But he later broke his promise and came out of retirement earlier this month to compete in the Leger Legends charity contest at Doncaster.
Unsurprisingly, he ended up winning.
And as it turns out, it was not to be his last appearance in the saddle at a public event.
He was back in the saddle during a special homecoming event in Moneyglass, County Antrim, on Saturday.
The difference this time was the 20-time champion's choice of mount and the event.
The 41-year-old was back in the village where he spent his childhood to take part in a donkey derby.
Also taking part were the boxing world champions Barry McGuigan and Eamon Magee and Northern Ireland record goal scorer David Healy.
So did the champion jockey continue his winning form that he set at Doncaster earlier this month?
Alas not, the derby was won by Barry McGuigan.

Walter Powley suffered serious burns following a fall at the Western Park View home in Hinckley Road, Leicester, in May 2012.
An investigation into his death found the radiator pipes and valves at the home were not covered.
It also found the owner was aware that Mr Powley was at risk of falls.
During a hearing at Leicester Crown Court, Western Park Leicester, based in Queen Street, Wolverhampton, pleaded guilty to safety breaches.
The firm was also ordered to pay £35,000 in costs.
In a statement, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) said Mr Powley had been admitted to the home four days before being injured.
It said he fell in his room and suffered serious burns to his right leg from the radiator pipe and valves, and superficial burns to both legs.
He died in hospital eight days later.
Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Dr Richenda Dixon said: "This was a foreseeable and preventable fatal incident.
"The scalding or burning risks from the pipes were long-standing and could have caused injury to any resident," he said.
In a statement on behalf of Mr Powley's family, his son Colin said: "We are still devastated, not only by our dad's death, but also how it came about.
"The fact that he died from injuries sustained as a result of, in our view, inadequate care in a place where he was supposedly safer than at home, is heart-breaking."
When the record-breaking jump jockey AP McCoy retired in April, he vowed that would be his last race.
[NEXT_CONCEPT]
A care home has been fined £100,000 after an 85-year-old resident died after becoming trapped between a wardrobe and a radiator.