TRAINERS

JOE PRIDE

Pound for pound, Joe Pride is considered one of the best trainers in Australia. From a medium-sized stable, Joe consistently wins major races.

Unlike most horse trainers, Joe does not hail from a family embedded in the racehorse industry. In fact, he initially studied psychology at Sydney University before his passion for racehorses took over.

He had to build his own legacy from the ground up and has enjoyed extraordinary success in a relatively short space of time. Joe’s swift rise to the top of Sydney’s training ranks can be attributed to a number of factors but none more so than the early influence of John Size. Joe spent four years with John at Randwick before being given a once in a lifetime opportunity. When John left for Hong Kong, he helped Joe establish a stable and clients which provided the platform from which his career would later flourish.

Now training at Warwick Farm, Joe has carved out a tremendously successful career with a reputation for being able to rejuvenate older horses, most notably dual-Group 1 winner Vision And Power. The son of Carnegie arrived at Joe’s stables with a record of 19 starts for one win and was coming off a 30 length defeat in a hurdle trial. Those who are familiar with the remarkable story will recall that Vision And Power won back-to-back Group 1’s in the George Ryder Stakes and Doncaster Mile only 18 months later. Those pair of Group 1’s were the horse’s ninth and tenth run of a preparation.

Joe has also been able to capture Group 1 wins with other tried horses such as Sacred Choice (2010 Myer Classic, 2011 Doncaster Handicap), Eduardo (2021 Galaxy, 2021 Doomben 10,000), Steps In Time (2014 Coolmore Classic) and Mariamia (2023 Galaxy).

Joe and Proven Thoroughbreds have celebrated multiple successes at the elite level together – highlighted by Think About It (2023 The Everest, 2023 Stradbroke Handicap, 2023 Kingsford Smith Cup) and Private Eye (2021 Epsom Handicap, 2022 Winners Stakes).

MATT HOYSTED

Matt Hoysted comes from a horse racing family rich in tradition. He grew up in Wangaratta before moving to Melbourne when he was 13 years old. Having a father as a trainer, Matt grew up in the stables, so it was no surprise that his first job upon moving to Melbourne was for Lloyd Williams at his Flemington stables with his uncle, Robert Hickmott, who was then stable foreman.

During his four years there, the stable transitioned to the world class training establishment Macedon Lodge. In that time Matt was able to work around champions like Efficient, Gallic and Zipping. Matt was then offered a position to work for Michael Moroney at his Flemington stable where he plied his trade for five years, of which three were served as assistant trainer. In that time the stable had Group 1 winners Brazilian Pulse, Monaco Consul and Glass Harmonium.

At the end of 2014 Matt made the move to Brisbane where he worked under leading Brisbane trainer Tony Gollan for 18 months before becoming assistant trainer for Steve O’Dea, who had prepared a swathe of Proven Thoroughbreds gallopers since 2009.

Less than four years into his role with the O’Dea stable, Matt was promoted to co-trainer and it wasn’t long before the partnership celebrated its first Group 1 together when Uncommon James triumphed in the Oakleigh Plate.

In 2024, Steve made the decision to step away from training which paved the way for Matt to become head trainer for the stable under the rebranded banner of Matt Hoysted Racing. Matt’s hands-on approach aligns with Proven’s training philosophy and has produced stakes winners like Scallopini, Gotta Kiss, Sesar, Candika, Stroll, Better Get Set & Canadian Dancer.

KERRY PARKER

Group 1 winning trainer Kerry Parker has been surrounded by horses for as long as he can remember. A native of the South Coast of NSW, Kerry’s first exposure to horses came with the trail riding business part owned by his father.

By his early teens, Kerry knew that his future lay with horses and the following years were spent learning the trade as a strapper and track rider under trainers such as Errol Amos at Canterbury, Sid Barker at Nowra and David Balfour in Adelaide. While Kerry absorbed valuable lessons from each of these masters, the seminal point of his career was unquestionably the five years he spent with the high profile and well respected Randwick trainer Les Bridge. During his stint at Sir Dapper Lodge, Kerry rode and tended to a long string of top class thoroughbreds including Drawn, Kensei, Row Of Waves and Just Blooming.

After the best part of a decade working in and around stables, Kerry branched out and secured a trainers licence in 1991, establishing his own stables at Kembla Grange where, to this day, his horses enjoy the peace and serenity of the picturesque provincial course.

Kerry’s first major success came early in his career when he trained the winner of the 1994 edition of the Group 2 AJC St Leger Stakes, Gold Sovereign. That particular galloper would also provide Kerry with his first runner in the Melbourne Cup. Another career highlight came when gutsy stayer Don Raphael scored a black type treble in the spring of 2004, comprising the Tattersals Plate (Listed), Colin Stephen Quality Hcp (G3) and Saab Quality Handicap (G2), before taking his place in The Melbourne Cup field, Kerry’s second starter in the Australia’s iconic race.

Amongst other reputable accolades, Kerry has twice reached the pinnacle of racing: In 2018 he guided Dark Dream from a maiden win at Moruya to Group 1 success (Queensland Derby) in a single preparation, and then three years later he transformed Think It Over from a class 1 tried horse to a multiple Group 1 winner.