huge admirer of fellow

Canadian Frank Merrill Jr and his enormous success. Ironically, it was Merrill Jr whom

Bennett passed in April of 2021 to take top spot among Canadian born trainers. Bennett initially invaded Michigan and enjoyed success there but is widely known for being the perennial leading trainer at Tampa Bay Downs where he took nine training titles. Bennett continues to saddle winners in his 80s motivated by his love of his horses and his love of the game.

17-Next on the list at 17th spot with 4,127 wins and climbing quickly is, Mark Casse, born in Indianapolis in 1961. By 1988 Casse surged to the top of the trainer standings at Churchill Downs. Casse branched out to Ontario in the late 1990s with his base at

Woodbine and through some inventive teamwork took charge of Canadian racing for

the past two decades. Casse, a master-of-communications-techniques, operates

year round from his, Ocala, Florida farm and training centre where he prepares his runners before dispatching them to his extensive network of assistant trainers throughout major racing markets in the United States and Canada. Pivotal cameras installed in the barns in various locales help Casse to better evaluate his stock. In addition to daily reports from his on-site personnel he maps out training regimes, race schedules and stakes engagements for his many runners. At campaign’s end the horses are returned home to ala for freshening. Casse had earned seventeen Sovereign Awards as Canada’s Champion trainer including 2025. He was welcomed to the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame (CHRHF) in 2016 and was elected to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2020.

18-Canadian icon, Frank Merrill Jr, born in, Brantford, Ontario comes in at 18thon the all-time victory list with 3,974 wins. Merrill Jr rose to prominence as North America’s leading trainer in victories in 1955, 1958 and again in 1960. In addition to being a dominant force in Canadian racing, Merrill Jr, also won training titles in Florida and Illinois where he beat out some of America’s most prolific winning trainers of the era including his arch-rival, Arnold Winick. Merrill Jr was respected as a true horseman, a colourful character and great promoter of the game, comfortable with both Stakes horses and veteran campaigners whom he had rehabilitated. He was a leading force during the Golden Age of Canadian racing in the 1960s where he competed against the great trainers of that era including, Lou Cavalaris Jr, Jerome C Meyer, Yohnnie Star, Andy Smithers, Horatio Luro, Arthur Warner, Gordon Peter McCann, James Bentley and Duke Campbell. Merrill Jr was elected to the CHRHF in 1981. He passed in 1990.

32-Coming in at 32nd on the list and ascending is Calgary born, Robertino Diodoro, with 3,390 wins. Diodoro began his career in 1995 from his early Alberta base and had two distinct goals, becoming Alberta’s leading trainer and winning the West’s most significant race, the Canadian Derby. Diodoro ticked both boxes emphatically. He has been successful wherever he has landed from Del Mar to Oaklawn Park, Churchill Downs, Fair Grounds, Woodbine, Saratoga and stops in between. In both 2018 and 2019 Diodoro was ranked third In North America in total wins for the season. In more recent years Diodoro has made it to the Breeders’ Cup and Kentucky Derby and now has his sights on becoming a mainstay.

52-Jerome C Meyer born in, Kitchener, Ontario in 1927 ranks 52nd on the list with 2,747 wins. Meyer, Canada’s leading trainer in wins in 1964, 1966 and 1969 was prominent winning stakes races during a fifty-year span beginning in 1951 and continuing through 2001. Meyer became an itinerant-horsemen often leaving his Woodbine base to enjoy Significant success in the mid Atlantic region of the United States while training for some of the sport’s biggest names including Max Gluck for whom he developed, Verbatim, a multiple stakes winning colt of 1968-69. Meyer’s encyclopedic memory allowed for instant recall of a horse’s identity, history and bloodlines. Meyer was inducted to the CHRHF in 1999

59-The final Canadian born trainer on the all-time top 100-win list is CHRHF Honoured Member Ron (Red) K Smith who occupies 59th position with 2,655 wins. Smith from Vancouver relocated to Alberta where he rewrote the record books. Tracing back to some initial success in 1961 Smith remarkably was still winning races through 2024. Gaining distinctive momentum in the 1970s Smith collected victories and training titles in bunches.

In 1977 Smith earned a Sovereign Award as Canada’s Champion Trainer after his

outstanding work with the Elmbrook Stable runners. Among Smith’s most popular horses, Ky Alta, stood out as a dependable and versatile stakes winner.

ALL-TIME TOP 100 NORTH AMERICA TRAINERS BY EARNINGS

1-6 Ranked first among trainers in North America in the earnings category is National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame conditioner, Todd Pletcher, an eight-time Eclipse Award winner the latest of which came in 2022. Pletcher has career winnings of $516,767,383 and ranked fifth in seasonal money won for 2025. Pletcher is followed by three other luminaries and each has been recognized by the Hall of Fame, Steven Asmussen, $486,225,070, Bob Baffert, $377,420,870 and Eclipse Award winning trainer for 2025, William I Mott, $369,826,888. Next in 5th place is, Chad Brown, not yet eligible for Hall of Fame consideration. Brown’s total earnings ascend significantly each year and are currently at $330,823,656. Brown the leading trainer in money won in 2024 captured his fifth Eclipse Award that year. The late Hall of Fame Member, D Wayne Lukas, is next in 6th place with a career total of $300,548,290.

7-The first Canadian content to be recognized on the career earnings list comes from, American born, Mark Casse, in 7th position with career earnings of $272,656,293. Casse the perennial leading trainer in Canada in recent decades, 2024 aside, is an Honoured Member of the CHRHF since 2016 and entered the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2020. Casse landed in fourth place in seasonal earnings for 2025 with a bankroll for the year of $23M positioned behind, Brad Cox, Steven Asmussen and Chad Brown. Casse noted for his many Stakes stars was represented in 2025 by the Eclipse Award-winning Three-Year Filly, Nitrogen, whom Casse had developed into Canada’s Sovereign Award winning Juvenile Filly in 2024. In 2019 Casse, trained the Belmont Stakes winner, Sir Winston, and the Preakness Stakes winner, War of Will, both of whom had developmental racing as juveniles at Woodbine. Casse has also won the (King’s) Queen’s Plate on three occasions. Other significant achievements include training five Canadian Horses of the Year and capturing six Breeders’ Cup victories. Casse’s most noted achievement came with the filly, Tepin, twice Champion Female Turf Horse. In 2015 she accounted for the Breeders’ Cup Mile against the boys. In 2016 she bravely travelled to Royal Ascot to defeat the best milers in Europe in the Grp 1 Queen Anne Stakes and followed up with a victory in Gr 1 Woodbine Mile. Tepin finished with 13 wins from 23 starts and earnings of $4.4M

8-10 Veteran icon, Robert Frankel, ranks 8th with career earning of $227,912,709. Frankel’s final year of training was 2009. His five Eclipse Awards were accumulated between 1993-2003 and he led the seasonal standings list in earnings between 2001-2003. If earnings were properly indexed veterans such as Lukas and Frankel would vault up the earning’s chart

9- Brad Cox like Chad Brown is also not yet eligible for Hall of Fame consideration but both have been inordinately successful in building Hall-worthy profiles. Cox a two-time Eclipse Award winner became the leading money winner trainer in 2025 adding $30M to his career total to boost that figure to $224,737,855 good for 9th spot all time. Hall of Fame trainer Jerry Hollendorfer rounds out the top ten with a career total of $207,421,466. Helping him boost his earnings along the way were champions, Blind Luck, Songbird and Shared Belief.

