Fanning not ruling out riding return after cancer treatment

Joe Fanning’s long and illustrious career in the saddle is on hold after the veteran rider revealed he has undergone surgery for prostate cancer.

The 55-year-old, who has ridden almost 3,000 winners and won the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot aboard Subjectivist in 2021 for his long-time boss Mark Johnston, has not been seen in competitive action since November.

Speaking on Nick Luck’s daily podcast on Monday, Fanning said: “I think it started in December 2024 and then they kept doing my PSA (Prostate-Specific Antigen blood test) and it spiked a bit in December just gone. You get an MRI scan and a biopsy and then I got it (prostate) removed in the last week in February.

“I feel great. The first week I was a little bit sore, but once you get the first week out of the way I was flying then.

“They (doctors) said with my weight and everything it was a big plus for the recovery. After the first 10 days, once I got the catheter out, I was out walking the dogs for four miles, so it never really held me up.

“You just have to give it a bit of rest in the stomach area, but it’s been eight weeks now and I feel in good form.

“They’ll just keep in mind your PSA and do bloods. I’ll hopefully see a surgeon in a couple of weeks and start riding out again and take it from there.”

When asked whether a return to race riding is on the agenda, he added: “I’m definitely not ruling it out. Hopefully in a couple of weeks I’ll know better then.

“I suppose it does make you think, but there’s worse off people out there as well and I’ve been quite busy since I’ve been out. Sarah, my wife, has about 10 horses in at the moment so I’ve just been out helping a bit. I’ve been keeping busy, so that’s good for your mind I suppose.”