Pacing for Pink returns in 2026

6 May 2026

By Andrew Smith

The Queensland harness racing industry is uniting in the fight against breast cancer this month with the return of the Pacing for Pink campaign.

Throughout the month of May, male and female drivers in the Sunshine State are proudly wearing pink pants in the sulky to raise awareness and much-needed funds in support of the McGrath Foundation.

Ten drivers in Queensland are donning the pink pants for the month, joining drivers from around Australia in supporting the important cause.

Additionally, reinsman Leonard Cain is flying the flag for the Sunshine State in the Pacing for Pink Sponsored Drivers Challenge 2026.

As part of the challenge, every $5 donated in Cain’s name during the month will count as a virtual win to him.

The racing industry in Queensland contributed over $5,000 to the cause in 2025, with $144,000 raised as part of the national campaign.

Pacing for Pink co-ordinator Margaret Watson said she was hoping the Australia-wide effort could see $160,000 raised in 2026.

“We're hoping to get $160,000 which covers a full-time McGrath Cancer Care Nurse for a year, including training and development,” Watson said.

“And the thing is, if the foundation does not get enough money, they're going to have to drop a nurse which no-one wants to see.

“With the sponsored drivers challenge, I asked Leonard, and he said he was keen to do it - it’s all about raising more money and any extra donations towards supporting the cause.

“Nobody knew much about the virtual drivers challenge last year as it was the first one but we are hoping to make it a success and raise more funds through that.

“We just started at our little country club in Cobram when we were just raising little bits of money, and then it's sort of grown and since we've gone through into the states with the pink pants, it's just blown out.”

The initiative was set up country Victoria in 2011, and has since expanded to include the whole of Victoria as well as Tasmania, Western and South Australia, New South Wales and Queensland, and the ACT.

Throughout that time, almost $755,000 has been raised, with Watson hoping the magical $1 million mark can be reached in 2027.

The McGrath Foundation funds 367 McGrath Cancer Care Nurses in communities right across Australia, with the foundation’s purpose to ensure that no one goes through cancer without the care of a nurse.

Racing Queensland is proud to support the Pacing for Pink initiative, complementing the annual Team Teal campaign that runs in February to raise money for ovarian cancer research.

Click here for more information on Pacing for Pink.

Sponsors and drivers participating in the 2026 Pacing For Pink campaign: