Madison, WI — The Wisconsin Harness Horse Association is proud to announce its third and final Hall of Fame inductee for the Class of 2022. Brian McMahon, of Franksville, Wis., will be inducted at the Jan. 28 event in Madison, Wis.

Brian McMahon has been involved with horses, both Thoroughbreds and Standardbreds, for nearly 80 years. WHHA photo.

Brian has been involved with horses, both Thoroughbreds and Standardbreds, for nearly 80 years. He grew up in Westfield, Wis., and his second home was the Marquette County Fairgrounds where he rode his horses. He rode his first horse, Prince, at age 5. At age 10, he began riding as a jockey and won his first race then on Bonnie B. His first win as a trainer at the “big tracks,” as we called them, was in 1961 at Fairmont Park, a race that was obviously important to him as he recalled it when recently asked.

He rode and trained Thoroughbreds for his dad, John McMahon, and raced them at the county fairs in Wisconsin and at Arlington and Fairmont Park until 1977. In 1978, he bought his own Thoroughbred, Turn A Miss, who at one time was listed in the top 100 horses in Illinois and was his dad’s most successful horse racing at tracks in Illinois for six years. He continued as an owner and trainer of Thoroughbreds, racing them in Wisconsin and Illinois until 1993.

In 1994, Brian took after his dad and bought his first pacer. He trained them at his home in Yorkville and was a driver for many years and loved racing the county fairs. During his career, Brian has had two Pacers of the Year (Spirit In The Sky in 2015 and Fox Valley Windy in 2008). He has also been a bridesmaid three times (Dune Daddy in 2018; Audreys Queen in 2008; and Its Party Time in 2007). In addition to those honors, he has garnered 14 more top 10 pacing awards.

Brian was bestowed the prestigious Horse Person of the Year Award in 2012 for his success as an owner/trainer. He served a term on the WHHA Board of Directors and continues to act as their CPA doing WHHA taxes to this day.

For those wishing to attend the banquet and congratulate McMahon, contact WHHA President Gabe Wand at 608.574.5468 or gabewand@yahoo.com for more information.