A breakthrough harness racing season in 2024 has launched rising star Brady Sweet into the national spotlight as an O’Brien Award finalist.
The 22-year-old driver/trainer from Springfield West, P.E.I. is one of two finalists for the 2024 Future Star Award, with the winner to be announced at the O’Brien Awards this Saturday, Feb. 8 in Mississauga, Ont.
Growing up in a harness racing family, Sweet knew as young as a kid in kindergarten that he was going to be a driver.
“I always went to the races, and I watched everyone drive, and I always thought I wanted to do that someday,” Sweet told Trot Insider.
At the age of 12, he started out by jogging a couple of his great uncle Alan’s horses with his father Stephen and began to develop his driving skills through the P.E.I. matinee program, where he was named the 2015 Junior Rookie of the Year and 2016 Rookie of the Year in recognition of his early potential.
Sweet earned his first pari-mutuel driving win in 2021 and has gained momentum the last couple of years, with 2024 being a breakthrough season for the young reinsman as he more than doubled his career win count. Sweet earned 59 victories to go along with 45 seconds and 45 thirds from 301 starts for an impressive 0.328 UDRS that ranked eighth in North America for drivers with 300-499 starts. Horses he drove earned $163,928 in purses for his first six-figure campaign.
In addition to driving a handful of his own trainees, Sweet’s recent career acceleration has come from more opportunities to drive for his brother-in-law Jeff Holmes's high performing stable.
“I started driving for him quite a bit this year. He's got some nice horses and really kind of helped put me on the map, I guess you'd say,” noted Sweet, whose first ever pari-mutuel win was with the Holmes-trained Burn Out Hanover, a pacer he continued to make regular winner’s circle appearances with throughout 2024. “Then I started picking up some other horses and just went from there.
“I think just driving with the top guys in Charlottetown and learning off them, and my brother-in-law putting me up on some pretty nice horses was a big help.”
Sweet’s 2024 highlights included driving the Holmes-trained Elroy Shiner for the majority of the pacer’s 18 victories. For the season, the Warrawee Needy gelding ranked top three in the nation for wins.
“Elroy Shiner would have to be one of the better ones here,” said Sweet. “I think I had 15 wins or so on him alone.”
Sweet also celebrated his first stakes win in 2024, driving his own three-year-old pacing filly Thinkingofeddie in a Grassroots division of the P.E.I. Colt Stakes on May 26 at Summerside Raceway and then another on Sept. 14 at Charlottetown Driving Park.
“Getting my first stakes win was a good one this year,” said Sweet as he recalled some of his memorable moments. “Being in the Premier's Cup at the end of the year there would have to be another one with Trevor Hicken's horse [Tony Too Tall]. Just the season I had in general, it was a pretty good season.”
Another feather in his cap included winning the Gamester-Pinkney Memorial Rookie Cup for young drivers from Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia with less than 100 wins.
Sweet’s next victory when racing resumes in May on Prince Edward Island will mark his 100th career driving win.
"This year I’m just looking forward to another good season, hopefully get to win some more stakes races this year and up my numbers from last year," said Sweet.
In the meantime while he awaits the Red Shores season for his next opportunity, the dedicated horseman will care for his small stable that includes a promising two-year-old Malicious colt while continuing to work fulltime at a welding shop after his trip to Ontario for the O’Brien Awards this weekend.
Being nominated in the Future Star category for Standardbred Canada’s national harness racing awards was a considerable surprise for Sweet, who is looking forward to attending the Black-Tie Gala with his family.
“It was a pretty big surprise. I never really thought of being nominated this year,” said Sweet. “It's pretty awesome to be nominated.”
As for the future, Sweet hopes to continue to prove his skills with every opportunity that comes his way as he pursues his passion with a focus on a fulltime catch-driving career.
“If the right opportunity came, I'd like to maybe move out to Ontario, try it up there… that might be in the future.”
(Standardbred Canada; photos courtesy Dawn MacInnis and Red Shores)