Joseph P. Pons, Jr.

Joseph P. “Josh” Pons Jr. is a lifelong Maryland horseman. He is partner with his brother, Mike, in the operation of the two oldest Thoroughbred farms in Maryland: Country Life Farm, established in 1933 in Bel Air, and Merryland Farm, established in 1939 in Hydes.

Country Life Racing and Breeding Partnerships have been a leading national entity bringing new owners into the industry. The members of Country Life’s racing stable are trained by Mike Trombetta, who over the past 20 years has saddled 1,148 Country Life starters with earnings of more than $6.78 million through Oct. 15, 2023.

Country Life currently stands three stallions: Divining Rod, Mosler and Friesan Fire. Merryland is home to 40 horses-in-training on its five-eighths-mile training track.

Josh, 69, is a 1976 graduate of the University of Virginia and a 1982 graduate of the University of Kentucky School of Law. He has earned two Eclipse Awards for his writing in The Blood-Horse magazine, and he currently writes a monthly serial of essays on the horse business titled “In Our Time.”

Actively involved in horseracing legislation in Annapolis for decades, Pons is a past-president of the Maryland Horse Breeders Association. He has served one three-year-term on the board of the Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association. He resides with his wife, Ellen, at Country Life. They have two adult sons, Josh and August.

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