27-Roger Attfield born in, Newbury, England relocated to Canada in 1970 continuing his equestrian work until he given a chance to train thoroughbreds. He enjoyed success with Norcliffe in the1975 Coronation Futurity Stakes and the following year Norcliffe became the first of Attfield’s recording tying eight Queen’s Plate winners. The popular Canadian horsemen listed 27th has all-time North America earnings of $112,119,392. Attfield, an Honoured Member of the CHRHF since 1999, entered the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2012. Among Attfield’s Queen’s Plate winners from 1976 through 2008 emerged Triple Crown (Queen’s Plate, Prince of Wales & Breeders’ Stakes) winners With Approval in 1989, Izvestia, the following year and Peteski in 1993. Attfield has accounted for twenty victories in Canadian Triple Crown events and those important successes have helped him climb the earnings ladder. Attfield earned his first of eight Sovereign Awards as Canada’s Champion Trainer in 1986 and his most recent came in 2010. Attfield accounted for a cluster of Grade 1 victories in the United States from 2003 through 2011 culminating with a deep rallying win in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf Stakes with Perfect Shirl. Attfield received the E P Taylor Award of Merit for lifetime

Achievement in Canadian racing in April of 2025 from the Jockey Club of Canada. He

announced his retirement in March of this year.

50-Robert Tiller born in, Amsterdam, Netherlands in 1949 emigrated to Canada as a

youngster. Tiller ranks in 50th place on the all-time North American money won list with earnings of $74, 483,131. He began his long training career in 1972 at Woodbine and took his initial big win in the 1975 in the Achievement Stakes. Tiller was a dominant force early in the new Millennium taking Sovereign Awards in 2001, 2003 and 2004. His main client, the Di Giulio family was initially centered around Frank Di Giulio. However, in more recent times Frank D Di Giulio Jr, has led the stable to new heights. Many of Frank Jr’s home breds are produced with designs on the Ontario Sire program and have largely succeeded under Tiller’s guidance. Ironically, it was an auction purchase which gave Tiller his most noted thrills in the game starting in 2016. Frank Jr put together a group of business friends under the banner of the Entourage Stable to purchase Pink Lloyd at the Canadian Thoroughbred

Horse Society Yearling sale. Tiller showed the utmost patience and skill in developing the quirky gelding into a remarkable sprinter. Pink Lloyd would go on to win nearly $2M and strung together some impressive win streaks taking 24 stakes victories and underlined his supremacy during his tenure by capturing eight Sovereign Awards including the 2017 Horse of the Year title. Another late career trainee came along in short order with the Di Giulio homebred Patches O’Houlihan. He won seven of his opening eight career events beginning in 2022. Patches O’Houlihan won 13 of 16 career events, ten of which were stakes.

Champion Sprinter titles ensued in both 2023 and 2024 as did Horse of the Year

recognition in 2024 under Tiller’s guidance. Tiller was elected to the CHRHF in 2008.

51-Robert Diodoro holds the distinction of being the all-time leading Canadian born money winning trainer. He comes in 51st on the all-time North America list at $73,912 460 just behind Robert Tiller. Diodoro born in Calgary also enjoys prominence on of the all-time North America trainer win list in 32nd spot. Diodoro cites the early influences in his career of veteran Alberta horsemen including, Dale Saunders, recently elected to the CHRHF. He spent time on the prairie bush tracks learning his trade before graduating to more recognized destinations. To his credit Diodoro has established solid representation at various ports of call throughout North America. Take Charge Tom, won the 2025 Canadian Derby giving Diodoro his fifth score in the western classic. Diodoro is quick to point out the long time backing he has enjoyed from owner Randy Howg and the prosperous racing partnership they have fostered over thirty years. Diodoro stresses teamwork and is off to good start in 2026.

57-Sid Attard born in, Birkirkara, Malta followed his brothers, Joe and Larry to Canada and the family established a firm foothold at Woodbine, Joe as a trainer and Larry as a jockey. Sid Attard began his training career in 1977 and in 1980 captured his initial added money win in the Mazarine Stakes. Sid currently ranks in 57th position on the all-time money list with career earning of $69,763,855. Through the late 1990s and into the 2000s Attard piled up big victories the most significant of which was a career defining score in the 2001 Gr 1 Woodbine Mile Stakes. Attard’s Numerous Times won a multi horse photo which set off jubilant winner’s circle celebration. One For Rose three-time Champion Older Mare in Canada under Attard’s guidance was recently elected to the CHRHF. In 2025 the Attard trained Runaway Again took the second jewel of the Canadian Triple Crown, the Prince of Wales Stakes, one of his 2,178 career victories. In 2013 Sid Attard joined his brother Larry as an Honoured Membered of the CHRHF

69-Josie Carroll born in, Scarborough, in the eastern portion of the Greater Toronto Area counted herself as an early admirer of race-horses and the activity surrounding them. One of Carroll’s earliest encounters at the track and one she holds dear was working with CHRHF trainer, MacDonald Benson. Other significant influencers In her career include a pair of Hall of Fame trainers, Roger Attfield and the late Michael Doyle. Carroll’s initial added money score came in 1995 and there have been many notable additions. Carroll currently ranks 69th on the all-time money won list with earnings of $62,497,943 and counting. Her first of three Queen’s Plate victories came in 2006 with Edenwold. Factually, the victory made her the first woman to train a Queen’s Plate winner but as Carroll has done repeatedly throughout her career she vigorously avoids the gender card. Her goal remains achieving success without identifying taglines. The filly Inglorious provided Carroll with the Canadian Oaks & Queen’s Plate double in 2011 and in 2020 Carroll masterfully conditioned the visually impaired Mighty Heart to a Queen’s Plate win. In total Carroll has won eight Canadian Triple Crown races. A career highlight horse ,Careless Jewel, with whom Carroll showed plenty of patience captured the Gr1 Alabama Stakes for

Carroll in 2009 and the same year accounted for both the Delaware Oaks and Cotillion Stakes. In 2019 Carroll was elected to the CHRHF. Carroll continues to be among the Woodbine’s most prominent trainers

81-Retired trainer Mark Frostad shepherded the famed Sam Son Farm’s runners to many elite scores and ranks 81st on the all-time earnings list with a total of $55,335,655 despite being represented by only 4,096 career starts. Frostad hails from, Brantford, Ontario the same place as fellow CHRHF Honoured Member, Frank Merrill Jr. While Frostad’s career was relatively short he made the most of his chances. In 1995 the year Frostad joined the Sam Son Farm’s team he enjoyed outside success with Charlie’s Dewan capturing the Breeders Stakes. A further outside successes came in the 1996 Queen’s Plate with the Begg family’s, Victor Cooley, a subsequent winner of the Gr 1 Vosburgh Stakes the following

Year also for Frostad. A career defining horse for Frostad gradually emerged in,

Chief Bearhart, who came of age in 1997 winning the Gr 1 Canadian International and then the Breeders’ Cup Turf. The sensational exploits of Chief Bearhart netted him Horse of the Year Honours at home and an Eclipse Award as North America’s Champion Turf Horse of 1997. Frostad captured his first of three Sovereign Awards as Canada’s Champion Trainer that year and Sovereign Awards followed in 2000 & 2001. The first of Frostad’s three additional successes in the Queen’s Plate all for Sam Son Farm came with Scatter the Gold in 2000 and with his full sister Dancethruthedawn the following year and concluded with Eye of the Leopard in 2009. Frostad accounted for eleven victories in Canadian Triple Crown Stakes. Frostad’s annual number of starters began to reduce in 2014 and he concluded his training career two years later. Frostad was elected to the CHRHF in 2011.

