MILLER SAYS HE WILL TAKE TRAINING BREAK
Nine-time Del Mar champ has had six barn horse deaths
Trainer Peter Miller, who has won the Del Mar training title nine times, announced Thursday he is stepping back from racing “to spend more time with his family, focus on overall health and wellness, and pursue other interests.”
The move comes as Miller, who lives in North County, has been at the center of the conversation on horse safety after six of his horses died since Dec. 27. The next highest California trainer has three fatalities.
“I know that there may be some speculation related to this decision, however, I want to make it very clear that it is not a result of any regulatory action, secret agreement or hidden agenda of any kind,” Miller said in a statement. “This is strictly a personal decision.”
Miller’s name was brought up at Wednesday’s California Horse Racing Board meeting by animal rights’ activists as someone who should be scrutinized for his high number of deaths.
Six is a familiar number in that it was after the sixth fatality in a similar period of time that Jerry Hollendorfer was banned from running at Santa Anita and Golden Gate Fields, two California tracks owned by The Stronach Group. That case is currently being litigated in Los Angeles Superior Court. Hollendorfer was originally denied racing privileges at Del Mar, but a court order overturned that decision.
Miller, 55, has been training in Southern California since 1988 when he won his first race at Santa Anita. He has won five Breeders’ Cup races during that time and had two Kentucky Derby starters. He has won 1,332 races and $68,895,415 in purses, according to Equibase. Among his more notable horses have been Roy H, Stormy Liberal, Belvoir Bay, Comma to the Top, C Z Rocket and Mo Forza.
But it was at Del Mar where he achieved his greatest success, winning his first training title there in 2014 and his first two Breeders’
Cup races in 2017. On Oct. 2, the day after Miller had his fifth fatality, Del Mar sent out a tweet wishing Miller a happy birthday.
Miller said this is a “temporary hiatus” but did not indicate how long he would be away from racing. His long-time assistant Ruben Alvarado will be taking over his large stable.
“Managing a large stable is a 24-hour, 365-day endeavor,” Miller said. “The effort to compete at the highest level of my profession has taken its toll on my family and my health and I believe this decision is best for me, my family and our future.”
Miller’s hiatus will start Nov. 29, the day after the end of Del Mar’s fall meeting.
Miller trains at San Luis Rey Downs, a facility in Bonsall owned by The Stronach Group.
Four of his fatalities have occurred since Dec. 27 at the training facility, three by musculoskeletal injuries, known as breakdowns, and the other by what is believed to be a sudden death hemorrhage. The other deaths were racing and said to be musculoskeletal.