83-Rounding out the Canadian born and Canadian based content on the all-time North America earnings list in 83rd position with a career mark of $54,763,268 is Reade Baker. Born in, Port Dalhousie, in the Niagara area Baker fostered an affection for horses early on and found himself geographically within easy reach of Fort Erie racetrack and that sealed his career fate. Baker entered the racing community in 1965 as groom for CHRHF trainer, Gordon Pete McCann, a conditioner for the E P Taylor runners. Baker later transferred to the stable of Conn Smythe, an Honoured Member of the CHRHF. Baker’s many ancillary interests in the game directed him to a variety of important roles within the industry before he belatedly entered the training ranks. Baker enjoyed significant success as agent for jockey Gary Stahlbaum and he subsequently served on the executive of the Jockeys’ Guild in the United States. Baker then took charge of the racing manager’s role for the Richard R Kennedy stable and helped guide the fortunes of, Afleet, runner up in the

1987 Queen’s Plate before winning the Gr 1 Jerome Stakes. He also accounted for the Pennsylvania Derby. His stablemate, One from Heaven, had captured the 1987 Canadian Oaks before finishing just behind Afleet in third in the Queen’s Plate and was voted Canada’s Champion 3-year-old filly. For his efforts Afleet was named Canada’s Champion 3-year-old colt and Canada’s Horse of the Year for 1987. Big efforts the following year in marquee races saw his campaign culminate with a stirring third place finish at Churchill Downs in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint. Baker orchestrated Afleet’s successful start to his stallion career.

In 1990 Baker belatedly launched his training career which stretched just twenty

years. However, he enjoyed inordinate success in stakes events developing horses who accounted for thirteen Sovereign Awards. Gold Strike won the 2005 Woodbine Oaks and was Champion 3-year-old filly. Gold Strike added to her fame as the dam of 2022 Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike. Fatal Bullet runner up in the 2008 Breeders’ Cup Sprint became the Sovereign Award Champion Sprinter and was voted Horse of the Year. Two year later Baker was back with another star pupil Biofuel voted Champion Three-Year- Filly and Horse of the Year. Breaking Lucky, a millionaire runner for Baker, won the 2015 Prince of Wales Stakes and subsequently proved his versatility against some of the best in the U. S. finishing in the money in a series of top tier events including the Gr 1 Clark and Stephen Foster Stakes at Churchill and the Gr 1 Whitney at Saratoga. Baker credits his extensive travel experiences abroad for valuable lessons learned in helping him develop

nontraditional training methods, unique feeding programs and gaining insights into the global pedigree and breeding markets. Baker, Canada’s Champion Trainer in 2005, entered the CHRHF in 2018 and retired from training the following year to pursue advising roles in bloodstock matters and managing roles with race horses.

ALL TIME TOP 100 NORTH AMERICA JOCKEYS BY RACES WON

1-Topping the Races Won category for Jockeys is Canadian born Rusell Baze. Interestingly, the final entrant in the category ranked 100th all time is another outstanding Canadian born rider, Ted Atkinson. To a broader audience the fact that both Baze and Atkinson were Canadian born could have easily been missed as both riders spent the large majority of their riding carers in the United States. Both were honoured as Inductees to the CHRHF and both were likewise honoured by the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame located in Saratoga.

Baze was born in, Vancouver, British Columbia in August of 1958 at a time his father, Joe, a highly successful jockey in Northern California and Washington State was riding there at Exhibition Park. Joe was instrumental in the development of Russell’s career initially introducing him to the rudiments of the profession and then to the intricacies needed for success. In fact, Russell’s first winner came in 1974 at, Yakima Meadows, Washington aboard Oregon Warrior trained by his father. Baze had set an early and ambitious goal of reaching 4,000 winners in his career but at his retirement on June 13, 2016, that number soared to 12,842 making him the world’s winningest jockey at that juncture. Jorge Ricardo, a Brazilian rider competing largely in South America, expressed his intent on continuing his career after Baze retired in hopes of overtaking his rival for the number one spot which he now owns after easily bypassing the 13,300-win mark. Baze largely oscillated between two tracks Golden Gate Fields in San Francisco and Bay Meadows situated a thirty-minute drive to the south in San Mateo. He made occasional trips farther south to California’s major tracks, Santa Anita and Del Mar for some big race wins.

Baze, a devoted family man with a good sense of direction his priorities properly balanced gained personal satisfaction with his role as the perennial star of Golden Gate Fields and Bay Meadows. Baze and fellow Canadian rider, Sandy Hawley, both enjoyed outstanding synergy with their long-time agents- for Baze it was Ray Harris and for Hawley it was Colin Wick. Baze led North American jockeys in victories on 13 occasions during a period from 1992- 2014. His biggest yearly total came in 1995 when he won an astounding 448 races. That year he received a Special Eclipse Award recognizing him as the first rider to bypass 400 winners in a season-four years in a row. In fact, Baze exceeded 400 wins in a year on 13 occasions. The Issac Murphy Award annually recognizes the North American rider with the highest winning percentage and Baze won the award on 12 occasions. For his career he

achieved a stunning 24% winning average which ties him with fellow Canadian rider,

Avelino Gomez, with the top mark among the all-time top100 riders in wins in North

America.

2-4 Positions two through four are occupied by iconic Hall of Fame Members,

Laffit Pincay Jr 9,530, William Shoemaker 8,833 and Pat Day, 8803. Shoemaker was the

previous leader in all-time wins in North American until Pincay Jr, went by him then both were passed by Baze

5-In fifth position is the ironman of the group, Perry Wayne Ouzts, born in 1954 and

remarkably still active in 2026 at age 71 with a winner. Ouzts has been riding since 1973 and has often dominated the standings at River Downs and Beulah Park. Through the first week of 2026 his win count was 7,531

6-Canadian born David Gall is ranked sixth all time. Born in, Rose Valley, Saskatchewan in 1941, Gall began his career on the Canadian Prairie circuit traveling as far west as Vancouver. Gall concentrated his riding in the U. S. and headed south to the tracks in California before moving onto Arizona. He eventually found a home at Fairmount Park in south Illinois where was the perennial leader. Gall twice led all North America riders in wins. In 1979 he had a huge take of 479 victories to win seasonal honours and then two years later he needed only 376 scores to repeat. In 1993 Gall was honoured with Induction into the CHRHF. When Gall retired in 1999 he ranked fourth all-time with 7,396 winners but he has since lost two places on the list with the ascent of Russell Baze and Perry Ouzts.

14-Sandy Hawley from, Oshawa, Ontario is the next Canadian born rider on the list with 6,450 scores. A real oddity in Hawley’s distinguished career occurred with a ten-year span separating his final two wins. After retiring in 1998 Hawley accepted an invitation in 2008 to take part in a Living Legends race at Santa Anita exclusively for Hall of Fame jockeys. The race was sanctioned with pari mutuel wagering. Hawley nearing his 60th birthday went through some challenging preparations for the returning engagement. His draw for the big race was, Tribal Chief, who had been suspiciously inactive prior to the event. Hawley planted his mount on the lead and never looked back leaving behind a Hall of Fame posse which included Pat Day, Angel Cordero Jr, Jacinto Vasquez, Chris McCarron, Gary Stevens, Julie Krone and Jerry Bailey. Hawley like, Russell Baze, had been a successful wrestler as a youth and parlayed that strength and agility into inordinate athleticism which in turn produced an effective winning rhythm in his riding style. Hawley’s initiation to racing came under the tutelage of western horseman Duke Campbell who was elected to the CHRHF in 1984. Hawley credits Campbell with having a profound influence on him both personally and professionally. Hawley launched his career in the autumn of 1968 and then in his first full season he notched 230 wins, a harbinger of

good things to come. Hawley quickly gained momentum and ascended to top spot in North America in 1970. He won his first of four Queen’s Plate that year aboard Almoner and registered 452 wins riding in both the U. S, and Canada. Unfortunately, for Hawley the Eclipse Award for Champion Jockey was not formulated until the following year. Once established in 1971 the Eclipse Award was hogged by both Laffit Pincay Jr in California and Braulio Baeza in New York through 1975. Pincay Jr displaced Hawley down to second for top race winning rider for the 1971 season although Hawley regained top spot in 1972.

In 1973 with his sails full Hawley and his long-time agent Colin Wick decided an all-out assault on Shoemaker’s single season wins record of 485 set twenty years earlier was in order. During that year-long siege Hawley showed remarkable resolve and stamina to reach a stunning count of 515 winners. For his outstanding efforts Hawley received a Special Eclipse Award of Merit. Hawley’s more moderate count of 413 winners in 1976 was ample enough to rightfully wrest the Eclipse Award away from Pincay and Baeza. The highlight year for Hawley continued and he received the Order of Canada for outstanding contributions to his country. He was also honoured with the George Woolf Memorial Award because of the high professional and personal standards which he upheld. Hawley began riding the winter season in southern California in the early 1970s and made the full time move there from 1979 through1988. This allowed him to compete and succeed against a deep jockey colony which included Shoemaker, Pincay, Eddie Delahoussaye,

Chris McCarron, Fernando Toro and Don Pierce. Hawley then returned home and claimed his second Sovereign Award. Hawley finished his career with a commendable 20.5% lifetime winning average. Hawley was inducted into the CHRHF in 1986 and was honoured by the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1992. A book detailing Hawley’s life and career, ‘Ride of a Lifetime’ was published in 2005

21-Johnny Longden born in, Wakefield, England in 1907 relocated with his mother and sisters at age five to, Calgary, Alberta to join his father who had gone on ahead of the family. He was raised in the nearby town of Taber. By 1921 Longden was riding at the bush tracks on the Prairies and was later joined by his good friend George Woolf from near by, Cardston, Alberta. By 1927 Longden had relocated to the northern United States to ride but the initial returns were disappointingly slim. By 1935 he had surely built momentum and three years later earned his initial national riding title for wins. In 1942 Longden returned briefly to Alberta to win the Province’s most celebrated race, the Canadian Derby, aboard Maginot Line. The following year he won the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes aboard Count Fleet. That same year Longden displaced Woolf as the top money winning rider and repeated in 1945. In both 1947 and 1948 Longden was the leader in races won. In 1940 Longden worked with his two Alberta buddies, Woolf and Red Pollard

along with famed rider, Eddie Arcaro, to establish the Jockeys’ Guild for the betterment of all riding members. For his beneficent efforts Longden was belatedly presented a Special Eclipse Award in 1994. In 1952 Longden received the George Woolf Memorial Award named in honour of his long time-friend who had tragically died in a spill at Santa Anita in, January, 1946.

An indelible sign of Longden’s success came on September 3rd, 1956, at Del Mar race track where he became the world’s winningest rider with victory 4,871. He was a long way from finished. Not long before his retirement Longden scored win number 6,000 aboard Prince Scorpion while visiting Vancouver’s Exhibition Park. His final win came in his final ride on March 12th, 1966, at Santa Anita Park when Longden guided reigning Canadian Horse of the Year, George Royal, to a heroic victory in the San Juan Capistrano Stakes an important stamina event the pair had also won the previous year. That final victory closed Longden’s riding account with a world’s best 6,032 victories. Longden then turned his talents to training and enjoyed considerable success. A highlight came in 1969 with, Majestic Prince, a flashy chestnut colt Longden conditioned for CHRHF Honoured Member, Frank McMahon. Longden scored a unique double as a Kentucky Derby and Preakness winning rider and trainer when Majestic Prince took the first two legs of the Triple Crown. Longden retired from training in 1990 after 370 victories. Longden entered the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1958 and was part

of the initial class inducted into the CHRHF in 1976 alongside George Woolf. Longden passed on his 96th birthday, February 14, 2003.

23- Toronto born Stewart Elliot is the fifth Canadian jockey listed in the top 25 in wins all time for North America riders. Like Russell Baze, Elliot, is also the son of a jockey. His father Dennis rode at Blue Bonnets in Montreal and Woodbine and his mother was involved with show horse ventures. The family went with Dennis for a seven-year spell in Hong Kong when Stewart was a youngster. His dad’s career morphed from a rider to a trainer during that time. The family returned and settled in the United States. Stewart began riding at 16 at Philadelphia Park and had early success. He would eventually become the State’s leading rider. On May 13, 2003, Elliot reached the 3,000-win plateau. The following year was his most industrious. He guided Smarty Jones to win both the Rebel Stakes and Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park which put in play a $5 Million bonus if the Kentucky Derby

completed that sweep. In Elliot’s initial Kentucky Derby ride he patiently reserved Smarty Jones off the pace of Lion Heart and then splashed away from his opponent in the stretch to maintain his unbeaten streak, take down the top prize of $854,800 and wrap up the bountiful bonus. Another important win came in the Preakness and by a wide margin.

These were heady pay days for Elliot. However, what was considered by some observers to be a premature move to the lead early in the run down the backstretch in the Belmont Stakes when the pace was still moderate left Smarty Jones exposed in deep stretch and he was dramatically overtaken by, Birdstone, and Triple Crown aspirations vanished. During that memorable 2004 campaign Elliot’s mounts earned $14,533,061 which ranked him fourth nationally. At the beginning of 2009 Elliot ascended to the 4,000-win plateau. A highlight victory came at Woodbine later that season when Elliot guided Milwaukee Appeal to a win in the Canadian Oaks. The following year Elliot was honoured by the CHRHF with Induction. In 2017 Elliot received the George Woolf Memorial Award. By the summer of 2020 his win total hit 5,000. Riding titles and high percentage seasons followed at Texas tracks where Elliot found a niche. Elliot got to compete with his son Christopher in 2024.

Christopher is currently riding in New York. Now his 45th year of riding at age 61 Elliot has continued to excel and remarkably leads the jockey standings at Sam Houston Park in both victories and money won. His win total at the beginning of 2026 was 5,913 and victory number 6,000 seems to be within reach for Stewart Elliot.

83-Avelino Gomez born in, Havana, Cuba in 1928 became one of Canada’s most beloved Jockeys. Not only was his fiery desire to win appreciated but his early realization that foremost the game of horse racing was about entertainment allowed Gomez to connect with the fan base. Gomez introduced the flying leap from the saddle in the winner’s circle which amused race goers to no end. The post race flight from the saddle proved so popular that it was copied by Angel Cordero Jr and from him Lanfanco Dettori adopted it. In addition Gomez joyfully carried on witty verbal jousting with patrons. On one occasion at Fort Erie race track Gomez and his highly touted Panamanian import-mount, Snow Twist, became

separated just as the start of that two-turn event was about was taken. When Snow Twist departed the gate solo, Gomez emerged from the structure of the starting gate and walked over to the outer rail of the track in the vicinity of the sixteenth pole. Gomez in a display of agility gracefully mounted the top of rail and tight walked it back to the winners’ circle all the while fully engaged with crowd most of whom had just lost their money on the celebrated rider’s short price favourite. Gomez rode his first of 4,081 winners on, March 19,

1944 in Mexico City. From Cuba his stops included various locales on the U. S. circuit along with a tenure in Vancouver. Between 1955-66 Gomez topped the Canadian standings seven times from his Ontario base.

In 1956 Gomez was aboard E. P. Taylor’s, Landscape, winning the first race contested

at the ‘New’ Woodbine race track located in Toronto’s north-west section in Etobicoke close by what is now Pearson International Airport. The following year Gomez would win his first Queen’s Plate with Lyford Cay again for Taylor the architect of the new track dubbed ‘The Giant of the North’ and a further success in the Plate for Gomez and Taylor came in 1960 with Victoria Park trained by CHRHF Honoured Member, Horatio Luro. It was a fitting occasion for Gomez to feature his flying dismount. Gomez also remained active south of the border and in the 1960s rode American Stakes stars such as, Ridan, Affectionately, Never Bend and Crimson Satan. A third Plate score for Gomez arrived in 1966 with Titled Hero scoring at short odds. At that season’s end Gomez secured the title of North America’s leading race winning rider with 318 victories. Amazingly, Gomez required less than a thousand mounts to accomplish that career defining feat and he achieved a phenomenal success rate of 32% higher than any other seasonal leading rider in history.

After a self enforced sabbatical from riding in 1968 Gomez returned the following year to complete his quartet of Queen’s Plate victories with Jumpin Joseph. His record of four Plate winners still stands but he now shares the distinction with Sandy Hawley whose four Plate victories came in the 1970s and with CHRHS Honoured Member Robin Platts whose grand slam of Plate scores concluded in 1984 with Key to the Moon.

In the 1970s Gomez oscillated between riding and training. In 1977 he was recognized with a Sovereign Award as the Canada’s Outstanding rider. Gomez passed from complications of his injuries sustained in the 1980 Canadian Oaks. The entire racing community deeply grievously mourned their immeasurable loss. Gomez is an Honoured Member of both the CHRHF and the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. A statute of Gomez was erected at Woodbine in 1984 and the Avelino Gomez Memorial Award was established to recognize those riders who have significantly contributed to Canadian racing. Ron Turcotte was the initial recipient in 1984 followed by Johnny Longden, Sandy Hawley and

Chris Rogers. Others mentioned in this article to receive the Award include Hugo Dittfach in 1991, Robin Platts in 1992, David Gall in 1966, Stewart Elliot in 2010, Patrick Husbands in 2014, Gary Boulanger in 2017, Emma Jayne Wilson the following year, Eurico da Silva in 2021 and Rusell Baze in 2023. Gomez’ career success rate of 24% ties him with Russell Baze at the top of the list of the all-time Top 100 North America leading riders.

86-Hugo Dittfach overcame many early disadvantages to become one of Canada’s top riders respected most for his work ethic which allowed him to reach the 4,000 wins plateau. After his final win in a 33-year career in 1989, Dittfach sauntered from the Greenwood winner’s circle and into retirement. Dittfach spent three years as a youth in a Russian concentration camp in Poland at the conclusion of World War 11. He emigrated to Canada in 1955 settling in, Calgary, Alberta. His riding career started there the following year. He soon became the top jockey in the Prairies before setting his sights on Ontario where he encountered a steep jockey colony featuring, Avelino Gomez, Al Coy and Chris Rogers, a stellar group which accounted for eight Queen’s Plate victories. However, Dittfach immediately established himself among the leaders. In 1961 he won a thrilling edition of the Queen’s Plate when his longshot mount, Blue Light, rallied to win a hard-fought nose decision over favoured, Just Don’t Shove, ridden by Johnny Logden with Gomez in third with Ramblin Wreck. Dittfach topped the jockey standings that year and again in 1965. The depth of the jockey standings was mightily fortified by the introduction of a quartet of outstanding apprentices in the 1960s, Ron Turcotte, Richard Grubb, Robin Platts and Sandy Hawley each a future CHRHF Honoured Member. Dittfach marvelled at the burgeoning skill of these young riders. Their introduction further strengthened his resolve to keep on winning. What he lacked in finesse he more than made up for with determination and hard work which gave him great satisfaction. Dittfach earned a Sovereign Award as Canada’s Outstanding Jockey in 1975 the year the Award was established. His big earning years came in 1982 and 1984. Dittfach was inducted to the CHRHF in 1983. He passed in 2021

100-Ted Atkinson born in Toronto in 1916 rounds out the top 100 all time North America jockeys in wins with a career total of 3,795. Atkinson relocated as a youngster to the U.S. His first winner came in 1938 at Beulah Park in Columbus Ohio. In 1940 he relocated to New England before moving on to New York. Atkinson was a contemporary of Eddie Arcaro,

Johnny Longden and George Woolf. Atkinson boosted his career in 1941 when he defeated Triple Crown winner Whirlaway with Arcaro aboard in the Narragansett Special. Atkinson went on to become New York’s leading rider eleven times and was at his peak during the 1940s and 1950s with his career concluding in 1959. Atkinson considered a true gentleman with a proliferation for reading classic literature was twice the leading rider in North America for both victories and by earnings. In 1944 his 287 victories for the year led the national standings as did his earnings mark. Two years later he became the first jockey to top the million-dollar mark taking the earnings title and he again led the nation in wins. Atkinson was a favourite choice among Canadian owners and trainers when they shipped their runners to New York. Atkinson rode at intervals future Hall of Famers such as, Nashua, Gallorette, Bold Ruler and Busher. Perhaps his best regular mount was Tom Fool who in 1953 was voted America’s Champion Sprinter, Champion Older Horse and Horse of

the Year.

Upon his retirement Atkinson became a distinguished Racing Official and Steward in New York and Illinois. Atkinson was presented with the George Woolf Memorial Award in 1957 the same year he was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame.

Atkinson who passed in 2005 received inducted to the CHRHF in 2002. Accepting on his behalf that evening was Atkinson’s celebrated grand daughter, Caton Bredar, a horse racing presenter, broadcaster and award-winning journalist.

ALL-TIME TOP 100 NORTH AMERICA JOCKEYS EARNINGS

1-2 Topping the all-time North America earnings list is a pair of Hall of Fame jockeys.

John Velasquez is a two-time Eclipse Award and a three-time Kentucky Derby

Winner. He has amassed career earnings of $513,744,588. Velasquez won the Gr 1

Woodbine Mile on five occasions. Next is Javier Castellano who captured the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey from 2013 through 2016. Castellano is currently rated second on the all-time list with earnings of $414,226,645.

3-Irad Ortiz Jr just 33 years of age won’t be eligible for Hall of Fame consideration until the early 2030s. These prime years have been rewarding for him. He has been North America’s top earner six times since 2017 and has been the leader in races won nine times since then. In 2025 he ranked first for the year in both wins and earnings. Ortiz Jr has already won the Eclipse Award on five occasions 2018-2020, 2022-23. He has been displaced the past two seasons for year end honors by Flavien Pratt who claimed the Eclipse Award both years. Ortiz Jr has swiftly climbed the money won ladder in recent years with career earnings of $377,973,291.

4-Mike Smith Outstanding Jockey in 1993 and 1994 joined the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2003 but remains active with feature rides and has accumulated $356,699,010 good for fourth position overall. In 1997 Smith took the Queen’s Plate with Awesome Again. Smith rode Justify to a Triple Crown sweep in 2018.

5-Joel Rosario completes the top five with career earnings of $344,999,625. He was an Eclipse Award winner in 2021 and was inducted into the National Museum and Hall of Fame in 2024. Like all the others in the top five positions he remains currently active.

25-Of the top 100 jockeys on the all-time leading earnings list in North America, reside twenty-five riders who are either Canadian born or who have largely been Canadian based.

Russell Baze born in Vancouver is most noted as the winningest jockey in North America with 12,842 victories. His career winnings are just shy of two hundred million dollars at $199,334,219 collected while he competed mostly at San Francisco’s Golden Gate Fields and Bay Meadows just to the south in San Mateo. It would be a mistake to conclude that Baze did not enjoy big race success or that he did not beat California’s most noted riders.

Baze won El Camino Real Derby nine times on his own grounds often beating

accomplished riders from the southern California circuit. He earned the respect of

Laffit Pincay Jr who spoke in glowing terms of Baze’s abilities and accomplishments. Baze accounted for Grade 1 wins with Both Ends Burning, Hawkster, Devil’s Orchid and Smiling Tiger. In addition, he was the regular rider for, Lost in the Fog, Eclipse Award winning Sprinter in 2005 who captured the Gr 1 King’s Bishop Stakes (now the H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes). In his best money winning years in the early 2000s Baze often exceeded $7M in seasonal earnings. Baze sits at spot 25 on the all time list and leads the Canadian contingent.

31-Patrick Husband born in, Bridgetown, Barbados in 1973 has career earnings of

$184,051,647. In 1990 he became the youngest rider to win the Island’s most famous

race, The Barbados Gold Cup, an event he has captured four times. Husbands emigrated to Canada then became a Woodbine regular in 1998. The following year he won his first of an unprecedent eight Sovereign Awards as Canada’s Champion Jockey, the first four of those came consecutively through 2002. In 2001 Husbands scored a narrow victory in the Gr 1 Woodbine Mile aboard Numerous Times. Husbands’ next three Outstanding jockey awards came from 2007-2009. Husbands’ main competition in his early years was Todd Kabel a six-time Canadian Champion and subsequent to Kabel it was Eurico Da Siliva a seven time Sovereign Award winner. In both 2003 and 2011 Husbands cracked the top 10 in earnings for North America. Wando, a Triple Crown winner in 2003 helped swell Husbands’

earnings. Other Queen’s Plate/King’s Plate winners for Husbands, Lexie Lou in 2014 and Paramount Prince in 2023 came for Canada’s perennial leading trainer and long time Husbands-supporter Mark Casse with whom he also teamed to win the 2001

Gr 1 Metropolitan Handicap with rank outsider, Exciting Story. Husbands who earned a reputation as one of Canada’s all-time greats with 3,714 victories was inducted into the CHRHF in 2024.

51-Stewart Elliot born in Toronto continues to amaze as current leading rider this year in wins and money won at Sam Houston Park while in his early 60s. His career earnings at the start of this year were $130,657,833 good for 51st place. Most noted for his exploits aboard Smarty Jones the 2004 Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner, Elliot’s earnings that year ballooned to a seasonal best $14,533,061. His remarkable longevity has allowed him inclusion on both All-Time leaders lists including 23rd on the Winners roster with 5,913 victories beginning 2026 but those numbers for wins and earnings have already increased in the early month of 2026.

66-Todd Kabel born in 1965 in, McCreary, Manitoba is ranked 66th on the all-time

Money list with earnings of $105,831,055 good for 66th spot. He began his highly

successful career at Assiniboia Downs in Winnipeg. As a 21 year old he relocated to

Ontario and became one of the country’s most successful riders winning six Sovereign Awards as the Outstanding jockey in the nation in 1992, 1995 and 2003-2006. Kabel was also feted with a Sovereign Award as Canada’s Outstanding Apprentice in 1986. Kabel was a contemporary of Patrick Husbands in his prime years and the pair accounted for the Sovereign Award as Canda’s Outstanding rider for eleven consecutive years from 1999-2009. Kabel was noted as a top money rider and in 2004 he went on quite a run of added money victories at Woodbine with 36 to tie the single season mark established by Avelino Gomez. Kabel a fierce competitor accounted for six Natalma Stakes victories and five times won the Kennedy Road Stakes. He twice guided the winners of the Queen’s Plate in 1995 with Regal Discovery and then again five years later with Scatter the Gold. Kabel’s

final years from 2007-2013 were marked with more limited action. Kabel passed in 2021.

70-Eurico Da Silva was born in in 1975 in, Buri, San Paulo, Brazil. He spent the initial five years of his career in San Paulo before relocating to Macau. His early seasons in Toronto in 2004-2005 yielded slim results. However, Da Silva would go on to accumulate career earning of $102,764,264 largely on the back of a series of highly productive Woodbine seasons and some precious unions with developing equine stars beginning in 2009 when he took the first of his two Queen’s Plate score with Eye of the Leopard. The following year Da Silva masterfully guided the diminutive Big Red Mike to a forward win which allowed him to take his place on the winning dais alongside Queen Elizabeth 11, a career highlight. In 2010 Da Silva topped the $10M mark in seasonal earnings. He collected two Canadian Oaks victories in 2016 with Neshama and in 2018 with Dixie Moon.

Da Silva was the long tenured partner of 2017 Horse of the Year, Pink Lloyd, a career winner of eight Sovereign Awards over multiple seasons. Also, in 2017 Da Silva proved too slippery on the front end of the Gr 1 Canadian International Stakes on rank outsider Bullards Alley. That campaign was also memorable because remarkably Da Silva won the International

Jockeys Championship in Japan. Da Silva broke the Woodbine record for wins in a season

in 2018 with 237 victories. His final year of riding in 2019 provided another longshot

bonanza. Da Silva rushed home longshot El Tormente first along the inside rail in the Gr 1 Woodbine Mile to complete his personal sweep of Woodbine’s marquee events.

Da Silva collected seven Sovereign Awards as Canada’s Outstanding jockey from 2010 through 2019 including five in a row to conclude his career while on top. During his final five seasons his lowest winning percentage during that run was 24% and he finished with a career success rate of 20%. He collected 2,286 wins. Da Silva like Avelino Gomezunderstood that the game was about entertainment and patrons embraced him for his generosity of spirit. After his retirement he co authoured a self revealing book ‘Riding for Freedom’ which set him on path of self help for others through Mind Coaching of athletes for improved performance. Currently as the lead of Equine Experimental Connection Da Silva shares with those in need of mental balance the healing properties which retired race horses can generously provide.

76- Emma Jayne Wilson born in, Brampton, Ontario in 1981 has career earnings of

$92,103,773 with 1,942 career victories. Wilson was the Outstanding Apprentice in Canada in 2005-2006. These impressive feats came approximately four years after Chantal Sutherland accomplished them giving the country two excellent riders who would both go onto more outstanding achievements. Wilson was also recognized as North America’s Leading apprentice in 2005 a year in which she rode180 winners.

Wilson built her profile during the 2006 season with earnings for the year of $7.1M and in 2007 deftly handled Mike Fox to win the Queen’s Plate out finessing a pair of more seasoned riders through the stretch. It was an important achievement on differing levels as it marked Wilson as a confident and successful rider beyond gender lines. Wilson’s seasonal take in 2007 amounted to $8.6M. Trips to Ascot in the U. K. to compete for the Shergar Cup established Wilson on an international basis. She was embraced by the patrons there and enjoyed significant success. Wilson and her contemporaries such as Kabel, Husbands, Luis Contreras, Raphael Hernandez and DaSilva formed a deep and fiercely competitive jockey colony and Wilson proved she belonged with the best of that era. More recently from 2021-2023 Kazushi Kimura dominated the standings winning three consecutive Sovereign Awards but has since departed for southern California. That has left Wilson fighting it out for choice mounts with Hernandez and Pietro Moran. Her penchant for getting the best stamina from her mounts is evidence by her four victories in the Valedictory Stakes, the longest and most demanding stakes event of the year. In 2024 Wilson surpassed the career earnings mark of Hall of Fame jockey Julie Krone

who had enjoyed many important successes on her visits to Woodbine while building record earnings among female riders. Later that year a series of significant injuries began for Wilson who would require extraordinary resolve to recover before regaining the ability to walk. Wilson made it back to the saddle in 2025 but two subsequent injuries, one during a race and another during a morning workout, would once again sideline her resulting in a significant loss of riding time. Wilson is contesting the 2026 season at Woodbine where she is understandably a long-time media favourite. Wilson thoroughly understands the game from several perspectives and has mastered the ability to detail it for patrons.

83-Emille Ramsammy born in, Trinidad, in 1962 became a popular Caribbean rider long before he emigrated to Canada in the early 1990s to become the Sovereign Award winning jockey in 1996-1997. Ramsammy was the top rider in Barbados in 1986 and again in 1989. On three occasions he won the most significant race there, the Barbados Gold Cup. Twice he won Canada’s most noted race, the Queen’s Plate, in 1996 with Victor Cooley and in 1989 with Edenwold. His highest win total for a season came in 1997 when his count reached 184 on his way to a career total of 2,283 scores many of which came with his preferred front end style. His most impactful earning seasons came from 2001 through 2003 where he exceeded $6.8M in each of those campaigns. Winter trips to southern California to compete at Santa Anita proved highly successful. Ramsammy had only limited action during the 2024-2025 seasons.

84-A surprise entrant in 84th position is racing icon Sandy Hawley with career earnings of $88,709,492. Hawley retired in 1998 in the top ten all time in races won with 6,449 and came out of retirement for one race in 2008 which he won against Hall of Fame riders at Santa Anita. He is currently ranked 14th all time in victories and achieved a lifetime success rate of 21%. Hawley, like many riders from earlier eras has been displaced on the all-time leading earners list by jockeys competing in more recent times where inflated purse structures have paved the passing lane. Indexing these raw numbers would result in a more balanced view of an individual’s earnings achievement.

Hawley the leading rider in North America on four occasions had his highest earning year in 1988 cresting at $5.7M. Big race victories began in 1970 with, Almoner, the first of four Queen’s Plate winners for Hawley. The following year Hawley captured the Alabama Stakes with Lauries Dancer who was one of Hawley’s eight winners of the Canadian Oaks. Then came noted scores in the1975 and 1976 Washington D.C. International with Nobiliary and Youth then in the Canadian International Stakes in 1976 with Youth and in 1979 with Golden Act. Hawley claimed the 1975 Whitney Stakes at Saratoga with Ancient Title. Helping cement Hawley’s status as a top money rider in California were a series of significant stakes score there including his rallying win in the 1983 Hollywood Futurity aboard longshot Fali Time, at that juncture the world’s richest race. Later, Hawley also made his mark winning a trio of important Kentucky Stakes including the 1986 Spinster Stakes with Top Corsage.

88-Jim McAleney born in, Fort St John, British Columbia in 1969 got his start on the bush tracks of the prairies but graduated to compete at Edmonton’s Northlands Park. In 1987 McAleney earned a Sovereign Award for Outstanding Apprentice while splitting his time between western and eastern tracks. He settled in Ontario the following year and repeated as the country’s Outstanding Apprentice. In 2004 he made a triumphant return to Northlands to win the west’s most valuable prize, the Canadian Derby, with eastern shipper Organ Grinder. In 2008 McAleney gained prominence with a seasonal high of $8M in purses and 162 victories while getting a boost from trainers, Reade Baker and Lorne Richards, his main supporters. McAleney retired at the end of the 2016 season with career earnings of

$86,451,050 and 2,357 wins to his credit

93-Gary Boulanger born in, Drayton Valley, Alberta in 1967 is that Province’s all time

leading jockey with career totals of $83,541,143 and 3,685 victories. Boulanger was

robbed of considerable time during his career when a serious spill early in 2005 sidelined him from riding again until the 2013 season. Boulanger was a leading rider wherever he landed beginning with Longacres in, Seattle, Washington from 1989-91. His winning totals soared during that time and in 1991 he accounted for 247 wins. He then transferred to Florida and was Calder’s leading rider in 1994-1995. In 1996 he scored the most unlikely upset in the Fountain of Youth Stakes aboard Built For Pleasure who returned $288.20. Boulanger made, Toronto, his base in 2000-2001. He attracted a top mount from Mark Frostad conditioner for the powerful Sam Son Farms. In 2001 he guided their Dancethruthedawn, a daughter of the great Dance Smartly, to wins in the Canadian Oaks and Queen’s Plate. Boulanger returned to the Florida scene but after his serious 2005 accident at Gulfstream Park he sought other revenue streams within the industry and turned his talents to training for a few years before returning to ride. He eventually returned to Toronto and enjoyed riding success there. In 2014 he travelled to Keeneland to handle his regular mount Leigh Court for trainer Josie Carroll and got the measure of that day’s opponents in the Thoroughbred Club of America Stakes. Boulanger was inducted to the CHRHF in 2020 and retired from the saddle in 2023

97- David Clark born in 1953 in, Blaydon, County Durham, England emigrated to Canada and began riding in 1973 on the Ontario circuit which included Greenwood and Woodbine in Toronto and the Fort Erie racetrack in the western Niagara area. In his second season of action Clark had the distinction of winning six races consecutively on a card at Woodbine.

Clark gravitated to top spot in 1998 and won the Sovereign Award as the Canada’s

Outstanding Jockey. Clark often teamed with Hall of Fame Trainer Gordon Huntley, a noted developer of star juveniles. Clark showed great instinct with these bourgeoning runners both in training and in races. He was a highly efficient gate rider and was able to effectively

measure their speed potentials. Clark bypassed the one hundred winner mark for the first time in 1979. The following year his win total crested at 159 scores. The first of Clark’s two Queen’s Plate winners came in 1981 for CHRHF trainer James Bentley. His mount Fiddle Dancer Boy a tall angular type, defeated the favourite Frost King for the 8-1 upset. Clark’s second Queen’s Plate triumph came in 1985 aboard the Canadian Oaks winner, La Lorgnette, owned and bred by E. P. Taylor’s Windfields Farm. Clark moved his towering filly forward leaving the final turn and La Lorgnette defeated the favourite Imperial Choice in front of Queen Mother Elizabeth. Clark’s best earning years came in 2000 and 2003 when his mounts earned $5.6M each year. After seeing light action in 2012 Clark retired with career totals of $80 688,015 and 2,949 wins.

99-Raphael Hernandez born in, San Lorenzo, Puerto Rico in 1984 has several chapters yet to write in his successful career. In 2025 Hernandez won his second Sovereign Award as Canada’s Outstanding Jockey to go win his first such title five years earlier. Hernandez was able to build his impressive win totals which stood at 3,401 through the first week of 2026 by becoming the dominant rider at Fairmount Park, Collinsville, which is located in the south of Illinois and just east of the city of, St Louis, Missouri. Hernandez began his run of nine riding titles at Fairmount Park in 2005 and took his final one there in 2014. David Gall from western Canada who ranks 6th on the all-time winners list also used Fairmount Park as his base winning the riding title there 14 times and became North America’s leading-race-

winning rider twice from that particular base. Winners came easily for Hernandez during his dominant period there but at the expense of big money opportunities. In 2011 when Hernandez won 211 races and achieved a stunning success rate of 27% he bankrolled just $1.1M for the season. Noted trainer, Wesley Ward, picked out Hernandez on a simulcast broadcast as one with considerable potential and promoted the idea of him relocating. Hernandez made his way to Woodbine and by 2015 his yearly earnings escalated to $4.5M. That number has steadily increased over the ensuing-years and his best seasonal take came in 2025 with earnings of $7.5M during his second championship season. Hernandez showed the mettle that Ward had earlier identified when he rode Shaman Ghost to a stunning off the pace score in the 2015 Queen’s Plate. Hernandez would add two more Queen’s Plate scores to his list with a pair of Horses of the Year in 2022 with, Moira, and in

2024 with Caitlinhergrtness. Hernandez began 2026 with career earnings of $79,905,878 which positions him just inside the all-time top 100 earners.

OTHER NOTABLE CANADIAN BORN JOCKEYS

Canadian born icons missing from both the all-time Top 100 North America wins and

money earned lists for jockeys include George Woolf and Ron Turcotte. In addition, two other vitally important riders from a much earlier era also deserve inclusion, Thomas H Burns and William Donahue.

Woolf born in, Cardston, Alberta in 1910 fought diabetes which prevented him from

reducing effectively throughout his shortened career and Woolf simply couldn’t muster the volume needed. Woolf riding just a limited number of mounts per year managed 721 wins in his highly successful career and remarkably almost one hundred of those scores came in significant stakes races in the United States. Woolf, a top money rider, was the jockey of choice to handle Seabiscuit in his 1938 Match race replacing his regular rider, Red Pollard, originally from Edmonton who was out with any injury. The Match race between Seabiscuit and Triple Crown winner War Admiral took place at Pimlico race track. Woolf slyly planted Seabiscuit on the lead taking away War Admiral’s perceived advantage and guided him to a

convincing victory. Woolf a leading riding in the United States in the late 1930s through the early 1940s was eventually displaced as the top rider by fellow Canadian and friend,

Johnny Longden, with whom he joined along with Pollard and American racing icon, Eddie Arcaro to establish the Jockeys’ Guild for the benefit of all riders. Woolf died from injuries sustained in a spill, January 3,1946 at Santa Anita. The George Woolf Memorial Award was subsequently established in 1950 to recognize those riders who best illustrate the highest personal and professional standards.

Woolf, Longden and fellow Albertan, Smokey Saunders, a Triple Crown winner in 1935 with Omaha enjoyed induction to the CHRHF as Honoured Members of the initial class of 1976. Woolf had been inducted in the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in1955.

Ron Turcotte inducted into the National Museum and Hall of Fame in 1979 also received Induction to the CHRHF the following year. Born in Drummond, New Brunswick in 1941 Turcotte left the logging community there in 1960 and had already developed a deep admiration for the horses that did the heavy work. He ventured west to Toronto. CHRHF Communicator, Curtis Stock, revealed that by chance Turcotte happened upon a telecast of the Kentucky Derby which sparked his interest and changed his trajectory.

Turcotte found his way into the Ontario racing community where horses were once again front and center in his life. He enjoyed an early affiliation with the Windfields Farm racing stable. Turcotte began his riding career in 1962 and established himself as the leading jockey. In 1963 at Fort Erie race track he guided Windfields’ diminutive Northern Dancer to a maiden win and was still aboard in the autumn when the pair triumphed in the Coronation Futurity Stakes securing the title of Canada’s Champion 2-year-old colt. Turcotte captured the leading rider title once again. However, the following spring Turcotte was overlooked when the mount came open on the classy Canadian colt with the defection

of Bill Shoemaker. Jockey Bill Hartack who teamed with Northern Dancer’s trainer

Horatio Luro to win the 1962 Kentucky Derby in record fashion with Decidedly got

preference over a disappointed Turcotte for the Triple Crown rides. In 1965 while Turcotte ambitiously explored opportunities in the eastern part of the United States he landed the mount on aspiring 3-year-old, Tom Rolfe. The pair finished an encouraging third in the Kentucky Derby. In the Preakness Stakes Turcotte urged Tom Rolfe forward at just the right moment to secure a pivotal victory. However, the Belmont Stakes narrowly eluded them in a photo finish. That sampling of Triple Crown experience would serve Turcotte well in the future.

Turcotte’s subsequent partnership with trainer and fellow Canadian, Lucien Laurin,

proved mutually rewarding. Laurin was contemplating retirement while his son, Roger, born in Montreal, trained for the Chenery family’s Meadow Stable. In 1971 Roger was enticed to move as trainer to the powerful Phipps stable. Roger suggested the vacuum left at Meadow stable could be filled by his father on perhaps a part time basis. A new and exciting phase of Lucien’s career took shape and Turcotte was along for the prosperous ride.

The pair combined in 1972 for a front-end Derby victory with Riva Ridge but hopes of a Triple Crown sweep were dashed when a sloppy surface materialized for the Preakness Stakes and Riva Ridge confirmed his earlier disdain for the footing skidding home in fourth place. The Belmont proved to be a romp for Riva Ridge. The following spring the pair were represented by the physically imposing Secretariat who emphatically swept the Triple Crown. Turcotte became the third Canadian rider to account for a Triple Crown along with Smokey Saunders in 1935 with Omaha and Johnny Longden in 1943 with Count Fleet. Turcotte became the first Canadian rider to capture consecutive Kentucky Derby wins and the third jockey ever to account for back-to-back Kentucky Derby wins joining Jimmy Winkfield who did it in 1901-1902 and Issac Murphy who accomplished the feat in 1890-1891. Turcotte was North America’s leading Stakes rider in both 1972-1973. Bruce Walker, CHRHF Communicator reminds us Turcotte’s considerable horsemanship during these remarkably successful years and that Laurin adopted Turcotte’s suggestions for changes that improved both stable stars’ performances.

Regrettably, Turcotte missed the mount in Secretariat’s final race which came in the autumn of 1973 at Turcotte’s former home-turf of Woodbine in the Canadian International Stakes. Turcotte had been suspended for a riding infraction by the New York stewards just days earlier and was set down. The suspension came at a time when appeals were not in vogue. Turcotte was on hand to work Secretariat over the tricky dirt intersection which bisected the outside Marshall turf course from the entrance to the inside turf. Secretariat navigated the dirt crossing perfectly and knifed through the fog of that morning through the final furlongs of his trial. On race day, Turcotte was relegated to the roles of commentator and cheerleader. Eddie Maple substituted for Secretariat’s final victory. The dank and darkening setting illuminated by the streaking Meadow stable colt had the crowd on their collective feet.

Turcotte was further recognized when receiving the Order of Canada in 1974 the first horse racing personality to be so honoured. A superb career which included 3,032 wins and countless highlights ended suddenly on, July 13,1978 at Belmont Park when Turcotte hit the ground after his mount was impeded in the opening furlong. Turcotte sustained severe injuries that resulted in permanent paralysis to his lower body. Going forward, Turcotte’s courage bolstered by his spirituality was fully exemplified in the many horse racing related charities he supported often in person and with a cheerful disposition especially the ones that benefitted Permanently Disabled Jockeys (PDJF). Another focus for Turcotte was being present and supporting events that magnified the celebrity status of Secretariat. Turcotte was honoured with the George Woolf Memorial Award in 1979 and became the initial recipient of the Avelino Gomez Memorial Award in 1984. Turcotte passed in August of 2025. Turcotte had been recognized originally in 1978 by the Jockey Club of Canada with what is now known as its coveted E. P. Taylor Award of Merit. His passing was recognized by the Jockey Club of Canada with a special memorial in April of 2026 at the Sovereign Awards Gala in Toronto.

William Donahue born in 1854 in Montreal did many things well in horse racing including, ride, train and own notable horses. In 1876 Donahue captured the Belmont Stakes aboard Algerine. Seven years later Donahue guided Leonatus to win the Kentucky Derby and in 1887 captured his own version of a Triple Crown sweep when he added the Preakness Stakes to his trophy case aboard Dunboyne. Notable among his other Stakes victories were successes in the Alabama, Champagne, Suburban and Manhattan Stakes. Donahue was prominent among famous riders of his era. Some early success as a trainer in New York came in the 1895 September Stakes at the Sheepshead Bay track where Donahue scored with Nanki Pooh. The inaugural running of the Brighton Handicap in 1896 provided Nanki Pooh and Donahue with another Stakes victory in that Coney Island feature race. A

training spell for the famed Seagram family at Ontario tracks was rewarding during 1927-1929. Donahue sent out the noted performer Young Kitty to win the 1927 Clarendon Stakes, Beau of the West to win the 1928 Durham Stakes and Best Bonnett to capture the Maple Stakes all in the famed Black and Gold Seagram colours. At that juncture of his career Donahue was known to acquire horses for his own account which he would also train. Later in 1933 Donahue sent out R. S. McLaughlin’s, Horometer, to win the Grey Stakes. Horometer went on to a Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame career. After a sensational career Donahue passed in Toronto in 1936

Thomas H Burns born in 1879 in, Cedar Springs, Ontario won his first of 1,333 races at

age 16 at the Hamilton track in the Eastern Niagara area and before long was a regular competing in central and western U. S. districts with stops at some Canadian venues including Fort Erie race track. Burns became the leading rider in wins in North America in both 1888 and 1889. He also competed in Europe during 1912and 1913 and was highly successful in both France and Germany. However, just after he returned home from Europe in 1913, he died. Burns’ big wins came in such prestigious New York events such as the, Travers, Metropolitan, Manhattan and Brooklyn Stakes. Three times he finished runner up in the Kentucky Derby. Burns finished second in the 1905 King’s Plate. Burns entered the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2011 in the newly formed Legend category.

Bannonthoroughbred

Welcome to Bannonthoroughbred

CANADIAN CONTENT AMONG ALL-TIME TOP 100 NORTH AMERICA LEADERS